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Abstract:: As siliu prose(rhythmical prose characterized by parallelism and ornateness)was widely used in official discourse and daily communications in the mid-late Ming Dynasty, the inscription and publication of the anthologies of this special type of writings was also flourishing. In such a situation, some scholars fervently advocated this genre by claiming that it could help promote the etiquette as well as express ideas or feelings effectively. On this basis, they proposed a pragmatic view that took applicability and popularity as the primary criterion for judging the quality and value of siliu prose. This view, focusing on the wide applications and important functions of this genre, was reasonable to some extent and had a certain impact on the orthodox Confucian view on writing. However, as it was mainly driven by commercial interests, this view on writing had its intrinsic limitations: while it promoted the prosperity of siliu prose, it resulted in a trend of formalism and the prevalence of plagiarism.