EALC145

The Portrayal of Love in the Tang Romances

One defining characteristic of humankind is the ability to feel, express, and convey love to one another love is something so mysterious and deeply rooted in the human psyche, something that every human longs for. Throughout history, people have struggled in the attempt to define love, to put something indescribable into words. Throughout history, creativity, expression, art, and imagination have all stemmed and flowed from experiences based in love, whether it be infatuation, heartbreak, jealousy, or the infinite shades of gray that range across the entire spectrum of love. Love starts and ends wars; love creates, destroys, shapes, and molds. With each culture, love and the relationships that embody love are defined differently. Each society will have its own rules and regulations, emphasizing different aspects to the relationship. China is not an exception the Chinese culture has also

struggled to define love and to fit it within the boundaries of Chinese society and its expectations. One way that the Chinese culture has done so is through the use of stories and poems, many times involving the supernatural. In particular, there are two stories written during the Tang dynasty, both of which capture the idea of love from different perspectives: Ren the Fox Fairy and Story of a Singsong Girl. These two tales afford an insight to how the Chinese perceive love and relationships. In Ren the Fox Fairy, Wei, a wealthy young Lord, and Zheng, a poor man who studied the military arts, were best of friends. One day, when the two friends separated, Zheng meets a stunningly beautiful girl named Ren and Zheng immediately found himself captivated after spending some intimate time with her. After ending their initial

encounter, Zheng quickly learns from a local shopkeeper that Rens true identity was that of a fox fairy yet even with this knowledge, Zheng, unable to forget Rens beauty, seeks Ren out and professes his love to her. Ren responds by saying, I would like to serve you all my life (399). When Wei discovers and hears about Rens matchless beauty, he attempts to seduce and even coerce Ren. However, when Wei realizes that Ren is unshakably faithful, he decides to support Ren and Zheng until Rens unfortunate death. There are several key components to this story that reveal Rens characteristics as a female lover. Firstly, after Ren rejects Weis advances, Wei proceeds to treat the couple with much love, financing their living and begrudging them nothing. As a result, Ren feels the need to repay Wei back for all of his care and she does so by finding female replacements because she herself could not be Weis lover. So she first brings her cousin, a marketplace dressmaker who catches Weis eyes; when Wei fancies a reed-organ player who happens to be the generals favorite, Ren develops an elaborate plan in which she gives the girl an illness and bribes a witch doctor to say that Weis house is the only place where the girl would be healed after the girl is transferred over, Ren heals the girl and introduces her to Wei. Although no person would be able to replace Ren in Weis eyes, the fact that Ren tries so hard to fulfill the gap in Weis heart shows her deep care towards Wei. Although she wouldnt be able to satisfy Wei personally, Ren tries every measure in her capacity to fill the void vicariously through other girls, each of whom was even personally related to her in some way.

In regards to her husband Zheng, we see that Ren elevates her husband and their relationship above her own well being. In terms of loyalty, Ren resists Weis advances three times even though there was no physical way that she would be able to overpower Weis natural strength. It would have been extremely easy to give in in actuality, it probably wouldve even been profitable to leave Zheng to be with Wei, as the latter was much wealthier and higher up on the social pyramid. Yet she refused to give in, forsaking a more comfortable future filled with material pleasures and choosing to fight for Wei even though she knew it was futile physically. Furthermore, when Zheng had to travel to a western post as a military captain about a year into their relationship, he strongly desired that she accompany him. Even though she knew that it would be unlucky for [her] to go west this year, Ren placed her husbands desires over her own safety, a decision that would result ultimately in her death (402). This really points to and even prominently displays Rens obedience and respecting of her husbands wishes. In Ren the Fox Fairy, several aspects of the Chinese culture stand out. In regards to society, the element of patriarchal hierarchy stands out. This is seen in Rens obedience to her husbands wishes even unto death as one who valued her husbands desires over her own, Ren fit the model of an submissive wife. Another piece of the puzzle that comes hand-in-hand with a society dominated by men was the common practice of polygamy. Wei, as a young and rich lord, already had multiple wives and yet he was always lusting for more. Thus, we see that it wasnt abnormal for men, especially those backed by political power and wealth, to have many mistresses and to continue to accumulate women almost as if they were commodities.

Story of a Singsong Girl follows the story of the son of the Lord of Yingyang, an extremely promising young man who was supplied richly by his father so that he would pass the provincial examination and become qualified to become a government official of high standing. On his way to the capital, he is waylaid by a singsong girl of

bewitching beauty and after becoming infatuated by her presence, he forgoes his original purpose and instead stays with her for a year, squandering all of his wealth and riches just as the prodigal son wasted his fortune in the Bible. After all his possessions are spent, the girl disappears with her mother without a trace, leaving the heartbroken and destitute young man broken to the point where he nearly dies. However, he is rescued by undertakers and mourners, and as a talented and intelligent individual, he quickly masters the art of mourning. By pure coincidence, the young man is discovered by his fathers servant during a mourning competition and he is brought back to the Lord of Yingyang. However, not only did the son fail to accomplish his goal, but he squandered all of his possessions, thus dishonoring the family name consequently, he was beaten to the point of near death and only barely recovered due to the treatment of several individuals. At a certain point, he became too much of a burden on his caretakers and so he was abandoned, forced to scrounge out a living while floating between caves and lavatories. When the winter came, the young man chances upon the girl who had left him and she, full of regret and guilt, nurtures him back to full health and then goes further to completely support his studies as he finishes the goal of passing the provincial exam he goes further to place first in a special examination that elevated his social status to the elite in a heartbeat. He retires

as a very powerful and wealthy governor and the singsong girl, who becomes his wife, is given the title of the Lady of Qiankuo. What is striking about this tale is the conduct of the singsong girl in her interactions with the young man after deserting him. The singsong girl, in their second encounter, realizes the damage shes inflicted on the young man in various facets of his person and so she overflows with pain, sympathy, regret, guilt, and love for him. Her decision and betrayal had resulted in not only the destruction of his physical condition, but also in the splintering of his spiritual and mental condition and the obliteration of his relationship with his family. He had been reduced to states of near death twice, each time by a different way : it was depression first when the girl disappeared and it was when his father beat him viciously and he never had the chance to fully recover due to the lack of those who would faithfully care for him. In terms of his spiritual and mental condition, we see the reduction of a young, intelligent man full of life to a mere ghost who spent his nightsand his days haunting the markets and booths(410). Not only did he feel betrayed and forsaken by the girl, there must have been feelings of guilt for failing his family, depression and self-pity for his troubles, and self-loathing for his pathetic state, all of which drained his youthful vitality to the point where he became a

shadow of who he was. Most importantly, we see the severing of ties between father and son, a very significant matter in regards to the Chinese culture. Throughout all Chinese history, the relationship between son and father was something mysteriously sacred; filial piety and respect from the son towards the father was preeminent and when the father died, this honoring of the father would transform into ancestral worship. Thus, the ties between a

father and son could be said to be something according to the will of Heaven. According to the singsong girl, The love of father and son is implanted by heaven; yet because of [her] his father hardened his heart and tried to kill him, then abandoned him (411). In this tale, the son committed the grave sin of blackening the family and fathers name once again, we see the prime importance of retaining ones honor in Chinese culture. The father was willing to sever all connections with his son, something that was heavenly, because honor was more important than life. Just as the assassins of old would rather die than lose their honor, the Lord of Yingyang was willing to beat his son to death in order to preserve his honor. Yet with the valleys come the mountains and peaks. Just as this girl ruined the life of the young man, she also determined in her being to not only return him to his former state, but to bring him on further to greater successes and glory. And so she leaves her mother to nurture him, but not before providing adequate amounts of provision for her to live twenty years. In this, we see that Ren not only fulfills her obligations to the one she loved, but also completes her duty to her family. And the way she takes care of the young man restores faith in humanity in one year, the singsong girl has pulled him from the brink of death back to his original health. She then pours out all of her wealth and energy on his studies, providing him with the physical means by buying books and buoying him psychologically by encouraging him to write poems as a method of relaxation. She even limits his actions

by patiently waiting for the right time to tell him to take various examinations as a direct result of her advice, the young man outstrips all of his competitors with ease and his social standing skyrockets. With this, she also indirectly repairs the broken

relationship between father and son because the son now is worthy to reclaim the family name and has erased the stain of dishonor. More strikingly, at the peak of his success, when it was easy for her to revel and bathe in his success and glory, the singsong girl remembered her old mother and chooses to return to care for her mother until death. She wasnt caught up and blinded by the prospect of a comfortable life with its instant gratification she realized that family was more important to her than material satisfaction. With Ren the Fox Fairy and Story of a Singsong Girl, there are several overarching themes. First, there is the persistency and unwavering faithfulness

exhibited by both Ren and the singsong girl, qualities important to the Chinese. There were multiple instances in both stories where the female heroes could have fallen prey to their feelings or prey to the situation; it wouldve been easier for Ren to give up and accept Weis advances and it wouldve been much less of a headache for the singsong girl to have ignored the young man. The women both chose to ignore material wealth and gratification, instead choosing to love, care, suffer, and fulfill the needs of their beloved ones and family at their own expense. With the righteousness of these two girls, we see something amazing. Ren and the singsong girl were by no means the model heroines. They werent wealthy, they had no background or social standing, and they werent practiced and trained in the arts of high society. The singsong girl was one trained in entertainment and companionship she was trained to fulfill the needs of many men and the concept of faithfulness and constancy should have been completely lost on her. To go even further, Ren wasnt even human she was a mere fox, a beast known to deceive men! Yet ironically, they

were more human and upright than many other women; there is almost a reversal of character in both these tales between the upper and lower class women. The mistress and the beast were more virtuous and honorable in comparison to many females of higher social standing. In fact, the singsong girl and her consistency was even likened to Chinese heroines of old. On the other hand, these tales both serve as a warning to men. With both relatoinships, the men found themselves infatuated with the beauty of the women, succumbing to the lust of their flesh and eyes. Through these stories, men are warned not to plunge into blind desire; instead, they are encouraged and even implored to observe the situation and weigh the crucial factors involved in committing to a relationship. Love is not something to be taken lightly there is a clear line separating lust and love and while Ren and the singsong girl knew the boundaries and the responsibilities that came with relationships, the men in both tales, at least initially, found themselves on the side of lust, thinking only to satisfy their bodily desires. So, the two stories convey the message to men not to be ruled by their wandering eyes and fickle emotion, but to deeply deliberate and contemplate, even to the point of examination, all factors before committing to a lifelong relationship. Ren the Fox Fairy and Story of a Singsong Girl are two tales that reveal much in regards to love. Yet, they only scratch the surface in how the Chinese perceive love. For example, in Wushuang the Peerless, we see the persistence in Wangs overcoming of difficult situations as he pursues to be reunited with his beloved Wushuang, an antithesis to the behavior of the men who fell to their lust. Obviously, love is not something that can be fully characterized by several stories, but it is something that can

be identified as important, necessary, and inseparable from culture. And as the Chinese sought to find the truth about love, it has deeply permeated and become interwoven with Chinese society and culture.