When did ancient Chinese novels reach maturity?

The maturity of ancient Chinese novels was marked by the appearance of Dream of the Red Chamber. 'Dream of the Red Chamber' was considered the pinnacle of ancient Chinese novels in the Qing Dynasty. Its maturity was mainly manifested in the following aspects: 1. Rich character images and story plots: In Dream of the Red Chamber, there are a large number of characters, such as noble gentlemen, eunuchs, maids, servants, etc. There are also civilians, knight-errant, scholars, etc. These characters have their own characteristics, full and real. At the same time," Dream of the Red Chamber " also depicted a rich storyline, including the rise and fall of the family, the entanglements of marriage, the emotional entanglements between the characters, and so on. The plot was complicated and full of drama and mystery. 2. Unique narrative style: "Dream of the Red Chamber" adopted the narrative technique of "simulating the world", which reflected the various shortcomings of feudal society by simulating the description of real society. This unique narrative style not only shows the author's deep thinking about the feudal society, but also leaves a deep impression on the readers. 3. Profound ideology: Dream of the Red Chamber contains profound ideology such as "feelings","righteousness","etiquette" and other values, as well as deep thinking about human nature, life, society and other aspects. These ideology have played an important role in the development and enlightenment of ancient Chinese novels. Therefore, the publication of Dream of the Red Chamber marked the maturity of ancient Chinese novels, which not only laid the foundation for the development of ancient Chinese novels, but also had a profound impact on the development of modern literature and thought.

The peak period of ancient Chinese narrative literature could be traced back to the pre-Qin period, especially the Warring States period. History books such as the Spring and Autumn Annals and Zuo Zhuan were considered classics of ancient Chinese narrative literature. In the Han Dynasty, there were a number of famous narrative works such as Records of the Historian and Han Shu. These works were not only beautifully written, but their content was also grand. They showed the political, economic, and cultural aspects of the Han Dynasty society and became a milestone in the history of Chinese literature. The Tang Dynasty was another peak period of ancient Chinese narrative literature. A number of excellent narrative literature works appeared, such as Water Margins, Journey to the West, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, etc. These works used vivid, vivid, and humorous language to portray many characters and plots, which became the treasures of Chinese culture. The Song Dynasty was another climax of Chinese narrative literature. A number of famous novels appeared, such as Water Margins, Journey to the West, Dream of the Red Chamber, etc. These works not only described the various customs of the Song Dynasty society, but also reflected the thoughts and feelings of the people at that time, becoming another classic in the history of Chinese literature. Generally speaking, the peak period of ancient Chinese narrative literature was between the pre-Qin period and the Tang Dynasty. The works of this period were not only beautiful but also grand in content, reflecting the social style and people's lives at that time. It became an important stage in the history of Chinese culture.

Chinese literature had a long history and had different literary achievements in different historical periods. However, if one were to select a few periods to reach the peak of Chinese literature, then it should be the following periods: Pre-Qin period (11th century B.C. -21st century B.C.): The Pre-Qin period was the origin of ancient Chinese literature. Many outstanding literary works appeared, such as The Book of Songs, The Songs of Chu, The Analects of Confucius, etc. These works not only have profound thoughts and rich emotional expressions, but also have high artistic value and historical value. 2 Tang Dynasty (618 - 907): The Tang Dynasty was the heyday of Chinese literature. Many great literary works appeared, such as Li Bai, Du Fu, Bai Juyi, Wang Wei, etc. The Tang Dynasty literature, mainly poetry, showed rich emotions, broad vision and superb artistic expression, which was regarded as the peak of Chinese literature history. 3 Song Dynasty (960 - 1279): The Song Dynasty was the next period of Chinese literature and one of the most prosperous periods in the history of literature. In the Song Dynasty, many outstanding writers such as Su Shi, Ouyang Xiu, Wang Anshi, etc. appeared mainly in prose. The literature of the Song Dynasty not only had the depth of thought and literary value, but also showed strong humane care and feelings. 4 Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644): The Ming Dynasty was the lowest point of Chinese literature. Due to political corruption, social unrest and other reasons, the development of literature was seriously affected. In the Ming Dynasty, many outstanding writers such as Cao Xueqin and Lu Xun appeared. Although the Ming Dynasty had some literary achievements, there was still a big gap compared with the Tang Dynasty and Song Dynasty. These are the few peak periods of Chinese literature. Each period has its own literary characteristics and literary achievements. It is an indispensable part of the history of Chinese literature.

The maturity of ancient Chinese drama was marked by the rise and development of Yuan drama. Yuan opera was the pinnacle of ancient Chinese opera art and also an important milestone in the development of traditional Chinese opera art. It originated in the Yuan Dynasty, developed in the Ming Dynasty, and flourished in the Qing Dynasty. It was one of the important schools in the history of Chinese opera. The main characteristics of the Yuan Dynasty's Zaju included the rigorous structure of the script, the easy to understand language, the beautiful music, the exquisite performance, and the rich plot. It used a conversational performance form, and the actors used dialogue to express the character's personality and plot development, which had a distinct oral feature. In addition, the forms of Yuan opera were also very rich, including southern opera, northern opera and Kunqu opera, each of which had its own unique performance style and musical characteristics. The achievements and influence of the Yuan Dynasty opera were not only unique in Chinese history, but also had a profound impact on the development of the world's opera art. It not only provides an important cultural heritage for traditional Chinese opera art, but also becomes a treasure in the world's cultural and artistic treasure house.

One of the signs of the maturity of Chinese classical novels was the emergence of the concept of "Four Great Masterpieces". These four novels were Dream of the Red Chamber, Journey to the West, Water Margins, and Romance of the Three Kingdoms. They had a very high status and influence in Chinese classical novels and were regarded as the milestone works of Chinese classical novels. These four novels all depicted rich characters and plots, showing the essence of Chinese traditional culture and thought. Their plots were full of thrills and suspense, but they also showed deep human thinking and moral values. These novels had unique styles and characteristics such as delicate emotional descriptions, vivid characters, magnificent language, etc. The emergence of the four masterpieces marked the golden age of Chinese classical novels, which provided important reference and enlightenment for later literary creation. At the same time, they also created a lot of Chinese classical novels, such as the method of describing characters, the skill of plot design, the variety of narrative methods, etc. They played an important role in promoting the development and prosperity of Chinese literature.

The classic classic Chinese novel was " Dream of the Red Chamber ". 'Dream of the Red Chamber' was considered a classic novel in the Qing Dynasty. The novel depicted the rise and fall of a wealthy family with the rise and fall of the four families of Jia, Shi, Wang and Xue as the main line. Through the description of the main characters such as Jia Baoyu, Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai, it showed the richness of human nature and the complexity of society. It was hailed as a classic in the history of Chinese literature.

The "New Realism" movement from the late 1980s to the early 1990s marked the maturity of Chinese novels. New realism is a genre of Chinese novels that advocates realistic reflection of real life while adding literary elements and fictional plots to emphasize the social significance and human nature of the novel. The rise of this movement stemmed from the rapid development of society and economy after China's reform and opening up. The representative works of the new realism included Alive, Brothers, Ordinary World, etc. These novels not only truly reflected the reality of Chinese society at that time, but also explored the problems of human nature, family, society and so on. They had high literary value and ideology. The rise of the new realism had a profound impact on the development of Chinese novels, pushing Chinese novels to develop in a more realistic, profound and diverse direction.

The origin of ancient Chinese novels could be traced back to the pre-Qin period, such as the Records of the Historian and the Book of Han. In the Han Dynasty, a number of famous novels appeared, such as Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio and The Scholars. These works were not only numerous but also of high quality, which had a profound impact on the development of Chinese novels. The Tang Dynasty was the peak period of ancient Chinese novels, and a number of important novels appeared, such as Water Margins, Journey to the West, Dream of the Red Chamber, etc. These works not only made great achievements in literature, but also had an important position in the history of Chinese novels. The Song Dynasty was another peak period for the development of Chinese novels. A number of famous novels appeared, such as Water Margins, Journey to the West, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, etc. These works not only reached the peak in quantity, but also in quality, which had a profound impact on the creation of later novels. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the creation of Chinese novels entered a climax, and a number of important novels appeared, such as "Dream of the Red Chamber","Water Margins","Journey to the West","Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and so on. These works not only achieved high literary achievements, but also had unique artistic expressions. They were important milestone in the history of Chinese novels.

The maturity of ancient Chinese novels was marked by the emergence of legendary novels in the Tang Dynasty, because the legendary novels in the Tang Dynasty were the milestone of ancient Chinese novels, which opened a new chapter in the development of ancient Chinese novels. The legendary novels of the Tang Dynasty referred to a series of novels that appeared after the Tang Dynasty. They were usually called legends, legendary novels, or story novels. The content of these novels was rich and varied. There were narrative novels, narrative novels, and argumentative novels. Among them, the most representative ones were the legendary novels of the Tang Dynasty, Song of Everlasting Regret, Song of the Pipa, and Tang Bohu's Autumn Fragrance. The emergence of legendary novels in the Tang Dynasty symbolized the maturity of ancient Chinese novels. First of all, it created the narrative mode of ancient Chinese novels, combining the plot and the character to form a complete story world. Secondly, the legendary novels of the Tang Dynasty also created the description mode of ancient Chinese novels. Through rich description techniques, they portrayed the delicate psychology and personality characteristics of the characters, making the characters more plump and real. In addition, Tang Dynasty legendary novels also had important cultural significance. It showed the social style and cultural tradition of the Tang Dynasty, reflected the characteristics and problems of the society, politics and culture at that time, and had important historical and cultural value. To sum up, the emergence of legendary novels in the Tang Dynasty symbolized the maturity of ancient Chinese novels, and it opened a new chapter for the development of ancient Chinese novels, which had a far-reaching impact on ancient Chinese literature and modern literature.

The emergence of the Yuan Dynasty drama symbolized the maturity of ancient Chinese drama.