The Letter to Ren An and Sima Qian's Legacy

Authors and Translators:
Stephen W Durrant; Wai-yee Li; Michael Nylan; Hans van Ess

Publication Month:
2016 April

Publisher:
University Of Washington Press

Abstract:

Sima Qian (first century BCE), the author of Record of the Historian (Shiji 史記), is China's earliest and best-known historian, and his "Letter to Ren An" is the most famous letter in Chinese history. In the letter, Sima Qian explains his decision to finish his life's work, the first comprehensive history of China, instead of honorably committing suicide following his castration for "deceiving the emperor." In the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, some scholars have queried the authenticity of the letter. Is it a genuine piece of writing by Sima Qian or an early work of literary impersonation? The Letter to Ren An and Sima Qian's Legacy provides a full translation of the letter and uses different methods to explore issues in textual history. It also shows how ideas about friendship, loyalty, factionalism, and authorship encoded in the letter have far-reaching implications for the study of China.

Table of Contents:

Han dynasty emperors

The letter to Ren An: English translation

Seeking answers, finding more questions / Stephen Durrant

Dissent against Emperor Wu of the Han / Hans van Ess

Friendship and other tropes in The letter to Ren An / Michael Nylan

The letter to Ren An and authorship in the Chinese tradition / Wai-yee Li

Appendix: The letter to Ren An: Chinese text

Glossary of Chinese characters