Dramatic art as a literary device: Perception, understanding and social commentary through the use of subtextual imagery in 'Hongloumeng'.

摘要

The Qing novelist, Cao Xuegin's (ca.1715-1763) 120-chapter masterpiece, Hongloumeng, circulated in manuscript form until the first printed edition was released in 1792, nearly thirty years after his death. Throughout the body of the novel, Cao Xueqin inserted dramatic references as clues or markers to focus the readers' attention on character development and unfolding events and to comment on the social structure of eighteenth-century China. He included these references for a readership that was intimately familiar with the poetry, music and plots of these plays. This thesis will examine Cao Xueqin's innovative use of artistic situations as a means to expand upon his characters' inner feelings; create atmospheric settings for specific scenes; challenge his readership to explore the realm of possibility; question accepted Confucian doctrines; and to define the social reality created by a feudalistic system.