![]() ![]() It’s only nearer the second half of the Romance, when he's almost an old man (by third century standards), that he manages to be successful, after being disregarded for his entire life. This is because at the beginning, Liu Bei, though being of royal blood, sold straw sandals to earn the money to live and this humble condition caused him to be looked down upon by the other warlords during the first phases of the story. In fact, while the official records favoured Cao Cao 曹操, the folklore used to show some favour to Liu Bei's. The emperor needed something to create distance with the past: Liu Bei 刘备 and the kingdom of Shu-Han 蜀汉 proved to be perfect for the job. It was during this time that Luo Guanzhong wrote the Romance at court. This narrative of Cao Cao 曹操 being ‘the good guy’ went on until the Yuan dynasty (1360s). This happened because the Jin 晋 dynasty needed to remark the legitimacy of their claim on the empire, given that they came about after replacing the kingdom of Wei 魏. ![]() ![]() In those Records much emphasis and praise was given to the figure of Cao Cao 曹操, the "progenitor" of the kingdom of Wei 魏, an intelligent and meritocratic man. In fact the Records of the Three Kingdoms, written by Chen Shou, were commissioned by none other than the new Jin 晋 dynasty.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |