The role of disguise in early Chinese culture: A reading of the 'Wu Yue chunqiu'.

摘要

This dissertation examines the role of disguise in early Chinese culture, by interpreting the text of the Wu Yue chunqiu. Written by Zhao Ye (fl. Late 1st century A.D.), the Wu Yue chunqiu is a Han historiography which narrates the war between the state of Wu and the state of Yue in the Spring and Autumn Period (770--476 BC).;My concern with the role of disguise in the Wu Yue chunqiu focuses on three issues: why disguise is so popular, the relationship between disguise and social status, and the relationship between disguise and recognition. By exploring these three issues, my dissertation tries to examine how Zhao Ye portrays a reflection of the contemporary situation in the Eastern Han by narrating the war between Wu and Yue.;The first chapter explores why Zhao Ye highlights the issue of disguise. My main argument is that Zhao Ye's narrative could be seen as a reaction to the state ideology, official historiography, and social ethos in Han.;The second chapter of my dissertation deals with the reason why disguise is popular. My argument is that the necessity and importance of disguise in the Wu Yue chunqiu stems from three factors: the thirst for honor, the contradiction among roles, and the want of fixed moral standard.;The third chapter of my dissertation aims to examine how disguise is related to social status. I argue that people's high social status can be transformed into a privilege which permits them to disguise in order to pursue their own honors; while the ability to disguise of people from the bottom of the social hierarchy is exerted to satisfy the needs of the noble.;The fourth chapter of this dissertation explores the relationship between disguise and recognition. The competition between disguise and recognition throughout this narrative shows how powerful the ability to disguise and recognize other's disguise is. The ability to disguise and recognize other's disguise can be transformed into an automatic advantage over others.