Abstract

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Title:: Voice of Materials： Strategies for Selecting Materials inQian Qianyi’s Liechao Shiji Xiaozhuan

Keywords:: Qian Qianyi; Liechao Shiji; historical origin; strategy for selecting materials; narrative skill

Abstract:: Besides direct comments offered in his Liechao shiji列朝诗集（ananthology of poems from differentdynasties）， Qian Qianyi’s view on the poetic history is also embodied in his selection of materials and hisnarrative skills for compiling this anthology. This can be examined from the following two dimensions： thesource of the selected poems and the origin of the biographical account of the poets. In terms of narration， dueto his characteristic theoretical understanding of literature， Qian Qianyi took great advantage of the interactionamong different historical materials and of the principle of re-contextualization of some key notions in the newcontext formed by the combination of materials he selected from different sources. His selection and evenmanipulation of the materials has actually produced a narrative effect he wanted to achieve. However， this ismade under the guise of an impartial narrator， thus forming a type of implicit literary criticism. The existenceof this kind of narrative techniques requires us to reflect on and re-examine the objectivity of the historicalmaterials included in the traditional scholarly writings on poets and poetry.