Three Kingdoms (San Kuo)
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The Chinese classic Three Kingdoms (San Kuo) was written by Lo Kuan-chung in the late fourteenth century. The novel deals with the historic period centering around the fall of the Han dynasty. The Han dynasty existed for approximately four hundred years (202 B.C. to 222 A.D.), and the Chinese people have traditionally regarded it as "the stable imperial model against which the great dynasties of later ages were measured" (Hucker 133). The novel Three Kingdoms opens in approximately 169 A.D., a time of great disunity in China. Prior to that time, several court eunuchs had taken control of the government and established a reign of terror against the Chinese people. In 169, the Yellow Scarves rebellion broke out. Although this rebellion sought to remove the eunuchs from power, it also represented a threat to the traditional society of the Han emperors. Therefore, the Emperor Interlocutor called upon his loyal subjects to volunteer their services in an effort to restore imperial order. In response to this call, three young men, Liu Pei, Kuan Yu and Chang Fei, came together and made a vow of brotherhood. In the novel, these three "brothers" claim: "Thus we may fulfill our duty to home and country and defend the common folk of the land" (Lo Kuan-chung 9). At first, the three men served under the Emperor's Chancellor, Ts'ao Ts'ao. This Chancellor was also interested in reuniting the empire. However, after the year 190, Ts'ao Ts'ao turned against the Emperor and began
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that they were capable of working together toward a mutual goal. The overall theme of the novel is concerned with the Confucian duty to society as a whole. Nevertheless, Taoist elements are also accepted as normal in the lives of the Chinese. In fact, the opening lines of the novel express the theory of yin and yang which is at the heart of Taoist thought: "the empire, long divided, must unite; long united, must divide" (Lo Kuan-chung 3). In the opening chapter, it is noted that the leader of the Yellow Scarves rebellion was originally a Taoist priest. By contrast, during the Han dynasty, Confucianism was known as "the orthodox doctrine of the Chinese state" (Fitzgerald 26). In this way, a rivalry between the two great philosophical traditions is implied. Nevertheless, for the most part, Three Kingdoms shows Taoism and Confucianism as being compatible with one another. For example, in one passage, the Taoist priest Water-mirror advises Liu Pei by citing a quote from Confucius (Lo Kuan-chung 96).
This merging of Taoist and Confucian influences is seen even more strongly in the character of Chuko Liang (also known as K'ung-ming). Chuko Liang is the military strategist who agrees to help Liu Pei in his struggle to restore
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2914
Approximate Pages = 12 (250 words per page)
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