The Culture of Xia
DaZhi senior high school
Wu Tai Fu
Chang Che Yao
Chen Ying Chun
Lin Jiun Ying
Kuo Sung Hua
Teacher：Momoko Tu
Film
The Chinese word “俠”
The Chinese word “俠”, which is pronounced
as “Xia”, stands for an abstract concept – from
ancient China, when this concept first came into
being, to nowadays, the meaning of Xia has
changed continuously. We’ll introduce it to you
more clearly in the following pages.
The Motive of the Study
• In 2000, when the Oscar-winning movie “Crouching
Tiger Hidden Dragon” was played in the western
countries and ended up successfully, this movie really
motivates people’s interest of what “Xia” is. The
movie features flying swordsmen move lightly across
the bamboo treetops through the forest without leaving
their footprints, brandishing their sword nimbly. These
make westerners curious as well as doubtful about Xia.
• The gist of our study is to explicate Xia, compare
some similar concept with Xia in order to discuss the
differences in the multicultural society, and try to make
people understand the process and meaning of the
culture of Xia.
The Range of the Study
• Most western people associate the Xia with chivalry.
However, we think that the word, Hero, also has
some similar meaning with Xia. Therefore, this
study will first discuss Chivalry and the culture of
Hero so that western people can grasp the concept
of Xia more quickly.
• After introducing the concept of Xia, we will further
present from the well-known Jinyung’s novel to the
process of Taiwan’s martial art novels. Furthermore,
we will introduce the origin and process of Xia in
brief. Lastly, we will talk about what notion that the
concept of Xia has brought into movies.
Introduction
• We roughly classify the introduction as
Western and Eastern. We use a time table
which is based on the era. In the Eastern
aspect, we introduce China and Taiwan’s
process of Xia, Japanese Bushido as well.
In the Western aspect, we summarize the
Chivalry and the culture of Hero in the 20th
century. In the end, we will make an
integrated comparison.
Introduction
• The ancient concept of “Xia” is similar to
Robin Hood. And the modern concept is similar
to chivalry. That is, the development of “Xia”
is from offending the Law by armed force to
being loyal to king and country.
• We adopt the way in which we introduce every
part by stages. You can choose the part you are
interested in and click the picture to enter the
detailed description.
Eastern (summary)
Western (summary)
.the Warring States
(403-221 B.C.).The
Mohist group.
the West Han
dynasty (202 B.C. –
8 A.D.). Records of
the Grand Historian
( Shih Chi)
Middle Ages(10 A.D.nowadays).Chivalry
the Tang
Dynasty(618875 A.D.).
novels
Eastern
Japanese
shogunate(710
A.D.- nowadays).
Bushido
Western
The later period of
Europe(12 century
to present).
Translative literature
The Yuan and Ming
dynasty(1279-1644
A.D.).Transformation of
Xia and Water Margin
(Water Margin)
.the Ching
Dynasty(16451911 A.D.). The
process of martial
art literature
America(20 century
to present). The
culture of Hero
Western End~
Taiwan
Eastern literature
(after 1911)
China
Republic of China
(20 century to
nowadays).The
process of Taiwan’s
martial art literature
The 50th year of the
“Republic Era”.(1960s
to nowadays). Yeng
Zho Scholary
Swordsman (Palm
drama)
Republic of China
(20 century to
nowadays).The
process of martial
art movies
Jinyung(in the
middle of 20
century).The
peak of martial
art novels
Eastern End~
Definition Of “Xia”
•“Xia” is not only a concept but a pronoun. That is,
its meaning is abstract, complicated and abundant.
The behavior of people with “Xia” is to put this
concept into practice by performing “Xia”.
Therefore, we call someone who performs “Xia”
with Chinese martial arts as “Wusia”. But it is not
essential to combine the principles of “Xia” with
martial arts. Instead, for instance, some “Xia”
heal people or steal money from the rich to fulfill the
concept of Xia.
• In other words, comparing with the Western,
Chinese ”Xia” put much more emphasis on
personality and spirit.
Thought of “Xia”
• Now, we usually say “Xia” with “Yi”, which
means social justice or righteousness, because
both words have similar meaning. As far as the
report above is concerned, however, we can
discover the concept that “Xia” is equal to
“Yi” is not completely true and need to revise.
• What we have to realize is that the concept of
“Xia” has evolved inch by inch with time. And the
meaning of ”Xia” has changed from
contravening the law by armed force to being
engaged in social peace and country justice in
2000 years.
Thought of “Xia”
• To sum up, known by the public, the “Xia”
needs to be dedicated to social justice and
help people. However, as far as the
cultural aspect of “Xia” is concerned, we
should regard “Xia” as a generalized
concept which means not only to fight
against injustice.
• The comparison below bases on the
standard of modern “Xia”.
Comparison (chivalry and “Xia”)
1.The contents of ancient martial art novels usually
talk about assisting clean-handed officials,
opposing to bad officials and being loyal to the
king. We can find similar concept of being loyal
to the king in the literature of Chivalry. But the
Chivalry places much importance on personal
honor.
2.The second difference between “Xia” and
chivalry is the attitude toward love. In Chinese
novels, “Xia” keeps away from women and they
must feel shameful at chivalry because of their
attitude to women.
Comparison (Hero and “Xia”)
1.The will of God and theory of doom
China－God gives disasters to people while
heroes save the people - follow the god.
West－destiny go against the hero, and hero
always resist till the last minute - not yield to the
doom.
2.Soul and belongings
China－follow moral standard that is severer than
other people. They must be in a certain group
(attending or establishing).
West－individualism
Total comparison
• The concept of Xia is too abstract for the
Western because it is not just to help or save
people, like spider-man. Xia needs more
connotation relatively. Scholarly Xia, for instance,
has not only to simply follow thoughts of
Confucianism in moral standard but high class of
literature.
• Therefore, the reason that we just say someone
has behavior of “Xia” not someone is “Xia” is a
person who has high moral standard, class of
humanism and characteristic of “Xia” only
appears in the novels.
What “Xia” really is?
• The modern “Xia” which created by people
nowadays is grand. However, we can find
another “Xia” group – gang, which is
defined according to the primary standard
of “Xia” - contravening the law by armed
force and doing things by their sense of
justice. Moreover, the thoughts of gang
and “Xia” now are diametrically different.
And if there were “Xia”, they should
eliminate gang.
What “Xia” really is?
• That is, everyone can be “Xia”. It just
depends on which era do you live in. If you
think that dumping the garbage is justice
and you really do it, you will be a “Xia” who
contravene the law because of justice in
your mind. But, you won’t be regarded as
a “Xia” by modern people because your
behavior is not equal to the aspect and
standard of “Xia” in this society.
The summary of Eastern
• China：There are two aspect of the definition of Xia.
One is the historic Xia which first means a
person fights against the unfair law and bad
government. Another is the literary Xia
which is more idealistic and closer to the
thought of Xia in this society nowadays – it
means a perfect person who will help others
when they face injustice and do everything
for the country and masses.
• Japan: The spirit of Bushido processed similarly as
Xia. Maybe it was much closer to
Confucianism. We’ll compare and introduce
these in brief.
The Mohist Group
• In the Warring States, the mohist group
supported the process of Mohism. They
made the idea of Mohism widely known,
helping weak countries keep their
homeland. the mohist group members
wanted to reach self-sufficiency and
invented some military weapons.
The Connection between the
Mohist Group and Xia
• Now many people treat the mohist group as the
group of “Xia.” It is because the mohist group
promoted the thought – you have to do
thoroughly what you said, which fits in with the
contemporary explanation of Xia. Another
reason is that members of it behaved like Xia.
They gathered together and formed as a new
power in the society, so it is called the group
of ”Xia.”
• However, what you have to know is that the
debut thought of calling it as Xia springs up
recently. So it doesn’t fit in with the ancient
standard of Xia.
The Definition of Xia in Records
of the Grand Historian
• The deeds that Xia promoted might not
always be just, but they must keep their
words, do things firmly, sacrifice
themselves to help others’ in difficulty, and
not boast of their behavior even when
facing death. People far and wide admired
their deeds. They would do anything for
justice.
The Detailed Explanation of
Records of the Grand Historian
• There are a few examples in Records of the
Grand Historian, which show some
following traits：Xia won’t be partial to
himself or his relatives but acts on justice,
won’t be angry because of others’ disdain,
and is a person that won’t strive for fame
and wealth.
• From the aspect of official, acting like Xia is
to exert power, which is different from the
thought of Xia himself. In a word, the deeds
that Xia did are praised by everyone.
The Thought of Xia from Chin to
Hang Dynasty
• Han Feizi：”The Confucianists destroyed the Law by
words while Xia offended the Law by armed force.” The
basic definition of Xia in this period was a person fights
against the unfair law and bad government, which was
the base of Records of the Grand Historian. It used the
thought and interpreted it in the bright side. However, the
view of the same period wasn’t positive at all.
• Shuowen Jiezi：A person who shares benefit with each
other, makes friends privately, and stands in this society
by his armed force is the so-called Xia. They trust each
other and have the same values. Besides, they may be
the people who have authority in an area and fight
against the noble, or live in this society on their own.
The Thought of Xia from Chin to
Hang Dynasty
• In this epoch, there was no class
difference of Xia. In other word, no matter
who could be Xia.
• They were wanted by the government
because most of their deeds were against
the Law. However, the King and the noble
might be Xia anonymously.
• In brief, Xia from Chin to Hang Dynasty
was people who didn’t care about their life
and death but were in pursuit of justice.
Xia from Wei to Tang Dynasty
• By Wei dynasty, the concept of Xia had
been divided into two aspect by degree.
One continued the previous concept and
called the historic Xia while another was
transformed into the literary Xia which
developed to the contemporary concept in
the Chinese society at present.
The Historic Xia from Wei to
Tang Dynasty
• It could roughly be classified as two
categories. One was local bullies and
ruffians. Another was rich young men.
Basically, the two categories acted
similarly as Xia in Hang Dynasty – robbery
and killing.
The literary Xia from Wei to
Tang Dynasty
• The literature of martial art started from
Southern and Northern Dynasties and was
complete in Tang Dynasty. A new
interpretation of Xia different from Hang’s
negative comment was defined as a noble
personality that could do everything for the
society and maintain the social justice.
The Summary of Xia in The
Yuan and Ming Dynasty
• In this period, almost the whole concept of Xia in
literature is different from historic interpretation.
Therefore, we will introduce the change and
focus on the Xia in literature.
• The representative work is Water Margin, which
means demarcation of Xia in literature. The
works before this book and the works after are
different in feature and style. In the next page,
we will first introduce Water Margin, and then
analyze Xia in literature.
The approximate story of "Water
Margin“ (part 1)
• The first 70 chapters of the story is led by Song-Jiang
and Chao-Gai . They gathered heroes coming from
everywhere on the Mount Liangshang. Some of the
heroes were forced to go up the Mount Liangshang by
corrupt officials while some of them were go up
because of heart affecting.
• Whatever, the aim they got together at Mount
Liangshang is right wrongs in accordance with
heaven's decree and oppose to the corrupt
government. Not until 108 heroes got together did they
rank the ranking of brothers. They were very herotic
and killed many venal officials, which make the great
satisfaction of the people. These behaviors also let
people abreact their discontent with the government.
The analysis of "Water Margin“ (part 1)
• The advanced part of paragraphs describe two
kinds of heroes. One is herotic and another is
generous who always give financial assistance to
the former. By the way, describes about the
generous heores mention a new sight of shia.
• In this part, the describe of shia is more close to
the pragmatic one(such as using martial art
against the law or to fullfill “self-justice”). It has
some disagreement with the Dynasty from Wei to
Tang. However, all the spirit of shia are same：
they all address themselves to strive for justice
and dreams of the society.
The approximate story of "Water
Margin“ (part 2)
• Later 50 chapters of the story describe
heroes on the Mount Liangshang enlisted in
the government for the defense of their
country. All leaders were safe and well, also
erected awesome. However, in the war with a
country in the southern of China, most of the
heroes were defeated. And those who
survived not only didn’t gain the well-earned
recompenses but also be ensnared by
cunning courtiers. Most of these heroes
didn’t have a good end in this story.
The analysis of "Water Margin“ (part 2)
• The image of these heroes on the after
part of the story has a great different from
the former one. From the accomplishment
of “self-justice” to adhered to the
government, in order to assert the safety
of the country.
The development
• In this novel, these heroes’ behavior
gradually changed from malcontent to
loyal to the government. “Water Margin”
stands at a literature borderline from
generation to generation. The former part
succeed to the characteristic of shia from
the Yuan dynasty, which shows individual
personality, while the latter reveal a new
kinds of shia who are loyal to the
government.
the meaning of "Water Margin“
• The shia in this novel have begin to
associate with the government instead of
seeking self-justice.and this kind of novel
had become the main novel style in the
Qing dynasty.
The literary of Xia in Qing Dynasty
• The concept of Xia in this epoch expended from
the “Water Margin” had associated with the
government, or we can even say Xia had been
held a lane by the government.
• The basic configure of literature in this epoch
was that one Xia who had associated with the
government bumping into another who hadn’t.
Then they would conflict, but the one who
hadn’t associate with the government must
assimilate to the one who had in the end.
Martial Arts Novels of the Qing
Dynasty- “San Xia Wu Yi”
• “San Xia Wu Yi” tells a story in the Sung
Dynasty about a judge called Pao Ching Tien
how to judge cases. In this book, three Xia
(southern Xia-Chan Chao, northern Xia Ou-yang
Chun, double Ting Xias) and five man who had
sense of honor (Drilling sky mouse- Lu Fang,
Digging into land mouse- Han Chang, Crossing
mountain mouse- Hsu Ching, Turning over river
mouse- Chiang ping, Glorious hair mouse- Pai
Yu Tang) helped Pao Ching Tien judge cases.
Characteristics of Xia in “San Xia
Wu Yi”
1.Do something others daren’t do
2.Rescue people before fighting with bad men
3.Regard maintaining social-justice as himself’ s duty
4.Have good skill in martial arts but not being rascals
5.Admire each other who is Xia
6.Think for officers in the place rather than show himself
act against the law
7.Bad people admire Xia
8.The noblest Xia is smart, calm, and changeful.But all of
his deeds are in the range of the concept of Xia.
The Concept of Xia in “San Xia Wu
Yi”
• Most of Xias in “San Xia Wu Yi” associated with
the government and didn’t act against the law.
The emperor in this period were different from
the emperor in former dynasties either. Xias in
this period still behaved with the justice which in
their minds. But they would keep as silent as
they could because they didn’t want to make
officers in the place embarrassed.
The culture of “Wu Lin”
• After the year of the “Republic Era“, the
literature of xia has combined with martial
arts. It became a brand new kind of xia
literature. We call this kind of xia society in
novels as “Wu Lin.” in these societies,
friendship is the most important thing of all.
In order to protect their friends’ security,
xia will use martial arts to cope with all the
troubles.
Introduce of Jin Yong
• Jin's real name is Cha Liangyong. Born in 1924, he is
from Haining County, Zhejiang Province. He studied in
the College of Foreign Languages of Chunking Central
University then the College of Law of Soochou University.
• His first novel, Shujian Enchou Lu, published in Sin Wan
Bao in 1955, was a big hit. Since then, he started his
writing professionally for more than 30 years, and his
status as the Master of the wusia novelist has become
unshakable. When his last series, Luding Ji, was finished
in the Ming Bao daily in September in 1972, he retired
from writing wusia novels.
Jin Yong’s novel
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
The Book and the
Sword
Sword Stained with
Royal Blood
The Legend of the
Condor Heroes
The Return of the
Condor Heroes
Flying Fox of Snowy
Mountain
Other Tales of the
Flying Fox
7. Heaven Sword and Dragon
Sabre
8. A Deadly Secret
9. Demi-Gods and SemiDevils --10. Ode to Gallantry
11. The Smiling, Proud
Wanderer
12. The Deer and the Cauldron
“Xia” of Sword Stained with Royal
Blood
• People will go against government in troubled
time because of poverty. And if there is a person
maintains justice, he will be defined as the
image of “Xia.”
• It is a troubled time that the era of this book is.
Yuan Chengjhih is destined to do many just
things because of his identity.
• Yuan Chengjhih gains many sympathy because
of his poor background. On the other hand, he
show more justice and heroic when he put his
personal feud away be engaged in society and
country.
“Xia” of Sword Stained with Royal
Blood
• Main characters usually learn martial art
when they were young and become very
good after several years. Furthermore,
kindness is always the key of being a “Xia”,
and we can find the same personality in
Western novels.
Character of The Deer and the
Cauldron
• Because Wei Xiaobao was born in brothel,
which is defined as a obscene place, he
formulate a personality of neglecting
tradition as well as etiquette and is
socialized more fast.
“Xia” of The Deer and the
Cauldron
• Jin Yong say that The Deer and the
Cauldron is more similar to history novel,
not “Wu Xia” novel. Though it is not correct
that we defined Wei Xiaobao as a “Xia”,
but, in some aspects, we still can say Wei
Xiaobao has some personalities of “Xia”,
like valuing friendship.
“Xia” of The Deer and the
Cauldron
• Being a group of “Xia”, Tien Ti Hui
emphasize not their goal, against
government, but their process, a spirit of
“Xia”. For instance, when they know they
are wrong, they will apologize to people
who involved in.
Characters in Demi-Gods and
Semi-Devils
• The research of Duan Yu (combination of “Xia”,
Confucianism and literati)： Duan Yu is a man of letters
and he hate to use force and martial art, having similarity
to Chinese literati. The behavior and spirit he perform in
the book is derived from deeply thoughts of “Xia”. These
behaviors, settling quarrels and doing things by his own
justice, are similar to the expectation that “Xia” need to
do.
• Thoughts：First, the recognition of “Xia” in the East may
combine with many thoughts of Confucianism. Second,
there is not direct connection between being “Xia” and
having good martial art. What is more important is the
real meaning of doing things about “Xia”.
Characters in Demi-Gods and
Semi-Devils
• The research of Syu Jhu (combination of “Xia” and
Buddhism)： Buddhism accent that we should safe
everyone by love, quit killing other people, and help
people. And these concepts are very similar to modern
concept of “Xia”.
• People nowadays think “Xia” should help people and be
devoted to society. Another important personality of “Xia”
is that possess a quality of justice. As far as Buddhism,
they emphasize that possess a heart of mercy, which
meaning is to love every human beings around the world
without distinguisher.
• However, we can take the behavior of Syu Jhu, which
follows principles of Buddhism, such as helping people
by justice, as generalized “Xia”.
Characters in Demi-Gods and
Semi-Devils
• The research of Xiao Fong (one of the
best “Xia” of Jin Yong – comparison
between Xiao Fong and Guo Jing)
Characters in Demi-Gods and
Semi-Devils
Name
Guo Jing
Xiao Fong
identity A Chinese born in
A foreigner who born in
Mongolia know his
China don’t know his
identity
identity
Chinese
Martial
art
Xianglong Shiba Zhang (18 DragonSubduing Palms)
Characters in Demi-Gods and
Semi-Devils
Name
Guo Jing
experience
Describe him when In the beginning, he is
he was young and
known as the leader
portray the
of Gaibang and “Xia”.
difficulties he
When he find he is
faced. He is
foreigner, he is still
regarded as a “Xia” engaged in solving
in the end of the
conflicts between
story and be the
two countries.
best “Xia” in the
sequal.
Xiao Fong
Characters in Demi-Gods and
Semi-Devils
Name
consequence
personality
The same
Guo Jing
Xiao Fong
Protect a town
Strike apeace
many years and
between two
get a honor of
countries and
“North Xia”.
suicidehimself.
He is stupid but
He is smart and
possesses a
values friendship.
quality of justice.
Be engaged in country and society in his
eternal countries.
Characters in Jin’s novels
character
personality
Guo Jing
Honest
Rebel
Sincere
against
Not frivolous etiquette
Trustworthiness
romance
Yang Guo
Just love a
woman
Jhang Wuji
Irresolute
Hesitant
Kindhearted
Easily be
cheated
Change
Just love a
women from
woman
time to time
Characters in Jin’s novels
＊Traits：
• Guo Jing ：He is a “Xia” combined with
Confucianism. He protect a city of China to
attack Mongolia. His behavior show us what the
best “Xia” is and the spirit of being engaged
in society and country.
• Yang Guo：He is a “Xia” combined with
Taoism. He don’t want be tied up by etiquette.
• Jhang Wuji：He is a “Xia” combined with
Buddhism. He is very merciful and doctor many
people.
“Xia”of Jin Yong
•
•
“Xia” in Jin Yong’s novel is fantastic in ancient time,
defined by modern concept of “Xia” ,that is, the
definition is not similar to primary concept of “Xia”.
Moreover, Jin Yong created some “Xia” of his own, and
some of these “Xia” really affect modern people’s
thoughts of “Xia” with the trend of Jin Yong ‘s novel.
“Xia”s in Jin Yong’s novels are different from
appearance to individual personalities. In his last novel,
The Deer and the Cauldron, there even has a person,
named Wei Xiaobao, who has a part of personalities
about “Xia” but is not “Xia”. We can take each “Xia” in
different books as a new explanation of “Xia”.
Influence of Jin Yong
• No matter Taiwan or China, all of Jin
Yong’s novels have been adapted to soap
opera again and again and some of them
even have been made as movies.
Computer games about Jin Yong’s novel
also appeared with the improvement of
Internet. Affecting people from young to
old, Jin Yong’s novels really influence
people’s thought of how to regard “Xia”
and what “Xia”’s definition is.
Influence of Jin Yong to nowadays
• Jin Yong ‘s novels influence not only demotic
culture but also literature. Because his high
class of literature and characters in his novels
are special, the study of Jin Yong’s novels,
which called “study of Jin”, appeared. Many
scholars have researched the personalities,
traits of characters in novels and attitude,
approach to events that they undergo, and they
even want to find the historic background of
novels.
Taiwan Martial Art Novels
• The development of Taiwan martial art
novels can be divided into four stages—
The Beginning Period, The Prosperous
Period, The Recessional Period, and The
Deceased Period. The followings are
some introductions about the development
and traits of these four stages.
• The most famous author of Taiwan martial
art novels is Gu Long. He is also a author
in The Prosperous Period. We’ll introduce
him to you later!
The Beginning Period
• time：1951-1960
• background：In 1949, The Communist Party of
China (CPC) ruled all of the mainland China,
established a “ new China”. Consequently, the
martial art novels having published in China
since Minguo were all called “ old group”. Before
long, all of these “old group” martial art novels
were forbidden to publish and sell. Until about
1950, parts of the “ old group” martial art novels
were transported to Taiwan by sea , sold and
rend in the rental library in every street and alley
in Taiwan.
The Beginning Period
•
•
Afterwards, the relationship between Taiwan
and China was separated. The military position
at strategic border point even became narrow.
In addition, the government of Kuomintang
wanted to prevent national secret revealed, so
they executed the law which controlled
publications in the martial period in 1951.This
action made the “ old group” martial art novels
fewer to disappear.
traits：Drawing materials from the “old group”
novels or inspecting and learning from the
works of “old group”; imitating the story,
even copy the big part of the works.
The Prosperous Period
• time：1961-1970
• background：
1.The economy of Taiwan in 1960
2.The need of cultural entertainment
3.Authors of martial art novels made books just
for money.
The Prosperous Period
＊four department
Clique
super skilled
•
traits
•
•
Symbolic
authors
Putting
emphasis on
highly skilled,
marvelous
martial art.
Describing
some story
of hero.
The main
trend in
1960
Wolong Sheng,
Sima Ling, etc.
Fantastic
Containing
fantastic
martial art
Hai Shang Chi
Chu Sheng,
Tung Fang
Yu, etc.
modern
Phantomic
Using new
technique of
writing
All of the book
titles and
contents
are about
ghost and
phantom.
Gu Long, Lu yu,
Shang Kuan
Ting, etc.
Chen Ching
Yun, Tien
Ko, Chiang
Nan Liu,
etc.
About Gu Long
• Xiong Yaohua (1937 – September 21, 1985), who wrote
under the penname Gu Long grew up in a broken family.
He left home and lived on writing martial art novels.
• Stages of his creation：
1 . the foundation of the department of modern martial art
novels：Lone Star Chronicles, Lover's Arrow, The
Legend of the Hero's Banner, Sword Bathed in
Flowers/Spirit of the Sword, etc.
2 . the flourishing period of the department of modern
martial art novels ：Wulin's Side Story, The Legendary
Twins, Sentimental Swordsman, Ruthless Sword
3 . the turning point of the department of modern martial
art novels ：The Eleventh Son, The Happy Hero, Meteor.
Butterfly. Sword, Midnight, Bright Moon, Saber, The
White Jade Tiger
About Gu Long
• traits－modern（literary）WuXia
1.Use modern literary writing technique.
2.Go deep into the leading role’s heart and make books
full of philosophy of life.
3.Put friendship, love, relationship of family, even the
description of resisting against the fate in books.
4.Mix eastern and western literature with traditional
literature.
5.Take youth to be the leading role instead of the old, and
no mention about the process of practicing martial arts.
The Outline of Sentimental
Swordsman, Ruthless Sword
• The first part of Sentimental Swordsman,
Ruthless Sword focuses on Lin Xian'er and her
efforts to cause unrest in the martial arts circle
with the name of a retired but infamous thief, the
Plum Flower Bandit. The second part of the
novel looks at the schemes of Shangguan
Jinhong in gaining dominance in the martial arts
circle. Within these settings are characters that
seem to be created just to counter each other,
such as Li Xunhuan against Shangguan Jinhong,
Jing Wuming against A-Fei and Lin Shiyin
against Lin Xian'er.
Role-discussing of “Sentimental
Swordsman, Ruthless Sword”
• Li Hsun Huan：In the whole series of
“Hsiao Li Fei Tao” fetures on Li Hsun
Huan. In the later half of the story, the
author discusses what martial arts really is.
Through this, the author shows Li Hsun
Huan comprehending every thing and
aggressive his martial arts. What’s more,
the author shows his humanized
personality by love.
Role-discussing of “Sentimental
Swordsman, Ruthless Sword”
• A Fei：Through him, we can see that he
defined Xia as “ If you grant mercy on me,
then I will requite you; but if you bully me, I
will kill you.” in the beginning. However,
after he went through many things, he fell
into the pain of antinomy and blindness
instead of well experienced.
Xia in Sentimental Swordsman,
Ruthless Sword
• Compared Jin Yong’s novels with Gu
Long’ s, the former features on national
duty and rescuing people while the later
puts more emphasis on the relationship
between Xia and human nature.
• For example, Gu Long considered close
friends can be enemies in one time. In
addition, Xia often confuses between love
and friendship.
The Recessional Period
• time：1971-1980
• The reasons that made Taiwan martial art novels
recessional：
1. Ten Major Construction Projects made Taiwan’s
economy prosperous → the popular media became
universal→TV martial arts plays started, martial arts
movies became thriving, radio and comic books got a
great response
2.The internal dilemma of martial arts creation
a. Too commercial
b. Corruptive creating- plagiarize, copy, assume name.
c. The creativity dried up
The Deceased Period
• Time：1981-2000
• The reason of deceasing：No one to carry
on
• Worried：porning works inundates.
Introduction of Yeng Zho Scholary
Swordsman
• Made in 1958, Yeng Zho Scholary
Swordsman is the first Glove puppetry
soap opera and is very popular then. Shih
Yen Wen, the main character in the series
even become a racial hero to students that
time. The show was made again in 2000,
revised in some details, but didn’t change
its outline and spirit of Shih Yen Wen.
Outline
• The series describe that Shih Yen Wen
and “Xia” in the society of “Xia”s
attack betrayer and the group of bad men,
protect the king, people, and other “Xia”.
The combination of “Xia” and
Confucianism
• Being pure loyal, obedient, love, “Yi” man, Shih
Yen Wen is portrayed by most people in the
series by using this sentence.
• In the beginning, Shih Yen Wen attack unfair
fighting competition with anger and this is “Xia”.
Then, Shih Yen Wen work hard for people and
other “Xia” without caring danger to his life that
he faces. We take this behavior as the best
model of “Xia”.
The combination of “Xia” and
Confucianism
• “Xia” do everything by his own justice and we
can find Shih Yen Wen do everything by loyalty
and “Yi”, which is one of the main thought of
Chinese Confucianism. Therefore, we say Shih
Yen Wen is a “Xia” who follows the thoughts of
Confucianism.
• On the other hand, “Ju” is also representative of
a man of letter. Shih Yen Wen has high class of
literature, like writing poems and articles, and do
antithetical couplet. Having high class of
literature and martial art is the necessary
qualities of “Ju Xia”.
“Xia” of Shih Yen Wen
• The “Xia” of Shih Yen Wen, which is based on
modern concept of “Xia” has two traits. First,
help people by “Yi” when he saw unfair; second,
be “Xia”’s leader. That is, Shih Yen Wen is the
best “Xia” of all, taking social justice and peace
as the most important things he should do, and
recognizing that group is major to self.
• The influence to Taiwan of Shih Yen Wen’s “Xia”
is not simply that he is “Xia”, but also that make
a new model and standard of “Xia” to modern
society by his behavior.
The meaning of Yeng Zho Scholary
Swordsman
• Owing to the trend of Yeng Zho Scholary
Swordsman in Taiwan, when we talk about “Xia”
now, most people think of Shih Yen Wen
naturally. So, we can say that Shih Yen Wen
represent the best “Xia” in Taiwan and even is a
standard that people assume who is “Xia”.
• Shih Yen Wen is a person who puts
Confucianism into practice, being a model of
combining the “Xia” and Confucianism.
Movie of “Wu Xia”
• In 1960s, movie industry pop on the East.
Movie of “Wu Xia” begins from Bruce Lee
to Jet Li, Once Upon A Time In China, in
1990s. And ,in 2000, Crouching Tiger
Hidden Dragon shot by Li Ann even brings
this kind of movie into Western culture.
For instance
• 1979 . The Deadly Breaking Sword
• 1992 . Once Upon A Time In China I
• 2000 . Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
Film
Comparison
• Martial art in The Deadly Breaking Sword is fitful
because the technique to shoot movies is not
good then. However, it also can explain the
meaning of “Xia” in a new way, not similar to
literature.
• Of course, martial art in Once Upon A Time In
China is better than before. And Crouching Tiger
Hidden Dragon even explains not only martial
art but also the connotation of “Xia.”
The origin of Japanese Bushido
• In the generation of “Nara” (A.D.710~784),
the manorial system became more and
more popular. After conscription was
downfallen, in order to protect himself, the
owners of baronies started to organized
the farmers in his barony and taught them
martial arts. Therefore, these farmers
gradually became a group of people who
especially to be assigned to protect the
barony and fight with invaders.
The classical Japanese Bushido
• The classical Japanese Bushido also
called “hagakure.” In Japanse, “hagakure”
means the shadow of trees. It symbolizes
a person who can be loyal to his duke
even pay his live. What’s more, this kind of
person will protect his duke clandestinely.
The spirit of “hagakure” thought that only
sacrifice can show one’s loyalty.
The spirit of Japanese Bushido
• 1. Do not afraid of death
• 2. To comply with crowned head
absolutely
• 3. Put emphasize on convenances
• 4. Look up on the responsibility seriously
• 5. Pay attention to shame and glory
The meaning of Japanese Bushido
• In Japan, Bushido spirit was promoted
fierily in the Middle Ages. It was accepted
by all the people from different society
classes. This spirit even become a mores
and deeply affect Japanese people. In
short, Japanese Bushido symbolizes a
spirit of Japan.
The summary of Western
• Chivalry and the culture of Hero：Most of the
translators translate the spirit of Xia into these
two words; however, there are some difference
between Xia and these two. Because of this, we
picked these and introduce these to let you know
the Western culture and then lead further to the
spirit aspect of Eastern culture.
• The European：The books such as Robin Hood
and Peter Pan can be translated into Xia.
Therefore, we suspect that these must have
something in common.
Chivalry
• Chivalry is polite, kind, and unselfish
behavior, especially by men towards
women.
• In the Middle Age, chivalry was the set of
the rules and way of behaving which
knights were expected to follow.
The Process of Chivalry
1.The origin meaning is horsemanship.
2. After the Crusades, the fame and position of chivalry
class rose. After contacting with eastern culture, the
spirit of Chivalry is formed gradually into some creeds –
loyalty,護教、尚武– , worshiping rich women, and taking
adventure as the supreme glory.
3.In the 12 century, the meaning of Chivalry was
transformed into the life norm：
* To protect the old and weak, women, and children.
* To fight against unfairness and evil because of justice.
* To love homeland.
* To do everything to protect the Church.
4.In the Middle Age, the King established the chivalry
organization and made knights important in the country.
They promised to be loyal to the King and do their best
to win the war.
The conditions to become a
knight in the Middle Age
1.Be well-born.
2.He had to be trained when youth, be a
server and learn polite letters and martial
arts in suzerain, and learn manner from
mistress. Afterwards, he could be awarded
the name of Knight at 21.
3.The young Knight often showed that they
had a clear conscience by competition in
martial arts on horses.
Knight and Ranger
• Knight was a kind of cavalry trained
formally in the Middle Age in Europe. Then,
it became a kind of name of honor. In the
literature of Chivalry, knights are
symbolized to be brave, loyal, and
incarnation of hero.
• Rangers themselves could be part of
knights or noblemen but give up their
identity or their land was swallowed up by
other noblemen. So, they left their land
and roam around to find another master.
The Degeneracy of Chivalry
• By 1500, the knights, who were soldiers of
battles, had been replaced by soldiers who
had firearms. From then on, the chivalry
degenerated. However, the spirit and
system of Chivalry didn’t disappear at all.
Instead, it is the notion of Chivalry – polite
and well-behavior that is regarded as an
important thought in western world.
The literature of Chivalry
• It is divided into lyric poetry and narrative
poetry, which show the spirit that knights
fight for love, honor, and achievements. In
the history of European literature, the
literature of Chivalry represents for the
literature of feudalism.
Lyric Poetry of Chivalry
• The center of lyric poetry is Provence,
southern France. It was written by
troubadours. In the northern place
trouvères used some nearby and historic
materials to create “Romance History”
The Legend of Chivalry
• It is divided into three systems – Ancient,
Britannia, and Byzantium. The best work
are Britannia fictional stories of King Arthur.
Don Quixote
• Don Quixote is published in 1605 and
1615 by Spanish author Miguel de
Cervantes Saavedra. The background was
a era without knights. The main character,
Don Quixote, dreamed that he had been a
knight, so he did lots of unthinkable deeds
and finally woke from his dream.
The Meaning of Don Quixote
• Don Quixote stands for knight in feudal society.
He indulged in the literature of Chivalry and
dreamed to be a knight, trying to revive the spirit
of Chivalry. With his passion and inflexibility, he
didn’t care what other people thought of him. He
regarded keeping justice as his sacred mission.
However, we could still find his kind motive and
intact purity in humanity through his absurd
deeds. Although the spirit of Chivalry existed in
13 century, there are still some culture which
succeeded to it in European society at present.
European Translative Literature about Xia
• In this part, we’ll introduce some literature
works that were translated into Chinese
and named Xia. Therefore, books of this
part might have some similar concept that
fit in with Xia. We try to give you a easier
way to know what eastern people think Xia
to be by introducing these books. Besides,
we compare these with the contemporary
concept of Xia so as to look upon Xia
much widely.
Books
＊You can click the following books or
movies to get more details.
• Peter Pan
• Zorro
• Scarlet Pimpernel
• Robin Hood
The Meaning and Influence of
Translative Literature
• The characters in the books are called Xia,
which is defined by contemporary Eastern
literature always exerted themselves to
keep justice.
• Because the translative literature was
widely read, it truly influenced the concept
of Xia to young people. However, the
western interpretation is still different from
the concept of Xia.
The Content of Peter Pan
• In stifling Edwardian London, Wendy Darling
mesmerizes her brothers every night with
bedtime tales of swordplay, swashbuckling and
the fearsome Captain Hook. But the children
become the heroes of an even greater story,
when Peter Pan flies into their nursery one night
and leads them over moonlit rooftops through a
galaxy of stars and to the lush jungles of
Neverland. Wendy and her brothers join Peter
and the Lost Boys in an exhilarating life--free of
grown-up rules--while also facing the inevitable
showdown with Hook and his bloodthirsty pirates.
Peter Pan and Xia
• Peter Pan isn’t referred to as Xia because
it doesn’t fit in with the Chinese concept of
Xia. Although he truly have some traits –
courage and sense of justice, he fighted
against Captain Hook for personal feeling
of resentment instead of fair standpoint.
• Therefore, Peter Pan isn’t regarded as Xia.
As for why he is translated into Xia in
Chinese, we will explain it in the next page.
Peter Pan and Xia
• It is because that Peter Pan this book is a
fairytale. For children, Peter Pan can do
things that they can’t do. Therefore, this
cool name Xia is to attract children to
admire. But the actual Xia should possess
more noble morals.
The Content of Zorro
• Zorro (Spanish for Fox, and a by-word for
cunning or devious) is the superhero secret
identity of Don Diego de la Vega (originally Don
Diego Vega), a fictional nobleman and master
swordsman living in Spanish and Mexican-era
California. He defends the people of the land
against tyrannical governors and other villains;
not only is he much too cunning and foxlike for
the bumbling authorities to catch, but he delights
in publicly humiliating those same foes while
riding on his horse Tornado.
Zorro and Xia
• In the beginning, Zorro wasn’t qualified as
Xia. We just viewed him as a person who
was good at martial art and wanted to
revenge his dead brother. However, after
given a lesson and told that Zorro does
everything for the masses by Diego, he
started to care about the masses, even
giving up his family. This kind of
characteristic fit in with Xia.
Zorro and Xia
• Everything that Zorro had done made him
a great person. He fought against evil and
protect the people. His personal
characteristic revealed that he lived for the
people!
The Content of Scarlet Pimpernel
• The Scarlet Pimpernel is one of the great world's great literary
characters which is set in the 18th century against the backdrop
of the French Revolution.
• The book was written by a real baroness - a young woman
forced to flee her native Hungary because of fear of a peasant
revolt against the ruling class. Her fictitious character, Sir Percy
Blakeney, is the leader of a secret society of English aristocrats
called the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel.
• As the Pimpernel, he rescues French aristocrats who have
been condemned to death by the blade of the guillotine.
The Scarlet Pimpernel takes his nickname from the small red
flower with which he signs his messages.
• No one except his small group of followers, and possibly the
Prince of Wales, knows his true identity.
Scarlet Pimpernel and Xia
• Some characteristics of Scarlet Pimpernel
are close to the ones of Xia：To rebel
against the selfish behavior of ruling
person; to hide one’s true identity and do
just things behind the scene.
Robin Hood
• 1194 – After an epic journey from England,
Robin of Locksley and his man Much, are
camped outside Acre, the ancient port on the
coast of the Mediterranean, now held by Salah
al-Din and his vast Muslim army. Robin and
Much are part of King Richard Coeur de Lion's
bodyguard.
…….more
Robin Hood and Xia
• Robin Hood relatively tallies with Xia
because he is wise, good at martial art,
against vicious power. This folk legend
shows the image of Hero for the people.
Especially in the turbulent times, Robin
Hood is actually the Savior of the people.
Therefore, we refer to him as a man who
did “Xia” by stealing fortunes of the rich.
The Origin of the Culture of
American Heroes
• It first started in 1929 when the Great
Recession occurred, people often placed
hope on comics.
• 1938~1955, the culture of American
Heroes developed to the prime time.
Superman is the masterpiece of this
period.
The Origin of the Culture of
American Hero
• In the World War Two, the patriotism
sprang up, making the culture of American
Hero more active.
• By 1960, many heroes who were born with
special power appeared in various
features after the movie industry sprang
up.
The Traits of the Culture of
American Hero
• Basic elements：
The topic that justice always wins
Powerful enemy but eventually fail
High-spirited and winding circumstance
• The heroic characteristic
Super energy, individualism, aggressive,
absolute confidence
• In brief, contemporary worship of Hero reveals
people’s values of capability, courage, wise,
virtue, and achievement.
American Heroic Movies
• Superman, Spiderman, Batman, XMan,
The Flash, Daredevil, The Hulk, Hellboy,
Ironman, Ghost Rider, Fantastic Four,
Spawn, Catwoman, Blade, Robocop,
Vendetta, Elektra, Wonder Woman
The Content of Spiderman
• In 2002, one of the world's most popular comic book heroes made his
leap to the big screen. Released in conjunction with the 40th
anniversary of the web-slinger's first appearance in a comic book,
Spider-Man centers on an ordinary student named Peter Parker who,
after being bitten by a genetically-altered spider, gains superhuman
strength and the spider-like ability to cling to any surface. He vows to
use his abilities to fight crime.
• Orphaned at an early age, Peter Parker lives in Queens, New York with
his beloved Aunt May and Uncle Ben. Peter leads the life of a normal
student, working as a photographer at the school paper, pining after his
beautiful next-door neighbor Mary Jane Watson and hanging out with
his buddy Harry Osborn.
• On a school field trip where Peter and his classmates are given a
science demonstration on arachnids, Peter is bitten by a geneticallyaltered spider. Soon after, he discovers that he has gained unusual
powers - the strength and agility of a spider along with a keen, ESP-like
"spider sense".
• At first, Peter decides to use these powers to make money to impress
Mary Jane. He appears in a wrestling match and, armed with his new
spider strength, wins the match in record time. But the crooked wrestling
match promoter refuses to award Peter the prize money. Moments later,
the promoter is robbed and Peter has the opportunity to catch the burglar
fleeing from the promoter's office, but because he wants revenge Peter
refuses to stop him. Tragically, the burglar kills Peter's Uncle Ben during a
carjacking as he flees the scene of the crime.
• As Spider-Man, Peter apprehends the burglar but is plagued with guilt for
not being a hero sooner. During his time of turmoil, Peter remembers
something Uncle Ben once told him: "With great power, comes great
responsibility." Peter takes this to heart and decides to use his
extraordinary powers to fight crime and protect the city as Spider-Man.
• Meanwhile, megalomaniacal businessman Norman Osborn, Harry's father,
is undergoing some changes of his own. An experimental formula has
gone awry, increasing his intelligence and strength but also driving him
insane. He is now the Green Goblin, Spider-Man's arch-enemy, who will
put young Peter Parker's vow to fight crime and help innocent people to
the ultimate test.
The Thought and Meaning of
Spiderman
• Spiderman is the most popular American
heroic movie, whose thoughts influence
people a lot.
• The main gist of Spiderman is ” With great
power, comes great responsibility.” This
sentence appeared in the movie repeatedly.
This is also the latest talks of uncle Ben. It
shows that how much responsibility Heroes
take again and again.
The Traits of American Heroic Movies
• In the various American Heroic movies,
every main character has its own special
power, use it to hit guilty, help handle
public security, and be the helper of the
police as well as the idol of the people.
They may face the problem that they are
different from the general public and then
can’t continue to live as usual. Finally,
each of them has their own result – living
in privacy, death, or so.
The Influence of the Culture of
American Hero
• Just like other American culture, it has
spread all over the world. And it also
influences many other culture. There is still
lots of space to improve and change. It
might be complete because of the
development of the movie industry.