The origin of vernacular novels can be traced back to the Ming Dynasty. In the Ming Dynasty, there was a literary form that used spoken language as the main means of expression-vernacular novels. The characteristic of vernacular novels was that they used easy-to-understand language to express themselves. They used spoken language and slang to express themselves. The representative works of the vernacular novels of this period were Dream of the Red Chamber, Water Margins, etc.
The origin of novels could be traced back to ancient China. There were records of novels in historical books such as the Spring and Autumn Annals, the Warring States Period, and the Records of the Historian. In the Han Dynasty, the "Zi Shu" described in the "Han Shu" appeared, which included some stories and legends from the "Book of Songs" and "Book of History" and became one of the earliest forms of short stories. With the development and popularity of the written language, novels gradually appeared in the Tang and Song Dynasties and became an important form of literature. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the creation of novels reached its peak, such as Dream of the Red Chamber, Water Margins, Journey to the West, and other classic works. The development of modern novels could be traced back to the early 20th century, such as Lu Xun's Madman's Diary and Lao She's Camel Xiangzi.
The origin of novels can be traced back to ancient Greek and Roman narrative literature, such as Homer's Iliad and Odessey. The development of novels in China could be traced back to works such as Song of Everlasting Sorrow from the Tang Dynasty and Water Margins from the Song Dynasty. The development of modern novels began in the 18th century in Europe during the Enlightenment, such as Daniel Defoe's " Crusoe " and Jane Austen's " Pride and Predict." The novel had become one of the most colorful and deeply rooted literary forms in the history of human civilization.
The ancient vernacular refers to modern Chinese, which can be traced back to the Ming Dynasty. During the Ming Dynasty, some scholars began to use the vernacular to write. This vernacular was called "vernacular script". Huaben was a literary form in ancient Chinese literature. It referred to the use of vernacular Chinese to replace traditional classical Chinese to write. During the Ming Dynasty, some scholars used vernacular scripts to write novels such as Dream of the Red Chamber and Water Margins. These novels became the representative works of ancient Chinese vernacular writing.
The order of the dynasties in Chinese history was Xia, Shang, Zhou, Qin, Western Han, Eastern Han, Three Kingdoms, Western Jin, Eastern Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing. This order was based on the general law of historical development and the standards of history.
The vernacular refers to a literary style based on modern Chinese. Its formation can be traced back to the Qing Dynasty. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, with the development of the industrial revolution and the popularity of modern Chinese, it gradually replaced the traditional classical Chinese and became the main language for literary and academic exchanges. The emergence of vernacular Chinese made literary works easier to understand and accept. The emergence of the vernacular in Chinese cultural geography had a profound impact on the development of Chinese literature. With the help of the vernacular, Chinese literature spread more widely, allowing more people to read and appreciate literary works. At the same time, the vernacular language also laid the foundation for the process of Chinese literature's modernisation and promoted the rapid development of modern Chinese literature.
During the Song Dynasty, there was no official standard vernacular, but there were some vernacular literature works such as Water Margins and Journey to the West. These works were written on the basis of the popular culture of the society at that time. They used spoken language and easy-to-understand descriptions, so they were considered one of the representative works of the Song Dynasty's vernacular.
The peak of Chinese ancient vernacular novels was in the Ming Dynasty, especially in the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty (about 1592 to 1612 AD). During this period, there were many famous vernacular novels such as Water Margins, Journey to the West, Dream of the Red Chamber, etc. These novels attracted a large number of readers through simple language and vivid plots, becoming the classics of ancient Chinese novels.
The history of literature in our country began with the Qin Dynasty. During the Qin Dynasty, many important literary works appeared, such as the Book of Songs and the Songs of Chu. These works had a profound impact on later literature.
The rise of the vernacular novels in the Ming Dynasty represented an important revolution in the history of Chinese literature. In the Ming Dynasty, with the development of commodity economy and the acceleration of social change, people's reading needs and spiritual and cultural life became increasingly rich. As a new style, the vernacular novel gradually rose. The rise of the vernacular novels in the Ming Dynasty was closely related to the social and cultural environment at that time. With the development of society and economy, the process of urban development accelerated, and people's knowledge level and cultural quality continued to improve, so the requirements for literary works became higher and higher. At the same time, with the implementation of the imperial examination system, the social status of the intelligentsia gradually improved, they began to read more widely all kinds of literary works and had a strong interest in the easy-to-understand style of the vernacular novel. The rise of the vernacular novels in the Ming Dynasty also marked an important change in the history of Chinese literature. In the past, Chinese literature had always used classical Chinese as the main way of expression. The expression of classical Chinese was more complicated and difficult to read and understand. The rise of vernacular novels made literary works easier to understand and accept by the majority of readers, which also laid the foundation for the development of Chinese literature. At the same time, the rise of vernacular novels in the Ming Dynasty also reflected the changes in social culture and people's aesthetic needs at that time.
Early vernacular refers to the vernacular popular in the mainland of China in the early 20th century. During this period, the vernacular gradually replaced the traditional classical Chinese as a widely used literary form in the mainland of China.