From a literary perspective
we shouldn't assume a work of fiction
is a reflection of reality
That's why I object to the autobiographical
and biographical (suoyin) interpretations
Suoyin means finding the hidden meaning
The Autobiographical School claims that
the Jia family is actually the Cao family
making the novel Cao Xueqin's autobiography
The Autobiographical School of interpretation
does research on the Cao clan
to explain the plot of the Hongloumeng
I think this is the wrong approach
Even if Cao Xueqin drew on his background
his novel is still a work of fiction
He used literary techniques
to write a literary masterpiece
To realize his aesthetic vision
he integrated plot events into a coherent whole
So he couldn't write just based on real life
By contrast, the Biographical School
argues the novel wasn't based on the Cao clan
but rather on the Nalan Mingzhu clan
Nalan Mingzhu served the Kangxi emperor
Or maybe it's about another major clan
That's what the Biographical School claims
They compare textual and historical evidence
to claim the novel is some family's story
I don't like either interpretation
I don't like to draw parallels
between real people and fictional characters
Instead, I see the Hongloumeng as a unique novel
about a "Grand Family" leading a lifestyle
far removed from our own life experience
This is the basis of my discussion
I'll cite textual and historical evidence
and show that though the novel reflects reality
you can't claim the characters are real people
I'm not Biographical or Autobiographical
So what's my focus?
The Grand Family as represented in the novel
To me it doesn't matter whose family it's based on
The point is the family's grandeur
as a reflection of social history
To me, it's a novel about a social class
I take a historical approach to facilitate
our understanding of the novel
The key word is "facilitate"
because reality and fiction are different
I hope you'll understand
that the novel is not totally realistic
But Cao did represent the institutions
and ideologies of his milieu
in constructing his narrative
My approach is to read the novel
as a reflection of a unique social context
and a special social class in the 18th c.
First we need to know some social history
Say you're reading a story about a hotel:
you can read up on how the hotel operates
to see if the story is really well-written
If you read a story about mine workers
you can read the social history of mining
Often we read novels as universal
but we'll focus on a particular social class
Alright
Everything I say
is based on historical records
about a scion of a typical Grand Family
the kind of clan Cao Xueqin wrote about
in the Hongloumeng
I'll quote a real life Chinese aristocrat
who described his life in detail
for all posterity
But first an explanation:
the materials I'll quote tell us
what a Qing era "Grand Family" was like
Rouge Inkstone Commentary uses this term
and so does the Hongloumeng
Characters like Grannie Jia use it
"Grand Families" were not just big families
In 18th c. China,
Grand Families included aristocrats
and forbidden palace administrators
not great landowning families
not local gentry families
not local bigwigs
They don't qualify as Grand Families
No matter how rich or big your family is
it's not a "Grand Family"
A Grand Family was aristocratic
We'll see how grand such families were
Aristocratic clans were grand
So was the clan that administered
the forbidden palace
Forbidden palace administrators worked
in the Imperial Household Department
A Grand Family was extraordinarily grand
None of us has experienced such prosperity
It's hard for us to imagine the grandeur
of such a family
So please keep in mind
that the fictional Jia family is
an 18th c. "Grand Family"
They live in such aristocratic luxury
that they are practically nobility
Yes, nobility!
You'll see what I mean
If you really want a biographical reading
a real match for the Jia clan
it's not the Cao clan
It's the Aisin Gioro clan!
But seriously, we shall soon see:
though the novel isn't biographical or autobiographical
it's about a typical Grand Family
This is the historical perspective I am taking
to explain the social context
of the Hongloumeng
Alright
The Jia clan is close to the imperial clan
The eldest Jia daughter is an imperial consort
You know how hard it was to be a consort?
Do you think a pretty commoner
with an official recommendation
could marry the emperor?
No way!
In Qing China
you had to be from a distinguished family
and get selected as a lady-in-waiting
before you qualified to be a consort
Many articles I read underestimate the Jia clan
One scholar wrote: the Jia's are prosperous
because their daughter marries the emperor
That's ridiculous!
Another wrote Jia Zheng's official income
sustained the family
so that the family was in decline
These scholars
are what Red Inkstone would call
"ignorant peasants in the city"
Would a grand family rely on dad's income?
Ridiculous!
Like you, I wasn't born into a Grand Family
When I read "ignorant peasants in the city"
in Red Inkstone's Commentary
I just ignored it,
because I didn't understand it
Then I realized that Red Inkstone
kept repeating "Grand Family" with such pride
as if to remind us how grand the Jia family was
Readers might be put off by his pride
We might think: Why so proud?
The Cao family is in decline
We feel this way because we're commoners
But we must try to understand a grand family
heart and soul
Understanding is hard, but we can at least try
This is what we should do as researchers
So I came to accept Red Inkstone's perspective
I think you have to identify with your research subject
If you can't, then don't research it
It's pointless to study something just to criticize it
So when I found myself identifying
with comments like "ignorant peasants in the city"
I thought: Oh no, I'm in too deep
But you have to go deep to understand
the words and deeds of the characters
and the Hongloumeng itself