26 Exploring Ideology in Imperial China Through the Lens of Chinese Ghost Stories

Zhiguai xiaoshuo 志怪小說, tales of supernatural, revolve around thought-provoking and folklore-based human encounters with monsters or ghosts. Finished between 1671 and 1715, Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio (Liaozhai zhiyi 聊齋誌異) is a cornerstone zhiguai story. Being a prominent example of zhiguai xiaoshuo, Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio has been extensively studied as a xiaoshuo, especially its succinct stories’ socio-historical context and its seemingly irrational human-ghost romance. Stylistically, zhiguai xiaoshuo’s incorporation of taboo romantic relationships, similar in style to caizi jiaren xiaoshuo 才子佳人小說, improves readability and offers novelty to the readers. Nonetheless, the ideological justification behind the stories and dynamics of human-ghost interactions have somehow been overlooked. Through Madam White Is Kept Forever under Thunder Peak Tower and stories from Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, I will explore the confluence between zhiguai xiaoshuo and ideology. Specifically, I will examine how different authors resort to humanized monsters to make zhiguai xiaoshuo a metaphor for either the author’s own personal ideology or the state-favored ideology. In other words, the different authors’ own personal ideology is embodied in human-like monsters who are often more virtuous, in a Confucianism sense, than many of the actual humans they encountered. Since metaphor can be viewed as a vehicle that carries its abstract tenor,^[1] in our case, ideology and religious beliefs, this essay will also probe ways in which ghost stories use romance, filial piety, and religious elements as ideological state apparatus to construct ideological metaphors.

Originating in the Six dynasties and Tang dynasty, zhiguai xiaoshuo peaked in the Ming and Qing dynasties, during which xiaoshuo became popular amongst the working class. Zhiguai xiaoshuo from the Ming and Qing dynasties often used supernatural-being to mock the corrupted governments. Zhiguai xiaoshuo during this period, including Madam White Is Kept Forever under Thunder Peak Tower, writings by Ji Xiaolan 紀曉嵐, and What the Master Would not Discuss (Zibuyu 子不語), exemplify the diversity of ghost stories in late imperial China, whereas the other zhiguai xiaoshuo such as Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio offer us a unique opportunity to study how authors of zhiguai xiaoshuo project their own personal ideology (of the world they live in) and their unfulfilled dreams.

Ideology, or the background ideas that we possess about the way in which the world must function and of how we function within it, is ever present.^[2] Specific socioeconomic structures require ideologies that are advantageous to maintain these socioeconomic structures. Favored by the state officials and religions, institutions instantiate certain ideologies or “ideological state apparatuses,” such as family (filial piety), family lineage (patriarchy), temples (religion), etc., which provides the readers with highly identifiable categories in which they can recognize themselves. In imperial China, the ruling ideology and its favored school of religion renewed in almost every dynasty, which understandably sought new means to secure and reinforce their ruling power. Religion is often a primary tool for the Chinese emperors to not only reinforce ideology but also to educate the public. Hence, literatures containing religious elements, especially popular literatures like xiaoshuo, can be subject to censorship, or can simply represent the successful results of the religious propaganda in imperial China. Admittedly, readability, intricacy and captivating plots, etc., are indispensable qualities to consider for many highly celebrated fiction novels. Nevertheless, in imperial China, having the artistic and literal value is just one premise for a successful work considering only the ideologically and religiously acceptable xiaoshuo would be admitted by the officials and printed out for the readers. For example, The Plum in the Golden Vase was banned from publishing and remains lesser known because of its erotic theme, a taboo topic that imperial China avoided and strongly prohibited. On the other hand, Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism often, if not always, take turns as the “official” religion or ruling philosophy in imperial China. Thus, mainstream zhiguai xiaoshuo often show an inclination and endorsement of these religions and philosophies.

Taken as a whole, the inherent advantages of employing zhiguai xiaoshuo to preach ideologies reside not only in its metaphorical vessel but also in its fusion of credible folklore-based plots and the fascinating yet irrational magics and monster-related incidents. These endowed advantages of zhiguai xiaoshuo, in turn, grant their authors more creative freedom and almost guarantee more popularity if the stories endorse the state favored religion and ideology.

Humanizing the supernatural being is a constant theme in the zhiguai xiaoshuo; the more human-like a monster is, the less alienated the monster would be to the readers. In Pu Songling’s fictional world, particularly, humanized monsters are often rendered as less suspicious and assimilated characters. In “The Laughing Girl,” from Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, Ying Ning, the half fox and half human wife of a talented young scholar Wang Zifu, was introduced as a gorgeous charming young woman with whom Wang Zifu was so deeply in love with that he fell ill from missing her. Ying’s innocent reaction to Wang’s longingness of love and lust makes her stand out from both secular humans and supernatural-beings. To provide more context, we shall briefly touch on some plot points here. Ying and Wang’s first encounter happened in a similar fashion as those love-in-first-sight encounters in caizijiaren xiaoshuo. The caizi jiaren romantic elements are extensively used as Wang pursues Ying. Despite the rumors about Ying’s half fox identity, Wang family’s suspicion was erased as soon as she won everyone over with her virtuous and kind acts. Ying’s neighbor tried to have sex with her but ended up losing his life as Ying punished him with magic. Thanks to Wang and Ying’s good reputation, Ying Ning was spared from being deemed guilty for accidentally killing the neighbor. More interestingly, Ying stopped laughing after experiencing these hardships in the human world. By humanizing the fox as a first timer in the human secular world, the consequences that humans face in Pu’s fox stories confer a powerful metaphor for being indulgent of secular human desires. Though discouraged in imperial China literatures, Ying’s unrestrained expression of her emotion and feeling not only creates a free-spirited, intelligent, and prudent woman image, but also exposes the stereotypes imposed on women by society in imperial China. For example, Ying’s innocent laughter elicits and exposes the neighbor’s sexualization of women. By portraying female foxes as an intelligent, beautiful, yet prudent and with filial piety, Pu Songling projects his relatively more liberal ideology of women’s role: a beautiful yet assertive and capable woman who can still afford her social and domestic duties.

Overall, Pu’s female fox stories portray images of women as unbound and powerful, rejecting the stereotypes for women in imperial China and conferring the author’s own ideology of women’s societal role. Taking advantage of the metaphorical vehicle from foxes’ humanization, zhiguai xiaoshuo always positions human-fox interaction in parallel to foxes’ material and sexual offering to humans. Metaphorically, these offerings from supernatural beings signify secular desires in Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism. Depending on the behavior which ensues the offerings, moral tests reveal human nature through their reaction to secular temptation. This can be exemplified by the implied disdain towards secular desires in numerous zhiguai xiaoshuo, especially within Pu Songling’s work. For example, foxes in the “Golden Goblet” were presented as courteous, considerate, and respectful “humans,” while Yin Shidan, a young scholar, steals the foxes’ golden goblet as bragging proof for his friends. Differing from traditional fox representation as greedy and cunning, the foxes in Pu Songling’s work often possess wealth and virtues that the human characters lack, such as benevolence (ren 仁), righteousness (yi 義), propriety (li 禮), wisdom (zhi 智), and fidelity (xin 信).^[3] Thus, we can reason that, while complying to the general sociocultural rules, supernatural characters represent and practice Pu Songling‘s ideology of an ideal society. Employing various ideological state apparatus of romantic, religious, and familial elements, Pu Songling’s work exemplifies a repertoire of ideological manipulation.

On the other end of the spectrum, Madam White Is Kept Forever under Thunder Peak Tower explores the struggle between desire and morality by humanizing the snakes. Since the relationship of Xu Xuan and Madam White contradicts the beliefs that Buddhist abbots preach, the pair displays the opposition of secular desire, embodied by Madam White, and orthodox Buddhist beliefs, through the abbot who encapsulates Buddhist ideology. The story also emphasizes the negative effects of seduction, and how men’s reaction towards seduction should be constrained by strict moral standards. Every time Xu Xuan spends the stolen money from Madam White, he goes to jail and is deemed guilty. This corresponding narrative structure highlights the similar nature of the two incidents, namely greed. By juxtaposing narratives of material desire and longingness for love, the story implies a moral basis for the relentless nature of secular desire by metaphorically strengthening it with the unethical nature of the former. Overall, the tragic ending of Madam White and Xu Xuan’s conversion to Buddhism warns readers to refrain from indulging in their lust. Foreshadowed by romance induced suffering, the poem advises the reader that lust is deemed to be bad karma for men and, understandably, troublesome for reincarnation.

The reiteration of reincarnation and the warning against secular desire are written together in the poem to praise the mighty salvation that even sinners can obtain from practicing Buddhism. Buddhist beliefs of karma and six paths to reincarnation are, therefore, intertwined in the poems and the abbot’s preaching. As a final warning and as metaphor of punishment, the pagoda represents the ramifications of seduction and everlasting punishment for acting at odds with Buddhist beliefs. On the other hand, Xu Xuan’s redemption of himself through spiritual cultivation offers more compelling reasons for practicing Buddhism. Despite the bad karma he accumulated in his early life, the abbot’s guidance and Xu Xuan’s successful spiritual cultivation led him to enlightenment which eventually freed him from suffering and granted him incarnation. Despite previously committing sin, Xu Xuan was enlightened by the Buddhist abbot and converted to Buddhism. Ensuing Buddhist spiritual cultivation, Xu’s successful reincarnation was reflected in his poem, in which he thanks the Buddhist abbot for enlightenment. Transformed into a wise monk who wished others to follow his path, Xu wrote: “The abbot delivered me from the mortal world; The iron tree burst into spring blossoms. The wheel of life and death goes round and round; Reincarnation occurs life after life. The phenomenal world is elusive, the formless, in fact, is not lacking in form. The Form is the Void; the Void is the Form; Yet the two should be clearly set apart.”^[4] The absence of Madam White in the final poem Xu Xuan wrote denotes his complete abstinence from lust and secular desire. Aside from recapitulating the story plots and Buddhist beliefs, zhiguai xiaoshuo present readers with credible sources such as poems and historical scripts that confirm the authenticity of the story via both artistic and authoritative literature.

Ghost stories in imperial China often are subject to their pre-existing socio historical context. Ghost stories themselves are also unique epitomes of prominent social phenomena of its era. Reflecting the socio historical phenomenon, these stories are valuable resources for us to study the cultural and ideological underpinnings of imperial China. As we have discussed earlier, zhiguai xiaoshuo spread ideologies with the help of various ideological state apparatus from philosophical ideas like filial piety to basic human desires. Resorting to humanized supernatural beings, authors of zhiguai xiaoshuo are allowed more creative freedom, hence, they are given more room for authors’ self-expression. Though under the heavy influence of state ideology, zhiguai xiaoshuo have shown us how authors in imperial China use ghosts and supernatural beings to express their own insights and interpretation of their society.

Bibliography

Feng Menglong. “Madam White Is Kept Forever under Thunder Peak Tower.” In Stories to Caution the World: A Ming Dynasty Collection, Volume 2. Translated by Shuhui Yang and Yunqin Yang. University of Washington Press, 2005. 474-505.

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. “Metaphor.” Last modified August 12, 2022. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/metaphor/.

Pu, Songling 蒲松齡. Liaozhai zhiyi 聊齋誌異 (Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio). Translated by John Minford. Penguin Classics, 2006.

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. “Law and Ideology.” Last modified April 23, 2019. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/law-ideology/.

Wang, Chang and Madson, Nathan H. “Philosophical Underpinnings of the Chinese Legal System.” In Inside China’s Legal System, Chandos Publishing, 2013. 27-44.