The First Emperor: Selections from the Historical Records (Oxford

oxford world’s classics THE FIRST EMPEROR Sima Qian’s Historical Records (Shiji), from which this selection is taken, is the most famous Chinese historical work, which not only established a pattern for later Chinese historical writing, but was also much admired for its literary qualities, not only in China, but also in Japan, where it became available as early as the eighth century ad. The work is vast and complex, and to appreciate its nature it is necessary to make a selection of passages concerning a particu- lar period. To this end the short-lived Qin Dynasty, which unified China in the late third century bc, has been chosen for this translation as a key historical period which well illustrates Sima’s method. Sima himself lived from 145 bc to about 86 bc. He inherited the post of Grand Historiographer from his father, and was so deter- mined to complete his work that he suffered the penalty of castra- tion rather than the more honourable alternative of death when he fell foul of the Emperor. Raymond Dawson was an Emeritus Fellow of Wadham College, Oxford. He was Editor of The Legacy of China (1964) and his other publications include The Chinese Chameleon: An Analysis of European Conceptions of Chinese Civilization (1967), Imperial China (1972), The Chinese Experience (1978), Confucius (1982), A New Introduction to Classical Chinese (1984), and the Analects (Oxford World’s Classics, 1993). K. E. Brashier is Associate Professor of Religion (Chinese) and Humanities (Chinese) at Reed College. oxford world’s classics For over 100 years Oxford World’s Classics have brought readers closer to the world’s great literature. Now with over 700 titles—from the 4,000-year-old myths of Mesopotamia to the twentieth century’s greatest novels—the series makes available lesser-known as well as celebrated writing. The pocket-sized hardbacks of the early years contained introductions by Virginia Woolf, T. S. Eliot, Graham Greene, and other literary figures which enriched the experience of reading. Today the series is recognized for its fine scholarship and reliability in texts that span world literature, drama and poetry, religion, philosophy and politics. Each edition includes perceptive commentary and essential background information to meet the changing needs of readers. OXFORD WORLD’S CLASSICS SIMA QIAN The First Emperor Selections from the Historical Records Translated with an Introduction and Notes by RAYMOND DAWSON Preface by K. E. BRASHIER 1 3 Great Clarendon Street, Oxford ox2 6dp Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide in Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offices in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University Press in the UK and in certain other countries Published in the United States by Oxford University Press Inc., New York Translation, Introduction, Explanatory Notes © Raymond Dawson 1994 Preface © K. E. Brashier 2007 The moral rights of the author have been asserted Database right Oxford University Press (maker) First published (as Historical Records) as a World’s Classics paperback 1994 Published as an Oxford World’s Classics paperback, with new Preface by K. E. Brashier, 2007 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, or under terms agreed with the appropriate reprographics rights organization. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the above should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above You must not circulate this book in any other binding or cover and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Data available Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Sima, Qian, ca. 145-ca. 86 B.C. [Shi ji. English. Selections] The first emperor : selections from the Historical Records / translated with an introduction and notes by Raymond Dawson ; preface by K. E. Brashier. p. cm. -- (Oxford World’s Classics) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-19-922634-4 (alk. paper) 1. Qin shi huang, Emperor of China, 259-210 B.C. 2. China -- History -- Qin dynasty, 221-207 B.C. 3. China -- kings and rulers -- Biography. I. Dawson, Raymond Stanley. II. Title. DS747.9.Q254S56 2007 931’.04092 -- dc22 [B] 2007007676 Typeset by Cepha Imaging Private Ltd., Bangalore, India Printed in Great Britain on acid-free paper by Clays Ltd., St Ives plc ISBN 978-0-19-922634-4 13579108642 CONTENTS Preface by K. E. Brashier vii Introduction xxi Note on the Text xxxv Select Bibliography xxxvii Chronology xxxix Map xl THE FIRST EMPEROR 1. The Birth of the First Emperor 3 2. An Assassination Attempt 11 3. The Biography of the Chief Minister of Qin 23 4. The Builder of the Great Wall 53 5. The Annals of Qin 61 6. The Treatises 95 7. The Story of the Rebel Xiang Yu 103 8. The Story of the Rebel Chen Sheng 135 Explanatory Notes 143 Index 159 This page intentionally left blank PREFACE VIEWS OF THE FIRST EMPEROR Our modern era regards the First Emperor as the glue that brought Chinese culture together in terms of territory, currency, measures, roads, written language and more. Books and docu- mentaries routinely dub him ‘the man who made China’, elevat- ing him to creator status. Images of his cruelty may persist, but the warfare, the quest for immortality, and his exacting laws are now often treated as necessary evils and personal quirks leading to the much greater prize of unification, of fusing ‘all under Heaven’ or tianxia. We see the First Emperor of Qin through several different lenses. First, there is the self-projected image of the Qin ruler, an image now being reconstructed through the things he left behind, ran- ging from terracotta warriors to mountain inscriptions. Second, there is the lens polished by Sima Qian, the Grand Historiographer who lived a century after the First Emperor. For him, the First Emperor wasn’t the founder of an imperial tradition that would last two thousand years; he was the unpopular Qin opportunist from a few generations ago whose brief dynasty was justifiably overthrown by the worthy Han, Sima Qian’s own court. Finally, there is our own lens transforming the First Emperor into the focal point of operas and video games, of films and theme parks. Why we choose to see the First Emperor today as epitomizing martial valour and cultural unity may tell us more about what we desire out of the present rather than the past. All three lenses—the First Emperor’s, Sima Qian’s and our own—tell us what we want to remember and not necessarily what the Qin story actually was. The First Emperor of Qin’s self-projected image Had there been no Sima Qian to leave behind his Shiji or Historical Records that tell us almost everything we know of the First Emperor, how might we have viewed this man based on the physical evidence alone? For example, would we see him and his ancestors as part of mainstream Chinese civilization, or would we viii Preface see them as western outsiders relative to the dominant cultural sphere of the Zhou Dynasty (1122–256 bce)? To be blunt, was China’s First Emperor Chinese? If seen through Sima Qian’s lens, the people of Qin historically derived their culture from their backward western tribal neighbours; they were ‘in the same category as the Rong and Di’, a classification clearly intended to be derogatory. Mere backward- ness might not have been bothersome to the Central States had Qin quietly remained on the periphery, but the Grand Historiographer lamented that state’s greater ambitions because it ‘favoured vio- lence and cruelty over benevolence and propriety’.1 In like manner, its eastern neighbours would complain that Qin ‘pos- sessed the mind of a tiger or wolf’, failing to recognize ritual or righteousness in its aggressive pursuits.2 This barbarian and even animal-like stereotype would become embedded within the mar- ketplace of images over the next two millennia. For example, Tang poetry would often romanticize the First Emperor’s persona as a fearsome fighter emerging from the pre-imperial Chinese version of the Wild West. As Li Bo (701–762) wrote: The King of Qin swept through every direction, his tiger gaze so courageous! Brandishing his sword, he parted the floating clouds, and the feudal lords all came westward.3 Both geographically and cosmologically, the tiger symbolized the West throughout imperial history. That is, the First Emperor was not only branded formidable and terrifying, he was also from beyond the cultural milieu of the Central States. Yet archaeology now tells a different story that would deny Qin’s alien status. Housing scores of elaborate bronze vessels, Qin royal tombs since at least the eighth century were by no means humble and backward. Their grave complexes heeded Zhou sumptuary regula- tions, and their capital cities boasted impressive palaces and temples. 1 Shiji (Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1985), 15.685. For other similar associations between Qin and its tribal neighbours, see Shiji, 5.202 and 68.2234. 2 Shiji, 44.1857. 3 Yu Xianhao, Li Bai xuanji (Shanghai: Shanghai guji, 1990), 461–4 (‘Gu feng’).

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