The term "Spring and Autumn brushwork" (春秋笔法), also known as "Spring and Autumn writing style" or "subtle and significant meanings," refers to a writing technique where the author subtly expresses their subjective views through detailed descriptions, rhetorical methods (such as word choice), and selective presentation of materials, without directly stating their opinions on people and events. Originally, it meant that later

generation A generation is all of the people born and living at about the same time, regarded collectively. It also is "the average period, generally considered to be about 20–⁠30 years, during which children are born and grow up, become adults, and b ...

s would rigorously examine the actions of previous people to determine who was extremely evil and who respected the current dynasty, embodying the idea that "good and evil will be proven by history" . Nowadays, the term "Spring and Autumn brushwork" denotes a writing style that is indirect yet conveys praise or criticism. Around 480 BCE,

Confucius Confucius (; pinyin: ; ; ), born Kong Qiu (), was a Chinese philosopher of the Spring and Autumn period who is traditionally considered the paragon of Chinese sages. Much of the shared cultural heritage of the Sinosphere originates in the phil ...

compiled the "

Spring and Autumn Annals The ''Spring and Autumn Annals'' is an ancient Chinese chronicle that has been one of the core Chinese classics since ancient times. ''The Annals'' is the official chronicle of the State of Lu, and covers a 242-year period from 722 to 481&nbs ...

" (though some believe it was not authored by Confucius). When recording history, Confucius subtly expressed approval or disapproval. Later, commentators wrote the "Three Commentaries on the

" ("

Zuo Zhuan The ''Zuo Zhuan'' ( zh, t=左傳, w=Tso Chuan; ), often translated as ''The Zuo Tradition'' or as ''The Commentary of Zuo'', is an ancient Chinese narrative history traditionally regarded as a commentary on the ancient Chinese chronicle the '' ...

," "

Gongyang Zhuan The ''Gongyang Zhuan'', also known as the ''Gongyang Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals'' or the ''Commentary of Gongyang'', is a commentary on the '' Spring and Autumn Annals'', and is thus one of the Chinese classics. Along with the '' Z ...

," and "

Guliang Zhuan The is considered one of the Chinese classics, classic books of ancient Chinese history. It is traditionally attributed to a writer with the surname of Guliang in the disciple tradition of Zixia, but versions of his name vary and there is no de ...

"), which interpreted the events documented in the "

" (originally just a chronological record), adding strict criticisms to judge the correctness of actions and determine good and evil .Authors dedicated works to elucidate Confucius' thoughts, especially concerning details of ritual in the "Spring and Autumn Annals." Thus, when

Mencius Mencius (孟子, ''Mèngzǐ'', ; ) was a Chinese Confucian philosopher, often described as the Second Sage () to reflect his traditional esteem relative to Confucius himself. He was part of Confucius's fourth generation of disciples, inheriting ...

said, "Confucius completed the Spring and Autumn Annals, causing treacherous ministers and villains to fear," the term "Spring and Autumn brushwork" began to imply the notion of later generations rigorously determining who was extremely evil or who respected the court .This approach, known as "subtle and significant meanings" or "Spring and Autumn brushwork," was praised in ancient

Chinese tradition Chinese culture () is one of the world's earliest cultures, said to originate five thousand years ago. The culture prevails across a large geographical region in East Asia called the Sinosphere as a whole and is extremely diverse, with custo ...

. The "

New Book of Tang The ''New Book of Tang'', generally translated as the "New History of the Tang" or "New Tang History", is a work of official history covering the Tang dynasty in ten volumes and 225 chapters. The work was compiled by a team of scholars of the So ...

" and the "

Historical Records of the Five Dynasties The ''Historical Records of the Five Dynasties'' (''Wudai Shiji'') is a Chinese history book on the Five Dynasties period (907–960), written by the Song dynasty official Ouyang Xiu in private. It was drafted during Ouyang's exile from 1036 t ...

" organized and edited by

Ouyang Xiu Ouyang Xiu (; 1007 – 1072 CE), courtesy name Yongshu, also known by his art names Zuiweng () and Liu Yi Jushi (), was a Chinese historian, calligrapher, epigrapher, essayist, poet, and politician of the Song dynasty. He was a renowned writer a ...

during the

Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...

, extensively employed the "Spring and Autumn brushwork" style.

Qian Daxin Qian Daxin (; 1728–1804) was a Qing dynasty scholar-official, historian, and linguist. He served as a commissioner of education and examinations in Guangdong Province.Zhu Xi Zhu Xi ( zh, c=朱熹; ; October 18, 1130April 23, 1200), formerly romanized Chu Hsi, was a Chinese philosopher, historian, politician, poet, and calligrapher of the Southern Song dynasty. As a leading figure in the development of Neo-Confuci ...

believed that the "Spring and Autumn Annals" did not contain such praise or blame .《朱子五经语类·统论经义》 en:“Zhu Xi’s Collected Commentaries on the Five Classics: General Discussion on the Meaning of the Classics” For example, during the internal conflict in the state of Zheng in the

Spring and Autumn period The Spring and Autumn period () was a period in History of China, Chinese history corresponding roughly to the first half of the Eastern Zhou (256 BCE), characterized by the gradual erosion of royal power as local lords nominally subject t ...

, known as the rebellion of , Confucius satirized the behavior of Zheng Zhuanggong and his brother Gongshu Duan ("Zheng Bo defeated Duan at Yan"), but he praised .

Example

A well-known example of the use of "Spring and Autumn brushwork" is the nuanced connotations embedded in single characters to imply praise or criticism. For instance, the three verbs indicating "to kill"—杀 (sha), 弑 (shi), and 诛 (zhu)—each carry deeper meanings. "杀" (sha) implies killing someone innocent, "弑" (shi) denotes regicide or a subordinate killing a superior, and "诛" (zhu) signifies killing someone guilty and with justification. In the "Mencius," Chapter 8 of "Liang Hui Wang II,"

King Xuan of Qi King Xuan of Qi (), personal name Tian Bijiang, was from 319 BC to 301 BC the king of the Qi state. King Xuan succeeded his father, King Wei, who died in 320 BC after 37 years of reign. King Xuan reigned for 19 years and died in 301 BC. He wa ...

asks about

King Wu of Zhou King Wu of Zhou (; died ), personal name Ji Fa, was the founding king of the Chinese Zhou dynasty. The chronology of his reign is disputed but is generally thought to have begun around 1046 BCE and ended with his death three years later. Ki ...

's campaign against

King Zhou of Shang King Zhou (; ) was the pejorative posthumous name given to Di Xin of Shang () or Shou, King of Shang (), the last king of the Shang dynasty of ancient China. He is also called Zhou Xin (). In Chinese, his name Zhòu ( 紂) also refers to a horse ...

: "Is it permissible for a minister to kill his sovereign?" Here, King Xuan refers to King Wu's rebellion and the subsequent killing of

King Zhou King Zhou (; ) was the pejorative posthumous name given to Di Xin of Shang () or Shou, King of Shang (), the last king of the Shang dynasty of ancient China. He is also called Zhou Xin (). In Chinese, his name Zhòu ( 紂) also refers to a horse c ...

. Mencius responds, "A wicked man who harms humanity is merely a solitary individual. I have heard of punishing a criminal named Zhou, but I have not heard of regicide." This implies that King Zhou's actions made him unworthy of being considered a legitimate sovereign, thus justifying King Wu's actions as "诛" (punishing a guilty man) rather than "弑" (regicide).

References

Confucius Confucian culture Chinese historians

Example

See also

References