Meat Utensil” Unit, and the “Wine Vessel” Group

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A SEMANTIC STUDY OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MORPHEMIC SYMBOLS AND DESIGNED ARTIFACTS IN CHINA

XI XIAOCHAO

Ph.D

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

2017 The Hong Kong Polytechnic University School of Design

A Semantic Study of the Relationship between Morphemic Symbols and Designed Artifacts in China

XI Xiaochao

A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy

May 2016 Certificate of Originality

I hereby declare that this thesis is my own work and that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, it reproduces no material previously published or written, nor material that has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma, except where due acknowledgement has been made in the text.

(Signed)

XI Xiaochao (Name of student)

iii

Abstract

Modern times of China see serious impact on the cultural inheritance due to tremendous transformations and movements. Artifact design, deemed as one of the major carriers of the cultural values, has become more critical because of the complex situations facing every designer. This research focuses on how to interpret designed artifacts in an innovative way, and how to embody the essence of native culture in man- made forms, proposing an approach to fit the acculturation.

Toward this end, a series of studies is conducted from the perspective of semantic representation. It starts with the linguistic investigation, suggesting a new way to analyze Chinese ideographs morphemically. The connection between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts is then set up, and the cognitive semantics-based interpretive framework of designed artifacts is proposed. On the basis of the theoretical statements, the author is establishing the “Ideograph-Artifact Library” that contains the information of both artifact samples and corresponding Chinese ideographs with different groups and units. After that, several case studies are given, including the

“food-container” group, the “meat utensil” unit, and the “wine vessel” group. By examining semantics of designed artifacts from a cognitive approach, two kinds of relationships between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts are uncovered, namely, the denotative and the connotative relationship. Furthermore, the author raises two implications of design: the evaluation model and the “Ideographic Design” approach.

To prove the statements, examples are also given, attesting the practical value of the research.

Publications and Conferences

Design Journal

Chow, Kenny, and Xiaochao Xi. 2017. “Semantics of Abstinence: Blending between the

Chinese Character “Horn (角)” and Wine Vessel Design in China.” The

International Journal of Designed Objects 11 (2): 1-17.

Kenny K. N. Chow & XiaoChao Xi. “Mapping Semantics of Designed Artifacts and

Chinese Ideograph with Blends.” The IJCCI Journal. (accepted).

Presentation

Kenny K. N. Chow & Xi XiaoChao (2014, June). Design Semantics of Light: Relationship

between Chinese ideograph and Lamp Design. Paper presented at the 7th

International Conference on Multimodality (7-ICOM).

Chow KaNin & Xi Xiaochao (2016, October). Design for Worshipping Ancestors:

Blending Semantics of Grain Utensil in China to Chinese Ideographs. Paper

presented at the 10th International Conference on Design History and Design

Studies (ICDHS).

Acknowledgements

To complete the Ph.D thesis is the greatest achievement that I have ever got. In the study, I faced challenges and difficulties. Here, I am so grateful for my supervisors’ guidance: Dr. Chow KaNin, Prof. DE BONT Cornelis Joachim Petrus, and Mr. Leong

Chin Hong. Especially with my chief supervisor – Dr. Chow KaNin – who not only trains me to do academic research rigorously and professionally, but also offers me precious opportunities to develop my design ability, and to present my study work in public.

More than that, I want to give thanks to my family for full support in all these years, and my friends Meng Ye and Liu RuiQi, who contribute their talents and endeavors to this research.

Particularly, graphs of Chinese characters in this thesis mostly quote from the website “http://www.chineseetymology.org/” established by Richard H. Sears. As a young researcher who interests in material culture of China, I truly salute his selfless and contribution to the revival of native culture of China.

Thank you all.

Content

Certificate of Originality ...... ii

Abstract ...... iv

Publications and Conferences ...... v

Acknowledgements ...... vi

Content ...... vii

List of Figures ...... xi

List of Tables ...... xv

Chapter 1 Introduction ...... 16

1.1 A Historical Background ...... 16

1.1.1 “Detraditionalization” – A Cultural Phenomenon ...... 17

1.1.2 “Superficial Localization” in Design ...... 19

1.2 Problem Identification ...... 24

1.3 Research Scope and Hypotheses ...... 28

1.4 Research Significance ...... 30

1.5 Summary ...... 31

Chapter 2 Literature Review ...... 32

2.1 A Study of Chinese Philology and the Chinese Ideograph System ...... 32

2.1.1 Language, Writing System and Ideograph ...... 33

2.1.2 The “Six Character Origins (六書說)” ...... 38

2.1.3 The “Three Origins (三書說)” ...... 42

2.1.4 The “Parts Theory (部件說)” ...... 44

vii

2.1.5 The “Hanzi Tree (漢字樹)” ...... 49

2.1.6 The “Chinese Character Series” Study ...... 57

2.2 A Study of Material Culture in China ...... 65

2.2.1 Culture, Material Culture, and Artifact ...... 65

2.2.2 A History of Material Culture in China ...... 70

2.2.3 The Modularity of the Chinese Material Culture ...... 80

2.3 Preliminary Analysis of Applying Chinese Ideographs to Artifact Design .... 88

2.3.1 Direct Use of Chinese Ideographs – “Beauty of Character” Artifacts ...... 88

2.3.2 Indirect Use of Chinese Ideographs – The “Aura/Narrative Design” ...... 95

2.4 Summary ...... 101

Chapter 3 Theoretical Framework and the “Ideograph-Artifact Library” ...... 102

3.1 Academic Foundation of the Theoretical Framework ...... 103

3.2 Semantic Analysis of Chinese Ideographs ...... 110

3.2.1 Morphemic Basis of Chinese Ideographs ...... 110

3.2.2 Three Layers of Chinese Ideograph Formation ...... 111

3.2.3 Semantic Model of Chinese Ideographs ...... 117

3.3 Semantic Analysis of Artifact Design ...... 125

3.3.1 Psychological Model of Designed Artifacts ...... 126

3.3.2 Conceptual Blending Process in Perceptual System ...... 130

3.3.3 Semantic Model of Designed Artifacts ...... 133

3.4 Building the “Ideograph-Artifact Library” ...... 146

3.4.1 Configuration Principle of Library ...... 147

3.4.2 Map of Chinese Ideograph Groups ...... 150

3.4.3 Layouts of “Ideograph-Artifact Units” ...... 157

viii

3.4.4 Design of “Ideograph-Artifact Library” ...... 160

3.5 Summary ...... 172

Chapter 4 Ideograph-Artifact Group of “Food-Container” ...... 173

4.1 The Core Ideograph-Artifact Unit “Utensil” ...... 173

4.2 Cognitive Semantics of the “Grain Utensil” Units ...... 175

4.2.1 Morphemic Analysis of Ideographs in the “Grain Utensil” Units ...... 176

4.2.2 Collection of Grain Utensils ...... 179

4.2.3 Conceptual Blending of the “Grain Utensil” Units ...... 186

4.3 Cognitive Semantics of Food-Container Design ...... 191

4.4 The “Denotative Relationship” of Cognitive Semantics ...... 192

4.5 Summary ...... 195

Chapter 5 Ideograph-Artifact Unit of “Meat Utensil” ...... 196

5.1 The Core Ideograph-Artifact Unit “Mouth/Ancient Ritual Vessel” ...... 196

5.2 Study of the Chinese Ideograph “Meat Utensil (⾖, dou)” ...... 198

5.3 Cognitive Semantics of Lamp Design ...... 201

5.3.1 Sensorial Composition ...... 201

5.3.2 Behavioral Completion ...... 203

5.3.3 Intellectual Elaboration ...... 205

5.4 Other Cases Study ...... 208

5.4.1 Linguistic Study of the Chinese Ideograph “Star (星, xing)” ...... 208

5.4.2 Design of the “Fifteen-Branches Lamp of Zhongshan” ...... 210

5.4.3 Semantics of the “Fifteen-Branches Lamp of Zhongshan” ...... 212

5.5 The “Connotative Relationship” of Cognitive Semantics ...... 214

5.6 Summary ...... 218

Chapter 6 Ideograph-Artifact Group of “Wine Vessel” ...... 219

6.1 The Core “Ideograph-Artifact Unit” “Horn (角, jiao)” ...... 220

6.1.1 A Background of Wine Culture in China ...... 220

6.1.2 Origin of Wine Vessel Design in China ...... 221

6.2 Cognitive Semantics of the Derivative Units ...... 236

6.2.1 The “One Chinese-Liter Wine Cup” Unit ...... 237

6.2.2 The “Four Chinese-Liter Wine Cup” Unit ...... 240

6.2.3 Other Derivative Units ...... 241

6.3 Summary ...... 244

Chapter 7 Conclusion and Design Implications ...... 245

7.1 The “Ideograph-Artifact Library” ...... 246

7.1.1 The Corpus of Chinese Ideographs ...... 247

7.1.2 The “Ideograph-Artifact Library” ...... 249

7.2 Relationships between Chinese ideographs and Designed Artifacts ...... 251

7.3 Design Implications ...... 253

7.3.1 The Evaluation Model of Designed Artifacts ...... 254

7.3.2 The “Ideographic Design” Approach ...... 260

7.4 Limitations and Possible Future Work ...... 272

References ...... 275

List of Figures

Figure 1.1: Destruction in the Temple of Confucius ...... 18

Figure 1.2: The Chinese character “vehicle (車, che)” and outline of ancient vehicle in

China ...... 19

Figure 1.3 Sitting postures in Chinese fauteuil and couch ...... 21

Figure 1.4 Popularity of shanzhai phones in China ...... 23

Figure 1.5 Architecture design of the China Pavilion ...... 24

Figure 2.1 Two modes of Chinese character construction ...... 45

Figure 2.2 The bronze scripts of Chinese characters with the pattern morph “sai” ...... 61

Figure 2.3 Bottom-pointed vessel and bronze wine vessel of “zun (尊)” ...... 73

Figure 2.4 “Boshan censers” in the Han dynasty ...... 75

Figure 2.5 Designed artifacts with exotic styles in the Wei-Jin period ...... 76

Figure 2.6 Designed artifacts in the Tang dynasty ...... 77

Figure 2.7 Celadon artifacts of the Ru kiln in the Song period ...... 78

Figure 2.8 Designed artifacts in the Ming and the Qing dynasty ...... 79

Figure 2.9 The “eight laws in the character yong” ...... 85

Figure 2.10 Modular system of decoration of fanglei ...... 86

Figure 2.11 The white porcelain censer and cultural habit of worshipping in China ...... 90

Figure 2.12 Kajiwara’s design of shelf ...... 91

Figure 2.13 The “blessedness” wine bottle made of plain tricolors porcelain ...... 92

Figure 2.14 The “longevity” lacquer hamper ...... 93

Figure 2.15 Engramer’s bookshelf design ...... 95

Figure 2.16 The “Moon Reach Ladder” ...... 96

Figure 2.17 The “Tian” fruit plate ...... 97

Figure 2.18 The “Hua” vase ...... 99

Figure 2.19 Xu ZiJun’s “sexual furniture” ...... 100

Figure 3.1 Basic sign structure of semiotics ...... 105

Figure 3.2 The ritual artifact of cong and the concept of tianyuan difang ...... 109

Figure 3.3 Three layers of Chinese ideograph formation ...... 112

Figure 3.4 The morphemic decomposition phase ...... 121

Figure 3.5 The semantic comprehension phase ...... 123

Figure 3.6 The intersubjective understanding phase ...... 125

Figure 3.7 The “Visceral level” of design and perceptual reaction of participants ...... 127

Figure 3.8 The “Behavioral level” of design and psychological prediction of participants ... 128

Figure 3.9 The “Reflective level” of design and self-examination of participants ...... 129

Figure 3.10 Basic map of conceptual blending process ...... 132

Figure 3.11 Role-playing of participants – “encoder” and “decoder” ...... 135

Figure 3.12 The sensorial composition phase ...... 137

Figure 3.13 The Sensorial composition between the Chinese ideograph “⿀” and ancient artifact of “li” ...... 138

Figure 3.14 The behavioral completion between the Chinese ideograph “伐” and ancient arm of dagger-axe ...... 139

Figure 3.15 The behavioral completion ...... 140

Figure 3.16 The intellectual elaboration phase ...... 142

Figure 3.17 The intellectual elaboration between the Chinese ideograph “光” and the bronze lamp design ...... 143

Figure 3.18 Definition of cognitive semantics ...... 145

xii

Figure 3.19 The three types of Chinese ideographs ...... 153

Figure 3.20 Ideograph-artifact group “ritual vessel” ...... 166

Figure 3.21 Ideograph-artifact group “food-container” ...... 167

Figure 3.22 Ideograph-artifact group “wine vessel” ...... 169

Figure 3.23 Ideograph-artifact group “cooking utensil” ...... 171

Figure 4.1 Semantics of the core unit “utensil” ...... 174

Figure 4.2 Semantics of Chinese ideographs in the sub-group “grain utensil” ...... 179

Figure 4.3 Sensorial composition of the “grain utensil” units ...... 188

Figure 4.4 Behavioral completion of the “grain utensil” units ...... 189

Figure 4.5 Intellectual elaboration of the “grain utensil” units ...... 190

Figure 4.6 Cognitive semantics of the “grain utensil” units ...... 192

Figure 4.7 Blending process between the Chinese ideograph “mound” and the stationary holder design ...... 195

Figure 5.1 Semantics of the “mouth/ancient ritual vessel” unit ...... 198

Figure 5.2 Semantics of the Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” ...... 200

Figure 5.3 Sensorial composition of the “meat utensil” unit ...... 203

Figure 5.4 Linguistic study of the Chinese ideograph “lamp (燈, deng)” ...... 204

Figure 5.5 Behavioral completion of the “meat utensil” unit ...... 205

Figure 5.6 Intellectual elaboration and semantics of the “meat utensil” unit ...... 207

Figure 5.7 The fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan ...... 211

Figure 5.8 Cognitive semantics of the “fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan” ...... 214

Figure 5.9 Blending process between the Chinese ideograph “auspicious” and the wine bottle ...... 218

Figure 6.1 Semantics of the Chinese ideograph “horn (角, jiao)” ...... 222

xiii

Figure 6.2 Semantics of the Chinese ideograph “the tenth earthly branch (⾣, you)” ...... 225

Figure 6.3 The drinking horn of “Khantsi” in Georgia ...... 226

Figure 6.4 Relations between the Chinese ideographs ...... 227

Figure 6.5 Chen Jun’s design of structure of the “bottom-pointed vessel” ...... 232

Figure 6.6 Cognitive semantics of the “horn” unit ...... 236

Figure 6.7 Cognitive semantics of the “one Chinese-liter wine cup” unit ...... 240

Figure 6.8 Horn cups in different periods of China ...... 241

Figure 7.1 Overall map of the “Ideograph-Artifact Library” ...... 247

Figure 7.2 Evaluation process of the “yii lamp” ...... 260

Figure 7.3 Definition of the “Ideographic Design” ...... 261

Figure 7.4 Main phases of the “Ideographic Design” ...... 261

Figure 7.5 Conceptual blending model of the “Ideographic Design” ...... 266

Figure 7.6 Semantics of the Chinese ideograph “nest (巢, chao)” ...... 270

Figure 7.7 Design of the “chao public chair” ...... 270

Figure 7.8 Blending process between the Chinese ideograph “nest (巢, chao)” and the public chair design ...... 272

xiv

List of Tables

Table 2.1 Written language system classification ...... 35

Table 2.2 Brief history of Chinese written language development ...... 37

Table 2.3 Summary of Chinese philological theories ...... 65

Table 3.1 The Chinese ideograph group of “mouth/ancient ritual vessel” ...... 154

Table 3.2 The Chinese ideograph group of “utensil” ...... 155

Table 3.3 The Chinese ideograph group of “horn” ...... 156

Table 3.4 The Chinese ideograph group of “caldron” ...... 157

Table 4.1 Squared grain utensils in different periods ...... 180

Table 4.2 Round-mouth grain utensils in different periods of China ...... 183

Table 5.1 The Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” and designed lamps in different periods of China ...... 201

Table 6.1 Different types of “bottom-pointed vessel” in the Neolithic Age ...... 229

Table 6.2 The usage of “bottom-pointed vessel” as the admonitory vessel (欹器) ...... 231

Table 6.3 Derivative Units in the “wine vessel” group ...... 243

Chapter 1 Introduction

When speaking of design in China, people may recall historical relics instead of modern creations, such as spectacular Forbidden City built in the Ming dynasty, gorgeous bronze vessel in the Shang dynasty, and elegant textiles in the Han dynasty.

One of the reasons claimed by scholars is that a cross-cultural adaption has taken place in the modernization1 process of China. Hints can be found from the history perspective.

1.1 A Historical Background

In the last two centuries, Chinese tradition suffered from disruptive impacts due to a series of upheavals and revolutions, including the First Opium War (1939-1842

A.D.), the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945 A.D.), the Nationalist-

Communist Civil War (1946-1950 A.D.), the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution

(1966-1976 A.D.), and the “opening up reform” (Since 1978 A.D.). All of them brought foreign thoughts, habits, and products to this enclosed country, while changed the old system of the society and culture tremendously.

In 1842 A.D., the First Opium War broke out between Britain and China due to the conflicts of “diplomatic relations, trade, and the administration of justice for foreign nationals” (Tsang, 2007, pp. 3-13, 29). And the Qing Empire was defeated by the British army with the “Treaty of Nanjing” signed. It is considered as the

1 Modernization refers to, in sociology, the transformation from a traditional, rural, agrarian society to a secular, urban, industrial society (Kumar, 2017).

beginning of not only the collapse of the original system of China, but also the import of foreign culture called “Westernization2.” The influence is so profound that even holds powerful sway today. Particularly, after the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Nationalist-Communist Civil War, China entered a new era with tremendous changes, including ideology, nation-building, social structure, and people’s lifestyle. Governed by the Chinese Communist Party, the Westernization process in China headed to a different direction by the year 1978 A.D., which has caused numerous cultural issues like “detraditionalization” and “superficial localization.” Meanwhile, it influenced the culturally based activities considerably, especially with the Chinese language and creative activities.

1.1.1 “Detraditionalization” – A Cultural Phenomenon

For one thing, the “socialist construction of China” undermined the native heritage.

Since the People’s Republic of China was founded in 1949 A.D., Mao ZeDong and new Chinese communist reformists endeavored to transform the Chinese society pattern against so-called “vestiges of feudalism.” The most representative example is the destruction of “Four Olds3” in the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution. During that decade, countless cultural properties as well as religions and conventions, were destroyed and ransacked by the “Red Guards4,” because these artifacts were seen as

2 Westernization refers to a process whereby societies come under or adopt Western culture in areas such as industry, technology, law, politics, economics, lifestyle, diet, language, alphabet, religion, philosophy, and values (Thong, 2012, pp. 893-918).

3 “Four Olds,” namely, old customs, culture, habits, and ideas (NianYi Wang, 2009, p. 66).

4 Red Guards, in Chinese history, is a group of militant university and high school students formed into paramilitary units as part of the Cultural Revolution… They were formed under the auspices of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 1966 A.D. in order to help party chairman Mao ZeDong combat “revisionist” authorities ("Red Guards," 2017).

being opposed to Marxist-Leninist and Maoist thought though the destruction movements were not officially enacted by the government and the party (Yan & Gao,

1996). Nevertheless, the damage was so fatal, such as in the capital of Beijing, a city where was rich in cultural relics, thousands of designate sites of historical interest were destroyed. Likewise in the Temple of Confucius in Shandong province

(MacFarquhar & Schoehals, 2006), the “Red Guards” not only sieged precious plaques, statues, and steles (Figure 1.1a and b), but also held the so-called “struggle sessions,” criticizing all the Confucian thoughts as pernicious influence on “socialist ideology” (Figure 1.1c).

a: “struggle session” b: burn down plaques c: pull down statues Figure 1.1: Destruction in the Temple of Confucius Note: Source from http://meiqingji.blog.163.com/blog/static/1061076232013269418671/

Beside the extremely leftist activities of excluding capitalist and traditional elements from the Chinese society, simplified reform of Chinese orthography was indigenously implemented with phonetic system of Romanization (Shih, 2008), which devastated pictographic and ideographic features of Chinese characters manifestly, in the meantime, broke the connection between patterns and semantics5.

Such as the traditional script of Chinese pictograph “vehicle (車, the Bronze script is

5 Details of the simplified reform of Chinese orthography and brief history of the development of Chinese written language (see 2.1.1 Language, Writing System, and Ideograph).

, the Seal script is , che or ju),” which is displaced by the simplified script “车.”

From patterns of both the Bronze and the traditional script (Figure 1.2a and b), people could easily link them to the top view outline of ancient vehicle in China

(Shirakawa, 2010, p. 186; Zuo, 2005, pp. 362-363), get the meaning directly, and familiarize their own culture by learning how to write this character (Figure 1.2c).

However such cognition may not happen in the simplified script “车,” which is so hard for people to get the meaning when seeing its pattern (Figure 1.2d). No wonder the Chinese writer Ba Jin cites that the excessive simplification of Chinese characters would affect the communicating consistency in the Chinese culture sphere, particularly in those regions where the traditional script is still being used, including

Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and Vietnam (Bai, 2006).

a: the Bronze script b: the traditional script c: ancient vehicle outline d: the simplified script Figure 1.2: The Chinese character “vehicle (車, che)” and outline of ancient vehicle in China

1.1.2 “Superficial Localization” in Design

For another thing, the “opening up reform” in economy and society changed the original values and habits of China dramatically. In order to recover the society from paralyses by the end of the Great Cultural Revolution, Deng XiaoPing and his allies

launched an economic program named “Socialism with Chinese characteristics6” in

1978 A.D., that is, imported capitalist market principles from the West to China’s public economy. It began with the decollectization of agriculture with “household- responsibility system” in 1978 A.D. (Brandt & Rawski, 2008, p. 9), then to the privatization of state-owned industries since 1984 A.D. (pp. 17-18) and world trade promotions since 1993 A.D. Not until 2005 A.D., the Communist Party of China adopted egalitarian marketing policies to keep the economic growth (Naughton,

2008, p. 128), which effectively enhanced the international competiveness of so- called “national champions7” (Scissors, 2017).

Although the astonishing the “opening up reform” has comprehensively strengthened the nation in less than thirty years, negative effects are highlighted: On the one hand, products and concepts from abroad have profoundly influenced modern life of Chinese people, meanwhile, have weakened inheritance of traditional crafts and thoughts. Taking the classic Chinese fauteuil as an example (Figure 1.3a), this delicate chair was so popular among bureaucrats and millionaires in the Ming and the Qing dynasty of China, because it not only fitted the living circumstances of that age, but also showed the owners’ social position and wealth. While it has been pervasively replaced by Western-style couch in living rooms, in halls, in shopping

6 Socialism with Chinese characteristics is something that combines the basic principle of scientific socialism with the facts of building socialism unique to China. Socialism is the common rule and essential feature of the practice, while Chinese characteristics are what the basic principles of socialism really embody in China ("Socialism with Chinese Characteristics," 2017).

7 Here, “national champions” particularly refer to enterprises by adopting a kind of market reform strategy. It can be found in nations who are (were) in the process of reconstructing economy, such as in Japan, South Korean, and China. Normally, the nation shrinks the number of enterprises in domain industries, and expends the size of remaining ones. By doing so, the less internal competition may let the survived enterprises grow quick, insuring their capacity of competing with foreign corporations (Scissors, 2017).

malls or in offices, pursuing comfortable easiness with soft materials and stretching space. A new medical research shows that the so-called “sustained stretching” in couch would significantly boost the differentiation of adipocytes in human body

(Figure 1.3c), producing more body weight in approximate 50 percent (Gefen et al.,

2011). Whereas sitting on the Chinese fauteuil may correct people’s posture by ergonomic designing of backrest, armrests, and face: The nearly 90-degree shaped backrest could effectively release the muscular tension on both thighs and waists, and could relax the body by leaning on curved backrest (Figure 1.3a and b). More than that, this posture also corresponds to the ideological doctrine of “sitting with respect” in China. It is known that people generally express sympathy and acceptance to others by inclining the body forward, which is considered as one of the best manners of gentleness in community (the personality of junzi8). Unfortunately, this kind of design that emphasizes social interaction and cultural consciousness can be rarely found in China today.

a: image of sitting on Chinese fauteuil b: backrest design of fauteuil c: “sustained stretching” Figure 1.3 Sitting postures in Chinese fauteuil and couch Note: Source from http://www.jpost.com/Health-and-Science/Couch-potatoes-gain-weight-without- eating

8 The term junzi was originally applied to princes or aristocratic men. Confucius invested the term with an ethical significance while maintaining its connotation of noble refinement… It is cultured (wen) and knows how to act and speak appropriately in any situation (de) (Stefon, 2017).

On the other hand, a phenomenon called shanzhai arises, which refers to a special production industry in China, that is, lots of subterranean factories in China mainland copy brand-name products from others, and earn quick money with low- costs in market (Figure 1.4). In 2010 A.D., the Financial Times estimated that shanzhai phones had accounted for about 20% of the global 2-G mobile market

(Kwong, 2017). Today, “shanzhai culture” has caused various problems in society, economy, and intellectual property rights (Wei, Lu, & Li, 2011), like trademark authority, patent protection, quality supervision, social responsibility, creative innovation, and safety warranty. However, arguments are claimed by scholars, such as the Chinese sociologist Ai Jun, who believes that shanzhai is an inevitable path of economic progress in China. That means, most Chinese enterprises may develop creative products after they learn from others. Example can be found in the speech given by Zhou HongYi, who is the founder of Qihoo 360 Technology Corporation, emphasizes a new term called “micro-innovation” which involves function improvement and user experience localization on existing products (Custer, 2017).

On all accounts, the increasing popularity and advancement of either shanzhai product or “micro-innovation” manifests not only the growth of China’s manufacture, but also the effect of Westernization working on Chinese people’s ethnologic ideology – acculturation:

Acculturation is the process of cultural and psychological change that takes

place as a result of contact between culture groups and their individual

members… In 1967, Graves introduced the concept of psychological

acculturation, which refers to changes in an individual who is a participant

in a culture contact situation, being influenced both by the external culture

and by the changing culture of which the individual is a member.

(Spielberger, 2004, pp. 27-28)

Figure 1.4 Popularity of shanzhai phones in China Note: Source from http://cd.qq.com/a/20081203/000237.htm, and http://i.qqn1.com/Article/ArticleInfo_813.html

In the book Encyclopedia of Applied Psychology, Spielberger further proposes four strategies facing the course of acculturation: “ethno-cultural discard (assimilation strategy) and insistency (separation alternative strategy), fusion (integration strategy), and ignorance (marginalization strategy)” (p. 30). Obviously seen in history, Chinese people had a great ability of incorporating foreign thoughts, habits and forms with traditions, pushing the ethno-culture forward to new patterns, like “Zen” – the result of Sinicized Mahayana Buddhism – was developed as “Chan” originally in the 6th century in China (Harvey, 2012). The endless wars during that century made this new branch of Buddhism wide spreading, fitting with social circumstances, and guiding civilians to avoid depression and pain. Hence, the question turns, instead of considering advantages and disadvantages of Westernization, the vital task now is weighing the maintenance of nationalities (dominant culture) with introduced ideas

(non-dominant culture). Aiming at harmonizing the integration, practitioners conduct numerous studies and projects though most of which remain at the

superficial level. In modern design, products, buildings and visual images are decorated with traditional patterns, like Chinese dragons, auspicious clouds, and peony flowers. For instance, the well-known China Pavilion at the Expo 2010

(Figure 1.5a), the inspiration of designing this architecture comes from the Chinese traditional bracket (⽃拱, Figure 1.5c), which “is so complicated, to Western eyes, peculiar part of post and beam structure made of blocks, brackets. And beams jointed” (Ledderose, 2000, p. 108). However, the China Pavilion is constructed with no functional bracket but shape and arrangement (Figure 1.5b). In that case, it is necessary for designers, especially for design researchers to dig deeper in both material heritages and Western approaches, searching for more practical ways of localizing the acculturation in contemporary China.

a: China Pavilion at Expo 2010 b: construction of the roof c: the Chinese traditional brackets Figure 1.5 Architecture design of the China Pavilion Note: Source from http://www.nosacad.com/fxsl2.htm, and http://blog.sciencenet.cn/blog-2056- 406821.html

1.2 Problem Identification

Based on cross-cultural integration in China, the initial issue of this research is how to find an innovative way acculturating the native culture to the West. Especially to designed artifacts, which are usually considered as substantial outcomes of cultural phenomena, this question is more difficult to answer since various problems that

designers may encounter, like aesthetic demand, practical use, emotional factor, social influence, and environmental sustainability. All of them relate to people expressing significance. Being as the most primary form, language explains everything that exists in the human world. Thus, the author chooses Chinese ideographs as the main “interpreter,” and several problems are identified on the following.

(1) Semantics-orientated Study

As stated, conventional pattern of cultural system in China has been fiercely impacted by imported thoughts, habits, and products (the process of

Westernization). Hence the first task is to find a way to preserve the essence of native culture under the influence from the West, in another word, how to keep the ideology consistency. In contrast to current understanding – the arbitrary use of traditional elements – like the example of China Pavilion, preservation of cultural identity shall focus on the customary way of expression, which carries inheritances, and evolves continuously without interruption, in this case, Chinese ideograph. It is vital to this research because it offers an ideal object to investigate the essential thought implanted in Chinese people’s mind. Here, one of the main features of

Chinese ideographs needs to be mentioned, differentiated from other kinds of language like English or Arabic alphabet, each Chinese ideograph is constructed by symbolized morphemes in general. This unique way of representation tightly relates to basic features of the mankind: corporeality, behavior, and concept. All the three aspects with their relations will be analyzed in depth later.

(2) Chinese Ideograph System and Artifact System

For a long period of time, studies of Chinese ideographs (philology) mainly focus on conventional subjects, such as phonology (音韻學), morphology (字形學), and exegetics (訓詁學). Chinese linguists often pay more attention on specific domain individually rather than coherently, not to mention interconnections between different fields. Hence, one of the significant features of Chinese ideographs is underexplored: A derived system based on morphemes, which comprehensively covers both Chinese morphology and exegetics. At the same time, it offers researchers a great opportunity to seize the full picture of ideological values reified in language form.

Correspondingly, artifacts in China show derivative relationships in different categorizations given by either linguistic names or design, such as dishes, cooking utensils, wine vessels, and so on. In the same time, they are viewed as the physical way of people expressing themselves with the embodiment of meaning in appearances and functions. Other than analyzing man-made artifacts in specific cases, systematic investigation is so helpful for seizing the native design tradition, more importantly, fitting for the acculturation (the Westernization process) in China.

(3) Establishment of Connection

Designed artifacts as culture carriers, are described as physical forms of self- representations of the mankind with embodiment. Thus, understanding artifacts is one of the effective paths for grasping the culture essence in human community, like aesthetic characteristics, lifestyles, and even ethno-ideology. Nonetheless, study on semantics of designed artifacts relies more on conjectures, fragmentary documents,

and unearthed relics. Therefore, if participants in a community tend to reconstruct their traditions with contemporary fashions, more specifically, to explore values hidden by varied appearances, decorations, usages, and reflection of designed artifacts. It is necessary to build an overall connection between design of artifact and way of expression. In this case, the author chooses Chinese ideographs as reference, playing as the mediums in connection.

Although many attempts of combining design with Chinese ideographs are conducted theoretically and practically like the “Aura/Narrative Design” and the

“Hanzi Furniture Design” (see 2.3 Design Cases and Academic Practices), essential issues remain. For one thing, studies and designs usually stay at a superficial level, focusing on patterns of Chinese ideographs other than meaning. For another thing, instead of systematic understanding of Chinese ideographs, academic works and actual designs appear to consider them as individual cases. Hence, how to build a comprehensive connection between the Chinese ideograph system and the artifact system is another problem that must be solved in this research.

(4) Application of Connection

Followed by theoretical research (connection between the Chinese ideograph system and the artifact system), exemplifications are needed from two aspects: One is case study on existing artifacts; the other is innovation of new design. Both of them require convincing supports from philology, archeology, psychology, and so on.

Based on the inferential relation between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts, demonstration is about to give diachronically and synchronically, proving the scientific and the practical value of connection.

On the existing artifact side, there are many Chinese ideograph scripts and innumerable man-made artifacts in the material culture history of China, so it would be insufficient if cases (combination of designed artifacts and Chinese ideographs) are randomly chosen. With the help of systematic connection between the Chinese ideograph system and the artifact system, corresponding materials (Chinese ideographs and artifact samples) may be selected with detailed analysis. On the contemporary side, the main issue relies on how to bring the relationship (between

Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts) to modern design, which is another significance of this research.

1.3 Research Scope and Hypotheses

Based on the cultural background of the Westernization process in China today, major subjects are chosen for studying the acculturation progress: One is Chinese ideographs, which carry the ethnic glories throughout the history (Ning Wang,

2002, p. 1), and more importantly, they continuously dominate the central position of expression for over 3,000 years’ development in spite of wars and revolutions. The other one is designed artifacts, which the term originated from the early 19th century

Latin “arte (by or using art)” plus “factum (something made),” means “an object made by a human being, typically one of cultural or historical interest” in the Oxford dictionary. Similarly, in traditional times of China, artifacts not only are created for people to hold, to take, or to deploy, but also carry and share the essence of native culture with Chinese ideographs coherently.

From this perspective, this research firstly focuses on the Chinese written language system, drawing a derived library on the basis of morphemic feature of

Chinese ideographs. Then, semantics of designed artifacts are interpreted by analogically mapping them to linguistic study. After that, new approaches are put forward that fit for the condition of acculturation in China. Therefore, four hypotheses of are listed as follows:

(1) Chinese ideographs can be systematically analyzed in the sense of morphemic

construction, which relate to the basic aspects of mankind.

(2) On the fundamental of morphological linguistics and semantics of designed

artifacts, a library can be established, which shows the coherent connection

between the Chinese ideograph system and the artifact system.

(3) Relations between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts can be

investigated comprehensively from appearances to semantics. Helped by

cognitive science, meaning of man-made artifacts in China can be uncovered,

which also shares the consistent representation to Chinese ideographs.

(4) New design methodology can be drawn that combines the morphemic analysis

of Chinese ideographs with inspiration of design innovation. Not only it could

fulfill the need of Chinese people, but also this train of thought is suitable for

the acculturation (the Westernization process) in China.

1.4 Research Significance

This research aims at discovering the potential connection between linguistics and design, more importantly, uncovering vital doctrine that Chinese people follow when they create artifacts. Then, new design methodology is proposed, which carries the value of Chinese ideographs, in the same time, the essence of native culture. It is a valuable creative exploration in contemporary China for either maintaining the tradition or adapting the condition of acculturation.

As a fundamental theory, study of Chinese ideographs and semantics of design opens an underexplored field of understanding the inheritance of ethnic culture.

Instead of directly quoting foreign theory and method, academic research of design in China needs a breakthrough imperatively, which involves both the historical perspective as vertical dimension (thousands of years’ development of Chinese ideographs and artifacts) and the interdisciplinary perspective as horizontal dimension (cross-disciplinary probe of linguistics, design, and even archaeology).

Nowadays, design research may achieve a quantum leap only if it combines with other domains.

Furthermore, designed artifacts that are made in accordance with the new methodology, could enrich the diverse development and profit-driven market with the Westernization process. Correspondingly, designed artifacts that entail semantics and values of ethnic ideology would satisfy the real need of Chinese people. As stated before, culture dislocation has been seen in modern China – the popularity of

Chinese patterned design (like the China Pavilion) and the shanzhai products. The former one shows the pervasive adoption of decorative element and puerile idea of localization, whereas lots of domestic enterprises have to develop themselves by

making and selling shanzhai products. Thus, the new design methodology may fill this gap, and smooth the Westernization process hopefully.

1.5 Summary

This chapter first gives an introduction of historical background in modern China with cultural issues. In allusion to those problems, research scope and hypotheses are given, focusing on the relationship between morphemic symbols of Chinese ideographs and semantic interpretations of designed artifacts. In later chapters, all hypotheses are demonstrated gradually, which include new models for analyzing semantics of designed artifacts in China, the establishment of a library highlighting the relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts, and applications for evaluating and creating artifacts.

Chapter 2 Literature Review

To uncover the link between the Chinese ideograph system (Chinese ideographs) and the artifact system (designed artifacts), plenty of referential materials are required. This chapter mainly reviews the development in a few related areas, including Chinese linguistics, material culture of China, and design cases. First,

Chinese philology research is drawn upon, including traditional and recent statements of Chinese linguistics (the “Six Character Origins,” the “Three Origins” and the “Parts Theory”) and the Chinese ideograph system (The “Hanzi Tree” and the “Chinese character series” study). The study of material culture then follows, including historical research and systematic theory of material culture. After that, the author chooses typical cases, showing the combination of Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts. That is, how designers and craftsmen put characteristics of

Chinese ideographs into man-made forms.

2.1 A Study of Chinese Philology and the Chinese Ideograph System

As the most fundamental way of expressing one’s intentions, understanding, and ideas, language is a special form that humans create for communicating with each other, and recoding their own culture, especially with the written language. It not only carries and inherits culture essence continuously throughout history. Therefore, the study of written language plays a vital role in investigating the ideology in specific ethnic community. In this section, all terms that relate to linguistics are going to define at first, including language, writing system, and ideograph. Then,

representative theories of Chinese philology are stated, setting up the academic basis for studying Chinese ideographs.

2.1.1 Language, Writing System and Ideograph

According to the great German romanticist Johann Gottfried von Herder, language is not just as one cultural trait among many but rather as the direct expression of people’s national character (Votruba): “Denn jedes Volk ist Volk; es hat seine

National Bildung wie seine Sprache” (Since every people is a people, it has its own national culture expressed through its own language) (Anderson, 1991, pp. 67-68).

Thus it is possible to identify the essence of culture by investigating language in either major or minor community:

Many definitions of language have been proposed. Henry Sweet, an English

phonetician and language scholar, stated: “Language is the expression of

ideas by means of speech-sounds combined into words. Words are

combined into sentences, this combination answering to that of ideas into

thought.” The American linguists Bernard Bloch and George L. Trager

formulated the following definition: “A language is a system of arbitrary

vocal symbols by means of which a social group cooperates.” (Crystal, 2017)

In that case, language can be regarded as a habitual system of spoken and writing symbols by means of which human beings, as social members and participators of their culture, express themselves. The function of language include communicating within community, expressing of identity, play, imaginative creation, and affective

response. Specifically, written language refers to representation of language instead of directly showing ideas, and literalizes structures of spoken language at different levels, including phonemes9, syllables10, words, and sentences in the system of symbols. Thereby a writing system can be defined as any conventional system of symbols that represents the utterances of language with visible and permanent forms.

There are three basic classifications of writing system worldwide: logographic, syllabic, and alphabetic (or segmental), whereas all three types vary in diverse proportions in different languages, usually causing it difficult to categorize. One of the representative classifications is drawn by Peter Daniels and William Bright

(1996) (Table 2.1), in which Chinese characters stands an unique graphic expression of speech named “logograph” or “logogram:” “A sign or character representing a word or phrase, such as those used in shorthand and some ancient writing systems” in Oxford Dictionary; other language, like Japanese kana which contains two parallel modern Japanese syllabaries – katakana and hiragana, although borrows characters from Chinese language, has virtual differences in current time, including new use of character applied in Japan, various semantics brought in contexts, and simplifications

9 Phoneme, in linguistics, it is smallest unit of speech distinguishing one word (or word element) from another that varies. A phoneme may have more than one variant, called an allophone ("Phoneme," 2017).

10 Syllable is a segment of speech that consists of a vowel, with or without one or more accompanying consonant sounds immediately preceding or following. Closed (checked) syllables are those that end in a consonant; open (free) syllables end in a vowel. The role that syllables play in the production of speech is a matter of considerable debate. So too is any more precise definition of the syllable in phonetics and phonology ("Syllable," 2017).

of the kanji11. Most of them have lost the logographic features along with either the symbolic meaning or pronunciation majorly, for instance, the Chinese character “働

(dong)” comprised “亻 (man)” and “動 (action)” means that “action or movement of men.” Sometimes, logograph is also called ideograph or ideogram for representing abstract ideas and meanings graphically, and normally originate from pictograph

(pictogram)12, like the Chinese Oracle scripts, the Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs and the Mayan glyphs. All of them take typical instances of logographic system while carry phonetic features as well that have vanished except for Chinese characters, which inherit from the remote, have been developed into a complicated system rather than mere pictographic expressions, involving independent phonetic morpheme compounding with semantic morpheme. Therefore, some linguists suggest that Chinese characters belong to a kind of “morpho-syllabic system”

(DeFrancis, 1989, p. 58), as well as “semantic-phonetic system.”

Table 2.1 Written language system classification

Written Language Symbol Type Language Form Example

1 Logographic Morpheme • Chinese character 書寫系統

2 Syllabic Syllable, morpheme • Japanese kana 筆記システム

11 Kanji, in Japanese writing, refers to characters adapted from Chinese characters and usually employed for writing nouns, verbs roots, adjectives, and other important words ("Kanji," 2017).

12 Pictograph refers to expression and communication by means of pictures and drawings having a communicative aim. These pictures and drawings (called pictographs) are usually considered to be a forerunner of true writing and are characterized by stereotyped execution and by omission of all details not necessary for the expression of the communication. A pictograph that stands for an individual idea or meaning may be called an ideogram; if a pictograph stands for an individual word, it is called a logogram. Pictographs are also used as memory aids ("Pictography," 2017).

Written Language Symbol Type Language Form Example

Phoneme, 3 Alphabetic • Latin alphabet Stilus System (Consonant/vowel)

Phoneme, 4 Abugida • Indian devanāgarī ले ख न पणाली (Consonant/vowel)

Phoneme, اﻟﻜﺘﺎﺑﺔ ﻧﻈﺎم Abjad • Arabic alphabet 5 (Consonant)

6 Featural Phonetic feature • Korean hangul 쓰기 시스템

Since a complex system Chinese written language is, it is necessary to bring a brief history of its development before theories of Chinese philology are given. It has been pervasively accepted by linguists that the Oracle script is the primary form of

Chinese characters, setting up the foundation of written language system in about

3,000 years ago (the late Shang dynasty). From then on, the Chinese written language experienced an extremely long period of evolution with two phases: the paleo-script phase (古⽂字階段, about 1700 B.C. – the year one) and the Clerical-

Regular script phase (隸、楷階段, the year one – today), covering seven main scripts

(Table 2.2): the Oracle script, the Bronze script, the Seal script, the Clerical script, the Regular script, and the simplified script (Qiu, 1988, p. 28). Originally, the

Oracle script emerges as pictograph, which is created for recording oracle inscriptions, and portraying scenes of divination activities in ancient times of China.

Then, the Chinese written language develops to the Bronze and the Seal script while still have no standardization. Not until the Han dynasty, the Clerical script becomes dominated with normalized strokes and patterns. It is called the “Clerical script

evolution (隸變, libian)13.” Since then, development of the Chinese written language enters the era of “ideograph,” comprising different categories with indicative storks, morphemic symbols, phonic parts, and so on.

Table 2.2 Brief history of Chinese written language development

Development Phase Name of Script Typical Pattern

the Oracle script

Paleo-script phase the Bronze script (about 1700 B.C. – the year one)

the Seal script

the Clerical script ⾺

the Regular script 馬

Clerical-Regular script phase (the year one – today)

the Traditional script 馬

the Simplified script 马

13 The popularity of the Clerical script is a phenomenon of using a more common and vulgar form of writing (with simplified and condensed pattern of character).

2.1.2 The “Six Character Origins (六書說)”

Tracing the systematic study of Chinese philology, the earliest one may be the “Six

Character Origins (六書說)” (p. 98), which first appeared in the book ZhouLi in the late Warring-States period, though had not enough demonstration (<周禮地官保

⽒>: 保⽒掌諫王惡, ⽽養國⼦以道, 乃教之六藝: ⼀曰五禮; ⼆曰六樂; 三曰五射;

四曰五馭; 五曰六書; 六曰九數。) (Tang, 2005). At the Han dynasty, notions of the “Six Character Origins (六書說)” were named in the book HanShu as

“pictograph (象形字),” “indicative character (指事字),” “associative character (會意

字),” “phonogram (形聲字),” “synonymous character (轉注字),” and “loan character

(假借字)” (<漢書藝⽂志>: 古者⼋歲⼊小學, 故周官保⽒掌管國⼦, 教之六書, 象

形、象事、象意、象聲、轉注、假借, 造字之本也。). This classification set the standard when Xu Shen assembled the famous dictionary of Chinese characters later

(Pan, 1977, p. 17), ShuoWenJieZi, which is considered as the most pivotal reference of Chinese philology. And the six categories are shown in the following:

(1) Pictograph (象形字)

According to Xu, “pictograph” is defined as “a character that directly portrays an actual object” (<說⽂解字序>: ⼆曰象形。象形者, 畫成其物, 隨體詰詘, 日、月是

也。). Other scholars in modern times intentionally explain this definition in the sense of objective depiction, like Liang DongHan (1959, p. 34) proposes, “a pictograph is an image which is similar to an actual thing, then depicts its shape objectively.” The words “actual thing” and “depicts objectively” refer not only the existing object, but also the original way that the Chinese written language

constructing meaning abstractly. Taking the Chinese pictograph “sun (日, ri)” as an example, the Oracle script “sun ( )” gets the hieroglyphic pattern from the circular shape of sun, and the an indicative dot in the center representing the abstract concept of “solid object.”

(2) Indicative character (指事字)

“Indicative character” refers to “a pictograph that adds indexical sign(s),” expressing abstract meaning, like directions and spatial locations (<說⽂解字序>: ⼀曰指事。

指事者, 視⽽可識, 察⽽見意, 上下是也。). Indicative characters always confuse linguistis with pictograph for both of them could be considered as “image drawing characters” (Tang, 2005, p. 57). However, the indexical sign of an indicative character shows the effective way of expressing semantics, such as the Chinese character “up (上, shang)” and “down (下, xia),” one may easily link the opposite orientation of the two characters to the concept of physical space and existential locations. Meanwhile, their patterns correspond to the definition of the so-called

“index” in semiotics, emphasizing the causalities (spatial arrangements of strokes) between the signs (character patterns “上” and “下”) and the objects (concept and meaning). Then they are regulated as “symbols” (characters) through agreements or conventionalities that become habitual in the Chinese society (Muller, 2000, pp. 51-

52).

(3) Associative character (會意字)

As one of the typical classifications, an “associative character” normally comprises two or more individual characters, as well as the conjoined semantics (<說⽂解字序>:

會意者, 比類合宜, 以見指撝, 武信是也。). For example, pattern of the Chinese character “wine (酒, jiu)” consists the transformed character “water (⽔, shui)” and the sub-character “the tenth earthly branch (which also means ‘a bottle of wine’ originally, ⾣, you),” in the meantime, meaning of this character can be interpreted as

“wine is liquid contained in a jug.”

(4) Phonogram (形聲字)

“Phonogram” takes the largest volume in the Chinese written language system, containing about 7,697 individual characters out of 9,353 in total in the book

ShuoWenJieZi. Its pattern generally includes a phonetic part (聲旁) showing pronunciation for most of the times, and an ideographic part (形旁) representing semantics. Such as the Chinese character “watch (錶, biao),” which involves the phonic part “table (表, biao),” and the ideographic part “metal (⾦, jin)” expressing the original meaning of “metallic made object.” Nonetheless, arguments of phonogram arise in diverse directions that may mislead the academic categorization of Chinese philology, including the translation of foreign languages (like chemical terms), phenomena of synonymizing (synonymous character) and loaning (loan character) (Lin, 1998, p. 343; X. Liu, 2004; Qiu, 1988, pp. 105-106).

(5) Synonymous character (轉注字) and loan character (假借字)

In the book ShuoWenJieZi Xu, a “synonymous character” is borrowed from another one with analogue sound, pattern and meaning (<說⽂解字序>: 轉注者, 建類⼀首,

同意相受, 考老是也。). It is a classic measure in philology for enriching the corpus, and for enhancing the adaption of contextual uses of characters.

A “loan character” is generally used for expressing different semantics with homophone (<說⽂解字序>: 假借者, 本無其字, 依聲託事, 令長是也。), such as the loan character “self (自, zi),” which is the original character “nose (鼻, bi),” is lent to present the meaning of “oneself.”

Although the “Six Character Origins (六書說)” has a profound influence on

Chinese linguistic study, it remains debatable questions, such as the vague definition boundaries among all the six categories, and some particular cases of characters. So later theorists proposed different statements to further develop Chinese philology, the representative theories include the “Four Morphological Wags and Two Uses

Theory (四體⼆用)” by Dai Zhen (Z. Jiang, 1993), and the “Three Origins (三書說)” by Tang Lan (2005).

In order to further clarify a practical category of Chinese philology, the linguist in the mid-Qing dynasty, Dai Zhen introduced a theory called the “Four

Morphological Wags and Two Uses Theory (四體⼆用)” based on the “Six

Character Origins (六書說)” (Z. Jiang, 1993). It sorts the formation of Chinese characters in four classifications: “pictograph (象形字), “indicative character (指事字

),” “associative character (會意字),” and “phonogram (形聲字);” and two ways of using character: “synonymous character (轉注字)” and “loan character (假借字).”

Additionally, other Chinese linguists like Duan YuCai, Zhang TaiYan and Huang

Kan also supported this theory in their academic works.

2.1.3 The “Three Origins (三書說)”

The “Three Origins” is a wide concept that contains different proposals. It was first raised by Tang (2005, pp. 60-61), arguing the insufficiency of the “Six Character

Origins” with outdated understanding of Chinese characters (because the “Six

Character Origins” was suggested based on paleography rather than modern philology). Thus, he proposed a new theory of the “Three Origins (三書說),” covering all types of formations of Chinese characters.

(1) Pictograph (象形字)

The first type is “pictograph (象形字)” which direct quotes from Xu’s definition with four sub-categories: “human analogous pictograph (象身象形字)” like “human (⼈, ren),” “nature analogous pictograph (象物象形字)” like “hill (⼭, shan),” “manmade analogous pictograph (象⼯象形字)” like “umbrella (傘, san),” and abstract pictograph (象事象形字) like “big (⼤, da)” (2005, pp. 87-88).

(2) Ideograph (象意字)

Second, transformed pictographs may combine to an “ideograph (象意字),” one of the most classic instances is the ideograph “timberland (林, lin).” Semantically, timberland is massed by growing trees, so the pattern of “林” is formed by two trees (

⽊, mu), or even three trees (⽊, mu) assembled to the ideograph “forest (森, sen).”

Besides that, the ideograph formation shows the core principle of Chinese philology:

“Shaping meaning based on construction of character pattern (據形構義).”

(3) Phonogram (形聲字)

The third kind of “phonogram (形聲字)” has the same definition with Xu’s in the book ShuoWenJieZi. By adding phonetic part to ideograph and pictograph, Chinese philology turns to a phonogram system, embodying either the key essence of

Chinese written language or the universality of various context of use.

Although Tang’s “Three Origins (三書說)” was viewed as an important promotion of Chinese linguistics, many scholars improved this theory with the exclusion of “synonymous character (轉注字)” and “loan character (假借字).” One of the well-known linguists and archaeologists, Chen MengJia (1988, p. 77) introduced the “New Three Origins (新三書說)” with “pictograph (combining Tang’s taxonomy of pictograph and ideograph, 象形字),” “loan character (假借字),” and “phonogram

(形聲字).” Other than constructional classification, he followed the historical development of the Chinese written language. And this idea was referred by Qiu

XiGui (1988, p. 107) who improved it to a modified classification with “ideograph (

表意字),” “loan character (假借字),” and “phonogram (形聲字),” aiming at making clearer boundaries to different kinds of characters.

(1) Ideograph (表意字)

“Ideograph” refers to a character which uses the “ideographic signs (意符)” only, so it is also called “ideographic sign character (意符字),” including the traditional types of

“pictograph (象形字),” “indicative character (指示字),” “associative character (會意

字),” and other transformed characters.

(2) Phonogram (形聲字)

When “phonetic sign (音符)” and “ideographic sign (意符)” combine to an individual character, it is named “phonogram (形聲字).” This taxonomy offers a distinct framework of studying both patterns and semantics, and even the core principle of character formation (據形構義).

(3) Loan character (假借字)

“Loan character (假借字)” with “synonymous character (轉注字),” is normally formed by “phonetic sign (音符).” Such as the modern Chinese character “marry (娶, qu)” is loaned from the original character “get (取, qu)” with the same pronunciation

(qu) and analogic meaning (“a man gets married with a woman”) (p. 179).

2.1.4 The “Parts Theory (部件說)”

Since the formation of Chinese characters relies on “shaping meaning based on construction of character pattern (據形構義),” if scholars intend to conduct research on semantics of Chinese ideographs, they always start with the structural features.

Wang Ning (2002) in the Beijing Normal University develops a systematic method called the “Parts Theory (部件說).” The undivided component of a character is called “morpheme.” When morphemes combine to a character, they are called

“parts” (pp. 35-39). For instance, morphemes “sun (日, ri)” and “giving birth (⽣, sheng)” are the parts of “star (星, xing),” and this character is explained as “star is

given birth by the sun which is composed by the essence of yang (陽)14” in the book

ShuoWenJieZi Zhu (<說⽂解字注>: 陽精為日, 日⽣為星。); morpheme “tree (⽊, mu)” is the part of “forest (森, sen).”

According to Wang (p. 36), there are two main modes of Chinese character construction: the “plane structure” and the “layer structure” (Figure 2.1). The first mode refers to a character which can be deconstructed into parts, such as the

Chinese character “vessel (器, qi)” with the parts “mouth (⼝, kou)” and “dog (⽝, quan),” representing the meaning of “important objects are guiding by a dog (<說⽂

解字>: ⽫也。象器之⼝, ⽝所以守之。)” (Figure 2.1a). Second, the Chinese character like “promise (諾, nuo),” which is decomposed in steps, belongs to the second mode, the “layer structure,” comprising the ideographic part “word (⾔, yan),” and the phonetic part “if (若, ruo)” (Figure 2.1b). Under the framework of these two categories, Wang further classifies the structure of Chinese characters into eleven sub-types:

a: the “plane structure” b: the “layer structure” Figure 2.1 Two modes of Chinese character construction

14 In the Oxford dictionary, yang (陽) refers to “(in Chinese philosophy) the active male principle of the universe, characterized as male and creative and associated with heaven, heat, and light. Contrasted with yin (陰).”

(1) Full-function composite character (全功能零合成字)

The component of a character is an individual morpheme (or part), and cannot be divided anymore, like the Chinese character “sheep (⽺, yang)” and “water (⽔, shui).”

(2) morpheme composite character with index (標形合成字)

This kind of characters contains a part (or a morpheme) and an index. It represents specific meaning, like the Chinese character “knife-edge (刃, ren)” expresses the meaning of “keen edge” by adding an index “”、 on the side of “knife (,刀 dao),” pointing to the specific position of the blade.

(3) Ideographic character with index (標義合成字)

This kind of characters contains an ideographic morpheme (part) and an index, like the Chinese character “overly (太, tai)” is to add an index “”、 under the character

“big (,大 da),” representing the meaning of “bigger than big.”

(4) Multi-morpheme composite character (會形合成字)

If more than two parts (or morphemes) combine, and become a new character, it is called “multi-morpheme composite character (會形合成字),” though this kind of

Chinese character only exists in ancient scripts. For instance, the Seal script Chinese character “spill ( , ,益 yi)” means a “utensil ( , ,皿 min)” with overfull of “water

(the transformed character of ‘water,’ , ,水 shui).”

(5) Ideographic character with morpheme (形義合成字)

By composing ideographic morphemes, this kind of characters expresses semantics with the meaning combined. Such as the Chinese character “rise (興, xing),” the pattern of the Seal script ( ) shows the action of four hands (the Seal script of transformed character ‘hand,’ , shou) holding up an object (p. 61).

(6) Multi-ideographic character (會義合成字)

This type of characters involves more than two ideographic parts combined. For example, the Chinese character “divination (占, zhan)” represents the meaning of

“asking to god” by putting the ideographic part of “foretell (⼘, bu)” on the top of

“mouth (⼝, kou)” (another explanation of the “⼝” is “a kind of vessel for ancient ritual”).

(7) Integrated character without phonetic part (無音綜合合成字)

This kind of characters comprises by morphemes, index and ideographic part but phonetic part.

These seven categories all belong to the “plane structure” of Chinese characters, which have stronger capacity of carrying information (ideographic meaning) with no phonetic part (pp. 62-63). While the following four categories are sub-types of the

“layer structure.”

(8) Phonetic character with index (標音合成字)

This classification of Chinese characters normally comprises a phonetic part and an

index, such as the Chinese character “less (,少 shao),” it contains the phonetic part

“small (小 , xiao)” to show the pronunciation “ao,” and the index of “⼃” to distinguish the pattern from another Chinese character “(,小 xiao)” (p. 63).

(9) Phonetic character with morpheme ()形音合成字

This type of characters is formatted of a pattern part and a phonetic part. It is the most important form in the Oracle script, that is, a pictograph may achieve a more significant identity by adding a phonetic part to the original pattern. For instance, the Chinese character “star (星, xing)” uses the phonetic part “birth (,生 sheng) ” to illustrate the pronunciation.

(10) Ideographic character with phonetic part (義音合成字)

An ideographic part and a phonetic part could combine to a new character, it is considered as the most classic form in the Chinese written language system, which uses the ideographic part to represent the meaning, and the phonetic part to denote the pronunciation. And it is also called “phonogram (形聲字)” in the “Six Character

Origins (六書說)” and the “Three Origins (三書說)” suggested by Tang (2005) and

Qiu (1988).

(11) Integrated character with phonetic part (有音綜合合成字)

This type of characters contains multi-parts like ideographic part, phonetic part and index. For example, the Bronze script “fishing ( , 漁, yu)” has the pattern “two hands holding a fish,” and this character pronounces as “yu,” directly following its

phonetic part “fish (魚, yu).”

With the help of the two structural modes and the eleven formation sub-types, a

Chinese character can be continuously decomposed into basic components like parts and morphemes. By analyzing semantics of morphemes and parts individually and comprehensively, researchers could get a deeper understanding of character formation.

2.1.5 The “Hanzi Tree (漢字樹)”

On the basis of morphemic feature, more studies on Chinese characters are conducted, and shift the focus to the derived relations in the Chinese written language system. A Taiwan scholar Liao WenHao (2012, 2013, 2014a, 2014b) writes a series of books, classifying Chinese characters in distinguishing groups.

Differing from the conventional way of investigating radicals15, Liao pays more attention on the development of the Chinese written language as a symbol system, which embodies information of life style, geographical environment, and view of universe (Liao, 2012, p. 3).

(1) Human-centered hanzi categories

In the first book HanZi Tree 1: Cong TuXiang JieKai “Ren” de AoMiao (<漢字樹 1:

從圖像揭開“⼈”的奧秘>), Liao (pp. 6-11) divides 500 Chinese characters with over

5,000 Oracle scripts, Bronze scripts and Seal scripts in four categories: man, human gesture, big (⼤, da), and woman. Typical examples are given in the following.

15 Radical is a common part that many characters share, which plays an important basis of categorizing them in Chinese philology (p. 4).

Being in the patrilineal society16 in ancient times, the earliest Chinese characters may be created based on the thought of male-dominance. So Liao suggests the four phases of a man’s lifecycle as the first category (p. 12): the fetal period (巳, si, and the Oracle script is , showing an undeveloped infant with soft body), the childhood period (⼦, zi, and the Oracle script is , showing an immature child), the growth period (⼈, ren, and the Oracle script is , showing a standing man), and the senescence period (老, lao, and the Oracle script is , showing an old man holding a walking stick). Descendent characters include “imperial concubine (妃, fei, the

Oracle script is , representing a fertile woman),” and “aperture (孔, kong, the

Oracle script is , representing an infant nursing at mother),” and so on.

The second category is based on different gestures of a man, including standing

(⼉, er, showing two legs standing on the ground), kneeling (⼙, jie, the Seal script is

, showing a man kneeling on the floor), laying (⼫, shi, the Seal script is , showing a man’s gesture of lie down), and others. This category and its derived characters closely relate to actions of the mankind, meanwhile, reveal one of the most significant features of Chinese character – the behavioral embodiment.

In the third category of “big (⼤, da, and the Oracle script is ),” Liao proposes a new explanation to this character instead of the associative meaning of “occupying larger spaces,” that is, a grown up man opens arms and legs, becoming an adult (⼤

⼈, daren) (p. 142). And the derived characters are given in “erecting (立, li, the

16 Patrilineality (agnatic kinship) is a system in which an individual belongs to his or her father’s lineage (Benokraitis, 2005, p. 59). An agnate is one’s genetic relative, male or female, exclusively through male ancestors (Murphy, 2017).

Oracle script is ),” “sky (天, tian, the Oracle script is ),” “crime (辛, xin, the

Oracle script is ),” and so on.

At last, another character is brought in – “woman (⼥, nv, and the Oracle script is ),” who is capable of giving birth to new life. Its pattern depicts an image of a woman sitting on her kneels elegantly with hands crossed (p. 202). This character not only shows the corporeality and the behavior of human, but also embeds cultural belief in the language form – the inferior social status of women in old times of

China – women can only sit humbly with kneeing. Relevant characters include

“mother (母, mu, the Oracle script is , highlighting two breasts of a woman which used for feeding baby),” “people (民, min, the Oracle script is , showing a pregnant woman that brining new people to the world),” and so on.

(2) Human organ derived hanzi categories

Following the book HanZi Tree 1 (<漢字樹 1>), Liao publishes the second book

HanZi Tree 2: RenTi QiGuan suo YanSheng de HanZi DiTu (<漢字樹 2: ⼈體器官所

衍⽣的漢字地圖>), analyzing another volume of Chinese characters in a systematic way. In this book, Liao (2013, pp. 1-2) classifies more than 800 characters in five categories: flesh and heart, head, mouth, hand, and foot. All of them belong to the different organs in human body.

To start with, the most basic biological tissue called “flesh (⾁, rou, the Oracle script is , showing a pictographic image of a piece of meat)” is given with directly related characters, such as the Chinese character “stomach (胃, wei, the Bronze script is ),” “lung (肺, fei, the Seal script is ),” and shoulder (肩, jian, the Bronze

script is ). Besides that, a crucial character is suggested as “heart (⼼, xin, the

Oracle script is , and the Seal script is ),” which is an abstract word that hard to portray specifically, and normally represents emotion and thought in the Chinese written language (p. 33). Such as the Chinese character “angry (怒, nu, the Seal script is ),” “think (思, si, the Seal script is ),” and “afraid (怯, qie, the Seal script is ).” Obviously seen in the Chinese character “heart (⼼, xin)” and related characters, both self-awareness and Weltanschauung of Chinese people is informed in patterns and semantics, and represent how they view and perceive the world.

Then, Liao introduces characters that represent the sense organs on “a man’s head (囟, xin, the Oracle script is , showing the pictographic image of fontanel of a baby),” including “eye (目, mu, the Bronze script is ),” the original character “nose

(自, zi, the Bronze script is ),” “ear (耳, er, the Seal script is ),” and “tooth (牙, ya, the Bronze script is ). Each of them has numbers of derived characters which belong to the “pictograph” in the “Six Character Origins (六書說)” and the

“ideograph” in the “Three Origins (三書說),” like the Chinese character “eyebrow

(眉, mei),” which the Bronze scripts ( ) is drawn as hair-like graphics above an eye.

Another facial organ character named “mouth (⼝, kou)” with group members are analyzed in two perspectives. On the one hand, Liao summarizes characters that correspond to the use of mouth, like breathing, speaking, and eating (p. 90). For instance, the Chinese character “tongue (舌, she, the Oracle script is )” and “speech

(⾔, yan, the Oracle script is )” present things (biological organ with saliva, and breath when speaking) in or out of a man’s mouth. On the other hand, some characters are given, which their semantics are irrelevant with the organ of mouth

but contain the similar patterns of “⼝.” This group of characters may involve a debatable discussion about the categorization due to confused constructions and semantic interpretations, such as the Chinese character “meat utensil (⾖, dou),” the pattern “⼝” originally stands for a kind of pot instead of a human organ (pp. 163-

164). Though it is explained in a more reasonable way of “an ancient ritual vessel for containing scroll of praying (載書祝冊之器)” in Shirakawa’s theory.

The last two categories of this book are “arms and legs” that coherently couple with actions and behavior of human. For one thing, from the pattern of Chinese character “hand (⼿, shou, the Seal script is ), there are five figures with a wrist-like stroke, imitating the outlook of a man’s hand. Typical characters in this category include “fold (折, zhe, the Seal script is , showing a man breaking off a bole with his hand),” “apply (申, shen, the Seal script is , showing a man holding an incense stick with two hands and praying),” and so on. For another thing, the Chinese character “foot (⾜, zu, the Oracle script is )” is given, depicting a foot growing on the end of shank (p. 263). Comparing to the use of upper limbs, characters with the pattern “⾜” generally express actions like walking and running. Taking the Chinese character “step (步, bu, the Oracle script is )” as an example, two feet-like patterns are arranged in a vertical order, implying the walking steps of a man. Above all, the two categories perfectly manifest the element of human behavior that embodies in

Chinese characters, as well as the corporeality and cultural belief.

Liao’s first two books HanZi Tree 1 and 2 (<漢字樹 1> and <漢字樹 2>) suggest those Chinese characters which share the identical features of human, like biological organ, behavioral action and spiritual life. Though his later writing focuses more on

natural creatures and man-made things in other two books: HanZi Tree 3 and 4 (<漢

字樹 3> and <漢字樹 4>).

(3) Animal and plant relevant hanzi categories

In the third book HanZi Tree 3: Yu DongZhiWu XiangGuan de HanZi (<漢字樹 3:

與動植物相關的漢字>), Liao (2014a, p. 3) classifies over 1,300 Chinese characters that relate to animals and plants into eight sub-categories: grass, tree, millet (⽲, he), rope, insect, fish, bird and beast. By examining the derived system of characters in each group, researchers could see unique ways of Chinese people sorting natural creatures in ancient times, concerning about the portrait of biological appearance and implication of living habit.

For one thing, plant related Chinese characters are formed by the ancient character “renascent grass (⼬, che or cao, showing a symbol of a newborn plant in the

Oracle script ),” “tree (⽊, mu, showing a symbol of a grown tree-like plant with root in the Oracle script ),” and “millet (⽲, he, showing a symbol of agricultural plant with ear in the Oracle script ).” Derived characters that contain these three patterns include “vegetable (菜, cai, showing a kind of eatable grass which can be picked),” “fragrance (香, xiang, showing tasty millets boiled in a pot in the Oracle script ),” and so on. Additionally, man-made things created for processing and by plant are introduced as well. For instance, the Chinese character “half-timber (⽙, pan),” its Oracle script ( ) represents the meaning of “a piece of split timber” by the pattern of half of the character “tree (the Seal script is ),” which is used as the

semantic part of furniture relative characters “bed (床, chuang, the Seal script is ),”

“ritual table (俎, zu, the Seal script is ),” and so on.

For another thing, Liao proposes more than 300 Chinese characters that relate to animals (pp. 164-165), such as the Chinese character “insect (⾍, chong, the

Oracle script is ),” “fish (魚, yu, the Oracle script is ),” “turtle (龜, gui, the Oracle script is ),” “bird (鳥, niao, the Oracle script is ),” “sheep (⽺, yang,the Oracle script is ),” “pig (豕, shi, the Oracle script is ),” “horse (馬, ma, the Oracle script is ),” and “dog (⽝, quan, the Oracle script is ).” Although most of the Chinese characters in the animal group are typical “ideographs” in the “Three Origins (三書

說),” cultural beliefs can be seen in their pattern-determined meaning. Like the

Chinese character “vessel (器, qi, the Oracle script is ),” one may get its semantics from of the Oracle script pattern (scenario) as “important objects are guiding by a dog” (<說⽂解字>: ⽫也。象器之⼝, ⽝所以守之。).

(4) Utensil and architecture relevant hanzi categories

Other than natural creatures, man-made things are introduced in the fourth book

HanZi Tree 4: Yu QiWu FangShe XiangGuan de Hanzi (<漢字樹 4: 與器物房舍相關

的漢字>) in six categories (Liao, 2014b, pp. 2-11): architecture, utensil, weapon, tool, cloth, jade and money. Not only those characters provide valuable materials for studying traditions of people making artifacts in China, but also their semantics by interpreting the characters in details.

At first, basic characters in the architecture category include “roof (⼇, tou, the

Seal script is ),” “enclosing house (⼧, mian, the Seal script is ),” “opening house

(⼴, guang or an, the Seal script is ),” and “door (門, men, the Oracle script is ).”

They show pictographic portraits of structural elements of building, and form derived characters by taking these characters as patterns (parts). One of the representative examples is the Chinese character “home (家, jia, the Seal script is

),” implying the lifestyle of ancient people in China – a family house is built with corral on the ground floor, and people are living on the second floor (p. 31).

Secondly, utensil group is given which is the main topic of this research as well.

Liao further categorizes the characters into five sub-groups: basin, crock, pot, jute bag and others (pp. 112-113). Classic Chinese characters involve “utensil (⽫, min, the Oracle script is , showing a symbol of vessel with two ears on the side),” “the tenth earthly branch (⾣, you, the Oracle script is , showing a bottom-pointed vessel filled with wine)17,” and “caldron (⿀, ge, the Oracle script is ) with the derived characters. Generally, the systematic categorization of Chinese characters in the utensil group makes clear maps in a certain sub-group, nevertheless ignores the evolutionary relationship of diverse sub-groups of characters and their representational vessels synchronically. Such as the pattern and the semantic connection between Oracle scripts “utensil ( )” and “utensil for holding meat ( )” with the demonstration of designed vessels, which belong to different sub-groups in

Liao’s statements.

Thirdly, Chinese characters that represent tools and weapons are brought in, normally revealing the behavioral habits of Chinese people. Taking the typical

17 The pattern of the Chinese character “the tenth earthly branch (⾣, you)” originally refers a pictographic semantics of “a bottle of wine,” while it turns the meaning to represent the concept of time (see 6.1.2 Origin of Wine Vessel Design in China).

character “bow (弓, gong)” as an instance, from its Oracle script ( ) with the pattern of curved body and bowstring, one could see the obvious reappearance of this weapon, which hints how to manipulate it by holding the middle part. Similar features can be either found in characters in the groups of cloth and money, such as the transformed upper-body pattern ( ) of the Oracle script “cloth (衣, yi),” reminding the concept of “a wearable fabric” with Chinese style collar.

By learning the books written by Liao, researchers could get inspirations from the comprehensively selected Chinese characters and carefully established maps of their relations. However, as stated before, issues remain. On the one hand, to prove the statements, the writer may use debatable interpretations of some characters. Like the Chinese character “flower (花, hua),” which belongs to the pure “phonogram” in

Chinese philology academically, is explained as “flower is transformed (化, hua) by grass (⾋, cao)” (Liao, 2014a, p. 27). On the other hand, the evolutionary relationship of different groups of Chinese characters lacks deep study. With the help of the Chinese morphology and philology, new systematic categorizations of

Chinese characters are suggested later.

2.1.6 The “Chinese Character Series” Study

Comparing to Chinese linguists (generally following the train of thought given by the “Six Character Origins”), foreign scholars put bold theories in the academic field.

One of the most influential philologists is Shizuka Shirakawa, who is famous in the

Bronze script research in Japan. He proposes a new framework for studying “Chinese character series,” taking structural features, semantics, and phonetics into accounts.

After conducting comprehensive study, he even suggests that Chinese character is “a

kind of written language that tell myths itself” (Sugiura, 2006). Shirakawa’s master works include JinWenTongShi (< ⾦⽂通釋>), JinWenShiJie (< ⾦⽂世界>),

ShuoWenXinYi (<說⽂新義>), ZiTong (<字統>), and so on, which the first two books focus on the ontology of Bronze scripts carved on 830 vessels, while his later writings pays more attention on philological features (Bai, 2006).

(1) Framework of studying “Chinese character series”

According to Shirakawa (2014), there are three types of basic symbols that may form a Chinese character: “qualifier (限定符),” “pattern morph (形體素),” and “phonetic morph (音素).” Their definitions are given as below.

The first type of symbol “qualifier” only refers to the category that a Chinese character belongs regardless of its semantic construction. In other words, it cannot be considered as a “pattern morph” which carries specific meaning (p. 93). For instance, the qualifier of “氵(the transformed symbol ‘⽔’)” in the Chinese character

“lake (湖, hu)” simply shows its category of “something relates to water (⽔),” but it does not represent any pictographic or ideographic meaning. So this character is a

“phonetic character (表音⽂字),” comprising by a “qualifier” and a “phonetic morph”

(p. 93). Such statement is different from traditional understanding of “phonogram

(形聲字),” because the pattern “氵” is generally viewed as the “ideographic part (形

旁)” with the given meaning of “water.” However, Shirakawa argues that it is irrational for this character (湖) is neither pictographic nor ideographic.

Similar to the “ideographic part (形旁),” “pattern morph” represents semantics of a Chinese character, and more importantly, it could be used as the key to

categorize a volume of characters into systematic series (p. 103). Taking the pattern morph “strength (⼒, li)” as an example (which is also an individual Chinese character), its Bronze script ( ) originally shows the pictographic pattern “a hoe,” which not only implies the agricultural convention in the ancient society of China

(different from the explanation of “one’s sinew” in the book ShuoWenJieZi), but also generates a series of characters: The Chinese character “plus (加, jia, the Bronze script is )” that refers to “a ritual of cleaning hoes” by “adding a ritual vessel on the side of a hoe,” the Chinese character “man (男, nan, the Bronze script is )” that refers to the “administrator of farm” by “putting a farmland pattern on the top of a hoe,” and so on (pp. 65-67).

Oppositely, another type of morph is called “phonetic morph,” indicating the pronunciation of a Chinese character with no meaning embodied. Shirakawa further explains the phonetic function of the Chinese written system in the book

HanZiBaiHua: It at first emerges in “loan characters (假借字)” and “phonograms

(形聲字),” while their pronunciations are borrowed from “pictographs (象形字)” and

“associative characters (會意字).” For instance, the pictograph “I (我, wo, the pronunciation is we in ancient times)” plays the part of “phonetic symbol” in the

Chinese character “goose (鵝, e, the pronunciation is also we in ancient times)” (p.

118).

On the fundamental of the three types of morphs, Chinese characters could be classified in accordance with “pattern morph” or “phonetic morph,” and the so-called

“Chinese character series” comes. In Shirakawa’s research, several series are already suggested, including the Chinese character series of “ability (才, cai),” the Chinese

character series of “remain (余, yu),” the Chinese character series of “true (真, zhen),” and so on (p. 107). Particularly, the “Chinese character series” study shows the great referential value to this research since the systematic categorization of Chinese characters based on semantics of morphs.

(2) The Chinese character series of “ (sai)”

In this section, the author chooses a special case of Chinese character series of “

(sai)” to illustrate the statement. Other than focusing on morphemic structures – like

Chinese linguists do - Shirakawa introduces a concept of Chinese characters as

“myth telling medium (講述神話的⽂字),” which acts as a valuable material in investigating the intentions of making characters, even in exploring the semantics of designed artifacts in China as well (both of them share the same awareness of perceiving and reflecting on the world).

In the book ZiTong (<字統>), Shirakawa (Bai, 2006) assembles 6,838 Chinese characters with several categories of ancient myth system: record (載書), penalty (刑

罰), military etiquette (軍禮), sorcery (巫祝), godliness (神梯), shrine (聖域), tattoo

(紋身), oath (盟誓), agriculture (農耕), astronomy (天象), medicine (醫術), ballad

(歌謠), and so on. And one of most important pattern morphs is the “ (sai),” which is explained by other linguists as the original form of the Chinese character

“mouth (⼝, kou)” (<說⽂解字>: ⼝, ⼈所以⾔食也。象形。). However according to Shirakawa, “ ” refers to “an ancient ritual vessel for containing scroll of praying

(載書祝冊之器),” in the same time, represents mythical ceremony of mediumistic worshipping (2006). Examples are given in the Bronze scripts “lucky (吉, ji),” “tell

(告, gao),” “old (古, gu),” and “history (史, shi)” (Shirakawa, 2010, pp. 6-7; Sugiura,

2006, p. 190). They are all relevant to the pattern morph “ ” with different patterns added (Figure 2.2). When ancient people in China talking about “lucky (吉, ji),” they may refer to the “ ” is well protected by weapons on the top (Figure 2.2a); In rituals, people “tell (告, gao)” their misfortunes and wishes to deities by waving sticks in front of the “ ,” and praying for good luck (Figure 2.2b); correspondingly, if a man holding a “ ” with a stick, he is served as an government officer called “shi (史, officer who charges of holding rituals, doing auguries, and recording events in the

Shang dynasty, Figure 2.2d).”

a: “lucky (吉, ji)” b: “tell (告, gao)” c: “ancient (古, gu)” d: “officer (史, shi)” Figure 2.2 The bronze scripts of Chinese characters with the pattern morph “sai”

Theoretical substantiations of the mythical system proposed by Shirakawa mainly contains three aspects. First, he argues the scientific explanation of the

Chinese character “mouth (⼝, kou).” Especially in the book ShuoWenJieZi, it is defined based on the Clerical script which transformed from the engraving “ ” without protruding lines on top. However, if researchers trace back to the origin of this character, they may find more archaeological proofs of Chinese etymology, and the entire foundation of linguistic study is redefined. Second, rather than a rationalistic world, Shirakawa believes that mediumistic faith plays the key part in

the society of Shang dynasty. Different from modern religions of monotheism like

Catholicism, Buddhism and Mohammedanism, primitive religion is more like a polytheistic animism (Tylor, 1992, p. 688), that is, both deities (ancestors and forefathers for most of the time) and natural things (hill, forest, sea, and animal) are deified as “soul carriers,” and devoutly worshipped by people. Hence, spirit medium

(sorcerer), whose job is the liaison officer between mortals and deities, acts as the most dominant role in ancient social activities (Frazer, 1911, p. 337), archaeological evidences are unearthed, recording scenarios of rituals and divinations on oracle bones. In that case, the Bronze script, which carries the cultural gene, embodies with this mediumistic scent, and has brought it to the modern forms of the Chinese language. Lastly, when anthropologists study the source of a particular culture, they usually start with the investigation of habit relics in different regions. As to Chinese philology, Shirakawa (2005) proposes a bold ratiocination about the true meaning of the “ :” Because of the cultural similarity between the Shang dynasty of China and ancient Japanese kingdom (pp. 51, 58), it is possible to trace the origin of “ ” from the shape of Japanese ritual utensils which imported from ancient China. Other identical instances may be given in agriculture conventions, such as the spring plough ceremony holding by emperors and queens, which called qingeng (親耕) in

China and qincan in Japan (Shirakawa, 2010, pp. 8-10).

Moreover, Shirakawa’s etymology of Chinese characters shares the same thoughts with the statement proposed by Martin Heidegger (2013, pp. 175-177). In

China, the relationship between language and designed artifacts involves inter- explanation. The ancient ritual vessel which its shape then evolves to the Bronze script “ ,” gathers the fourfold (earth, sky, divinities, and mortal) in oneness with

clearly shown in the pattern of character, that is, people create the bronze vessel with ore, which formed by process of nature (rain falling down to earth, nourishing land, and catalyzing the chemical formation of mine), and deposited in mine. When it is made, both functional and ideological meaning is coded in the vessel, playing the religious part in social activities. Spirit mediums or prayers use it as the passageway of communicating with divinities – ancestors and forefathers in heaven – who are believed in the power of protecting descendants. From this perspective, Chinese people endow this belief to language, even though in its modern pattern “⼝ (kou),” this character still represents the meaning of “responsibility” that every word a man speaks and behaves in the name of divinities.

Another example is introduced by the Chinese character “lord (君, jun).” After carefully examining the bronze script “ ,” Shirakawa deems the original semantics of “lord (君, jun)” as “an administrator who serves as priesthood” instead of the common understanding of “emperor” (執掌神事之聖職長官, 君主是其引申義)

(Bai, 2006). Such explanation is supported by the pattern of character “ ” which comprises by “ (yin)” and “ (sai).” Specially, the “ ” refers to “the master of priest

(<說⽂解字>: 握事者也。)” associated with the structural feature of “a spirit medium or prayer holding a wooden stick (握持神所憑依的⽊杖之形),” and “ ” expresses the associative meaning of “ritual affairs” (2006, p. 63). When the two components combined, the integrated character hence gathers to itself in the object made of earth resources, divinities in heaven, and ordinaries in the unique language system. Although Shirakawa’s etymology still needs convincing evidences and proofs,

it is undoubtedly a valuable statement of researchers exploring the ideological essence of Chinese characters and other cultural carries (like designed artifacts).

Assembling all the statements, a summary can be made that the Chinese written language shows close relation with human characteristics (Table 2.3): corporeality, behavior, and concept. First, research on Chinese philology always starts with the perceivable features of Chinese characters – stokes and patterns, which shows different symbolic morphemes that Chinese people express themselves with the depiction of the actual world. Such as the classification principle of the “Three

Origins (三書說)” and the “HanZi Tree (漢字樹),” and the concept of “unit” in the

“Part Theory (部件說).” Second, theories like the “Part Theory (部件說),” the

“HanZi Tree (漢字樹),” and the “Chinese Character series” manifest the spatial arrangement of Chinese characters, which highlight ways of Chinese people associating with the actual world. Third, linguists who are interest in cultural properties of Chinese written language usually pay more attention on the interpretations of Chinese characters, that is, how Chinese people embody their feeling, understanding, and reaction of the actual world in the form of written language. For example, Shirakawa boldly proposes an etymology, arguing the “

(sai)” as an important “pattern morph (形體素),” and reveals the worship tradition of cultural belief in China.

Table 2.3 Summary of Chinese philological theories

Human Characteristics Chinese Philological Theory Corporeality Behavior Concept

“Six Character Origins” 1 V - - (六書說)

“Three Origins” 2 V - - (三書說)

“Part Theory” 3 V V - (部件說)

“HanZi Tree” 4 V V V (漢字樹)

5 “Chinese Character Series” V V V

2.2 A Study of Material Culture in China

The second part involves a study of designed artifacts in China, which takes the important part of material culture in academic field. Generally, study of cultural materials conducts from either the historical or the typological perspective. Hence, in this section, the notion of material culture is going to define with relevant theories, and an introduction of material culture of China is given. By doing so, the author could get not only convincing historical supports from the “values” of abundant samples (designed artifacts), but also valuable references for acculturating the tradition of Chinese people in making artifacts with modern tendencies.

2.2.1 Culture, Material Culture, and Artifact

Culture, in the figurative term of non-agricultural cultivation, first appears in classical antiquity (8th or 7th B.C.-600 A.D. of ancient Greece and ancient Rome) by

Roman philosopher Cicero – “cultura 18 animi” (cultivation of the soul), that

Romanizes, and to a degree conceals “the artificial acculturation of the elite through imported rhetorical education” (Dominik, 1997, p. 77). Then in the mid 19th century, this term is broadened, referring to national hope or ambition, and even a universal capacity of human (concerning being or presenting), and moving to the central stage of anthropology19 (Baldwin, 2006; Kroeber & Kluckhorn, 1952, pp. 27-

28). Especially with Edward Tylor (1992), who opens the stipulation that culture is,

“complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society” (p. 1). This definition is so pivotal that offers anthropologists to follow by two directions – internal and external. Marris Harris (1979), who uses the term “cultural materialism”

(p. xv), states the simple premise that human social life is a mental or psychological response to the practical problems of earthly existence, and then brings it to a cognitive science20 method, treating “the relationship between what people say and think as subjects and what they say and think and do as objects of scientific inquiry”

18 Cultura: A word from Latin, means “a cultivating, agriculture;” cult means “worship,” also “a particular form of worship” from French culte, and cultus in Latin means “care, labor; cultivation, culture; worship, reverence,” originally “tended, cultivated” ("Cult," 2017; "Culture," 2017).

19 Anthropology is the study of humankind – past and present – that draws and builds upon knowledge from social and biological science, as well as the humanities and the natural sciences (Jeganathan & Feely-Harnik, 2017; "What is Anthropology?," 2017).

20 Cognitive science is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the mind and its processes. It examines what cognition is, what it does and how it works. It includes research on intelligence and behavior, especially focusing on how information is represented, processed, and transformed (in faculties such as perception, language, memory, reasoning, and emotion) within nervous systems (human or other animal) and machines (e.g. computers). Cognitive science consists of multiple research disciplines, including psychology, artificial intelligence, philosophy, neuroscience, linguistics, and anthropology (Thagard, 2017).

(p. 29). However on the external side, cultural anthropologists focus on both man- made objects and behaviors along with semiotic studies. Clifford Geertz (1973) sees the “culture” as “an historically transmitted pattern of meanings embodied in symbols21” (p. 89). As such, culture has similar characteristics with language that requires interpretation of specific symbols.

The term “material culture” developed in the late 19th and early 20th century, refers to the relationship between artifacts and social relations (Hicks, 2010).

Correspondingly, James Deetz (1977) set out a famous definition of material culture in his book In Small Things Forgotten: An Archaeology of Early American Life as:

Material culture is usually considered to be roughly synonymous with

artifacts, the vast universe of objects used by mankind to cope with the

physical world, to facilitate social intercourse, and to benefit our state of

mind. A somewhat broader definition of material culture is useful in

emphasizing how profoundly our world is the products of our thoughts, as

that sector of our physical environment that we modify through culturally

determined behavior. This definition includes all artifacts… But the

physical environment includes more than what most definitions of material

culture recognize… Our body itself is part of our physical environment –

human motion – fit within our definition. Nor is the definition limited only

to matter in the solid state. I have suggested in Invitation to Archaeology that

even language is part of material culture, a prime example of it in its gaseous

21 Any object can be called a symbol as long as group of people agrees that it means more than just itself, and agrees on just what. Graphic symbols are signs or pictures that have been drawn, written, painted, or engraved (Ledderose, 2000, p. 53).

state. Words, after all, are air masses shaped by the speech apparatus

according to culturally acquired rules. (Deetz, 1977, pp. 24-25)

In other words, both language and physical artifact can be considered as cultural materials. Such statement offers ideal underlying foundation of this research, which enables the author to set connections between the Chinese written language and artifacts.

In another book Invitation to Archaeology, Deetz (1967) strictly takes artifacts as a kind of realization of “mental template” ideas, it combines the structuralist study with extended changes: Not only a focus on the making of artifact forms as influenced by tradition, but also other factors such as “technology, function, innovation,” and the importance of the idea of context in the study of material culture (1967, pp. 47, 67-74; Hicks, 2010, p. 47):

Artifacts are man-made objects; they are also fossilized ideas… The making

of a proper form of an object exists in the mind of the maker, and when this

idea is expressed in tangible form in raw material, an artifact results… The

form of an artifact is a close approximation of this template. (Deetz, 1967,

p. 45; Hicks, 2010, p. 47)

Consolidated examples lie in Chinese ceramics from time to time (see 2.2.2 A

History of Material Cultural in China). In the Tang dynasty, ceramics making is influenced by the intruded Buddhism elements, like lotus throne; then during the

Southern Song dynasty, ceramics layouts reflect the pursuit of literati – taste of

natural views yearning for a kind of peaceful rural life, like patterns of water lily leaf and petal; a well-known style of blue-white porcelain emerged in the Yuan dynasty, which is famous for blue colored patterns of plants, animals and human activities on purely white body. The reason why such a design style is so popular relies on the color preference and belief of Mongols who rule the country during that era, mythologizing their ancestor as child of a pair of blue and white deer (Xi, 2011).

Therefore, the study of material culture relies on the concern of relationships between objects and human. The physical form of things is thus reduced to a distinctive kind of conduit for social science (Hicks, 2010), like D. Miller (1987) stated:

An analysis of an artifact must begin with its most obvious characteristic,

which is what it exists as a physically concrete form independent of any

individual’s mental image of it. This factor may provide the key to

understanding is power and significance in cultural construction. The

importance of this physicality of the artifact derives from its ability thereby

to act as a bridge, not only between the mental and physical worlds, but

also, more unexpectedly, between consciousness and the unconscious. (p.

99)

Currently, modern scholars have valued material culture in the sense of practice theory22 narratively and metaphorically, viewing socio-cultural relation as its central

22 Practice theory, as outlined by Sherry Ortner (1984), “seeks to explain the relationship(s) that obtain between human action, on the one hand, and some global entity which we call ‘the system’ on the other.”

question instead of using it to reconcile semiotic analyses with structuralism23 - things as event (efforts to fix the meaning or social use of object in particular moments in time), and things as effect (effects for participators experiencing social activities in cross-disciplinary subjects) (Hicks, 2010, pp. 80-89). Back to the

Chinese ceramics example, popular styles of ceramics making changed in periods followed by social movements and political promotions, such as Buddhism distribution in the Sui and the Tang dynasty, literati class in dominance in the Song dynasty, and royal interests of the Yuan dynasty. Hence, by examining those artifacts contextually, researchers could make reasonable inferences about scenarios of social life, even ways of those vessels functioned as intermediaries in culture evolution.

2.2.2 A History of Material Culture in China

According to David Prown (1982), research on material culture is “the study through artifacts of the beliefs of a particular community society at a given time,” including ideas, attitudes, and assumptions. It also involves artifacts themselves that are ready for studying their appearances, materials, usages, and so on. The most significant cultural belief of material objects is called “value,” which can be viewed in different kinds:

One, intrinsic in the fabric of an object itself, is established by the rarity of

the material used… A value that accrues from utility will inhere as long as

an object continues to be useful and can return when an obsolete object

23 Structuralism is the belief that phenomena of human life are not intelligible except through their interrelations. These relations constitute a structure, and behind local variations in the surface phenomena there are constant laws of abstract culture (Thong, 2012).

again becomes useful. In addition to material and utilitarian values, certain

value, some possess spiritual value, and some express attitude toward other

human beings or toward the world. (1982)

Since all kinds of values illustrate different aspects of material culture, they associate with interpretations of meaning, as well as the tendency of design study in modern times. Judy Attfield (2000) further explains it in specific statement, that is, suggests to analyze visual forms from not only functions and aesthetics, but also carriers of semantics linguistically, because both material object and language belong to the modes of cultural expressions coherently in history (p. 5).

In China, development of material culture reveals a quintessential phenomenon of incorporating values (cultural beliefs) with man-made objects (designed artifacts).

As the referential platform of systematic research of material culture domestically, a

Chinese scholar Zhao KeLi (2008) summarizes the cultural material history of

China in the book ShunTian ZaoWu: ZhongGuo ChuanTong SheJi WenHuaLun (<順

天造物: 中國傳統設計⽂化論>), evaluating the over three thousand years’ civilization of making artifacts in six periods: “the origination period (起源時期, from the origin of the civilization to 225 B.C.),” “the Qin-Han period (秦汉時期,

221 B.C.-220 A.D.),” “the Wei-Jin period (魏晉時期, about 184-589 A.D.),” “the

Sui-Tang period (隋唐時期, 581-907 A.D.),” “the Song period (兩宋時期, 960-

1275 A.D.),” and “the Ming-Qing period (明清時期, 1368-1912 A.D.).” Surely, the historical angle of studying material culture in China provides a clear clue to see the changing fashion of man-made artifacts since the remote time, from which every researcher should learn in terms of inheritance, innovation, or even overturn. More

than that, artifact samples given in this section also explain the cultural beliefs

(values: the material value, the utilitarian value, and the spiritual value) in typical periods of Chinese material culture history.

(1) The origination period (起源時期) – “design in early age”

The so-called “design in early age” refers to a time horizon from the Paleolithic Age

(about two million years ago) to the Zhou dynasty (1059 – 255 B.C.). During that long period, design in China experienced several phases with different kinds of materials used for creating artifacts: stoneware, pottery, and bronze ware. Classical examples can be given in bottom-pointed vessels in the Yangshao culture site (Figure

2.3a), and bronze wine vessels of “zun (尊)” in the late Shang dynasty (Figure 2.3b), showing core principle of traditional design – “making things based on material properties (審曲面勢)” – which is described in the book ZhouLi KaoGongJi (<周禮

考⼯記>).

As the earliest reference, ZhouLi KaoGongJi (<周禮考⼯記>) undoubtedly sets fundamental standards when one making (designing) tools, vessels, furniture, buildings, and so on. Namely, “making things based on material properties (審曲面

勢),” that is, making (designing) process starts with the observation of the physical and chemical properties of materials24 which plays the crucial role in choices of skills and techniques. Then, flexible ways of design are selected according to different

24 Physical properties are those that can be observed without changing the identity of the substance. The general properties of matter such as color, density, hardness. Properties that describe how a substance changes into a completely different substance are chemical properties ("Chemical & Physical Properties: Definitions," 2017).

properties coherently, including “laws of nature (天時, tianshi),” “conditions of climate, geography and ecological environment (地氣, diqi),” “properties of materials

(材美, caimei),” and “skills and techniques of casting, molding and decorating (⼯巧, gongqiao).” In this case, definition of design in China is anchored as “a creative activity of mankind that respects the natural laws, utilizes the environmental elements, and follows the historical developments” (p. 79). The main types of handicrafts involved in this book include woodcraft (攻⽊之⼯), metalwork (攻⾦之

⼯), textile technique (攻皮之⼯), coloring technique (設⾊之⼯), surface treatment technique (刮摩之⼯), and pottery (搏埴之⼯).

Moreover, the “Axial Age25” comes in this period with initial awaking of self- consciousness of people. And the history of mankind enters the rational thinking era, which determines the direction of ethnical culture (including material culture) by the spiritual and substantial paradigm regulated during that time (pp. 76-77).

a: bottom-pointed vessels in the Yangshao culture site b: “zun (尊)” in the late Shang dynasty Figure 2.3 Bottom-pointed vessel and bronze wine vessel of “zun (尊)” Note: Source from http://www.master-insight.com/content/article/1708, http://www.pgm.org.cn:8088/Pgm_Collection/findCollectById?collect.Id=12107, http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/0c/cb/96.html, and http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/0c/bf/3b.html

25 The “Axial Age” refers to an objective empirical fact of history that the self-comprehensions of all peoples occur from 800-200 B.C., being aware of a whole individual with limitations, and including religious and philosophy appearing in the West, Asia, and so on (Jaspers, 1953, pp. 1-3).

(2) The Qin-Han period (秦汉時期) – “communication between man and deity”

The period from the Qin dynasty (221-207 B.C.) to the Han dynasty (202 B.C.-220

A.D.) is considered as the “formation phase” of cultural belief in China. And cultural materials experienced the process of maturity gradually, involving either substantial materials or ideological values.

On the one hand, along with the progress of techniques and crafts, material culture of China turns into to the age of iron. Comparing with the ancient period of stoneware, ceramic and bronze, metallic vessel reveals excellent attributes of manipulation and durability. More importantly, it enables people to produce a relative large number of vessels by advanced technical process of pouring and pipeline.

On the other hand, cultural belief of design (combination of secular culture and the Confucianism) in the Qin and the Han dynasty plays the transitional role between ancient ideology and enlightened thought – the mediumship (which is popular in the Shang and the Zhou dynasty)26 and the humanistic spirit (gradually shaping in the Wei, the Jin, the Sui, the Tang, and the Song dynasty). Especially with the metaphorization of symbols and images, such as the “boshan censers (博⼭爐)” in the Western Han dynasty (Figure 2.4), symbolizes hill-like sculpts deposit on the top of the censer with portraits of human activities (hunting, trip, and so on) on the bottom, metaphorizing the worship of mountain where deities (ancestors according

26 By examining oracle bones, bronze vessels, jade antiquities, and lacquers, Chen MengJia and other scholars have found the records descripting the mediumship (or shamanism) in ancient society of China. Mediums (or shamans) normally acted the roles of kings and talented persons in the Shang dynasty (1766-1122 B.C.), serving as “maintaining harmony between the heavenly and earthly realms” spiritually. Not until the Zhou dynasty (1122-221 B.C.), their social status was declined to be part of the bureaucratic system. (Marshall, 2006, p. 130).

to the Confucianism) are living in. That is, smoke emitting from a censer when incense is burning inside imitates the scenario of mist surrounding a hill, and people in the world behaving under the supervision of deities (Erickson, 2009). From this point of view, researchers could see one of the most vital characteristics of cultural value in China – combining imaginary story with visualization of actual world (K.

Zhao, 2008, p. 137).

Figure 2.4 “Boshan censers” in the Han dynasty Note: Source from http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/0c/cd/a0.html, http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/0c/cd/a5.html, and http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/0c/cd/a1.html

(3) The Wei-Jin period (魏晉時期) – “culture opening and integration”

Although the unstable political situation in this period (about 184-589 A.D.) brings disasters of wars, but it undoubtedly accelerates the acculturation process between the central empire of China and other realms, which mainly contains the “Wu Hu uprising 27 ( 五胡亂華),” and the Sinicization of the Mahayana Buddhism.

Accordingly, cultural materials in the four centuries significantly show the exotic styles (Figure 2.5).

27 “Wu Hu uprising (五胡亂華)” is a series of wars held by five non-Chinese tributes to the Western Jin dynasty from 304-316 A.D., including Xiongnu (匈奴), Xianbei (鮮卑), Jie (羯), Di (氐), and Qiang (羌).

For one thing, cultural elements of the Hu tributes pervasively affect man-made artifacts of the Central China in almost every domain, like architectures, tombs, sculptures, and commodities; as well as ethnic conventions, like basic necessities

(clothing, dining, dwelling, and traveling), ceremonies (wedding and funeral), entertainments, and worshipping rituals (p. 175). From Figure 2.5a, nomadic style is obviously seen in the design of the candleholder with sheep-like appearance; and pattern decorations of plants and figure clothes of the oblate bottle in Figure 2.5b.

For another thing, Buddhist elements can be either found in vessels (Figure

2.5c), such as lotus patterns on jug bodies, highlighting the popularization of the

Buddhism in China. The reason of this phenomenon may rely on escapist desires of civilians due to poor lives caused by continuous wars, and the Buddhism religious provides an ideal spiritual refuge to them.

a: sheep-like candleholder b: oblate bottle c: jugs with lotus patterns Figure 2.5 Designed artifacts with exotic styles in the Wei-Jin period Note: Source from http://china.okcang.cn/a/20110630/4e2d19d375b1b.shtml, http://china.okcang.cn/a/20110901/4e5f4630f134a.shtml, http://china.okcang.cn/a/20110901/4e5f4b3335b34.shtml, and http://china.okcang.cn/a/20110901/4e5f3ffba6e4d.shtml

(4) The Sui-Tang period (隋唐時期) – “magnificent material culture”

For most of scholars and historians, the Sui (581-619 A.D.) and the Tang (618-907

A.D.) dynasty are the golden age in the history of China, including national power,

political stability, and cultural development. Just like Qian Mu (2001, p. 107) said:

Since then (the Tang dynasty), the political society in China might has followed the scale which was determined by the Tang dynasty, such as the uniformity of politics, and the balance of society.

As to material culture, which dynamically integrates the heritance of traditions with foreign elements, reveals the magnificent style and majestic vitality with the design of “colorfully and dazzlingly embellishment,” “gorgeous engraving,” and

“splendid decoration” (K. Zhao, 2008, p. 218) (Figure 2.6). Furthermore, it sets classical templates for descendants who intend to take references of in their design works, such as aesthetic fashions, formal constraints, and materialized criterions.

Figure 2.6 Designed artifacts in the Tang dynasty Note: Source from http://slide.geo.sina.com.cn/slide_29_16805_23149.html#p=7, http://slide.geo.sina.com.cn/slide_29_16805_23149.html#p=6, http://zhouzhouzhou1022.blog.163.com/blog/static/1054111502011111810493382/, and http://www.guoxue.com/?p=23019

(5) The Song period (兩宋時期) – “a world of self-cultivation”

The Song dynasty (960-1279 A.D., the Northern and the Southern Song dynasty) is called the “literati period” in the sense of self-cultivation of man’s spiritual world.

However, this ideological trend does not cause either the retro or the extravagant

style of cultural values and materials, but gives rise to the unique personality of

“restrained treatment” towards arts, artifacts, and literatures (Figure 2.7).

Figure 2.7 Celadon artifacts of the Ru kiln in the Song period Note: Source from http://www.npm.gov.tw/exh95/grandview/juware/account_ch.html

During this period, the famous “Neo-Confucianism” emerges with praises by ideologists like Wang AnShi, Su Shi, and Zhu Xi. Playing as the vital doctrine in the society of the Song dynasty, the “Neo-Confucianism” influences the designed objects to a great extent, pursuing the elegant temperaments, and the supernatural states of things, which also shows the cultural belief of “self-cultivation centered” (p.

230). Additionally, according to the authors’ former research, one of the most significant features of design in the Song dynasty is “utilizing natural materials and skillful techniques to achieve a kind of supernatural effect of man-made objects” (Xi,

2011).

(6) The Ming and the Qing period (明清時期) – “concentration of the traditional

essence”

The main topics of material culture focus on the representation of imperial power in the Ming (1368-1644 A.D.) and the Qing (1644-1912 A.D.) dynasty – culture of

Long (the Chinese dragon), which is the exclusive figure that can be only used by

royal families. It originates in the Han dynasty, and becomes the semantic symbol of supreme power in the Ming and the Qing dynasty.

Beside the fact of aristocratic style, another important characteristic of design in this period involves the epitome of thousands of years’ development of cultural materials, including vessel shapes, decorations, techniques, and artistic values. That is, almost all forms could be seen in architectures, tools, utensils, and other man- made artifacts, though design activities lack original innovations and breakthroughs.

Hence, the material culture in this period can be considered as a comprehensive conclusion of colorful traditions of China (Figure 2.8). On the one hand, highly developed techniques include ceramics (“blue and white porcelain,” and “famille-rose porcelain”), “cloisonné enamel,” metal craft (bronze craft, tin craft, golden craft, and silver craft), woodcraft, jade craft, and textile technology. On the other hand, aesthetic decorations cover nearly every aspect of life, like historical stories, realistic portraits of animal and human activities, imperial power, and exotic themes.

Figure 2.8 Designed artifacts in the Ming and the Qing dynasty Note: Source from: http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/0c/c6/38.html, http://www.chinayibai.com/share/57241D8EAB369537.html, http://travel.ifeng.com/around/detail_2011_04/08/5621606_8.shtml, and http://bbs.sssc.cn/thread- 2409526-1-1.html

Afterwards, China experiences tremendous changes socially, economically, and culturally, which is introduced in the former section (see 1.1 A Historical

Background). Thus, the adaption of acculturation in today’s China requires a new way of inheriting traditional essences priority. In the following section, the author is going to present the “modular system” study, showing the construction characteristics of Chinese material culture.

2.2.3 The Modularity of the Chinese Material Culture

Throughout thousands of years’ history, countless cultural inheritances in China have been appreciated by spectacular quantities, and marvelous artistic attainments.

Evidences distribute expansively that can be clear identified, such as the bronze artifacts buried in the fifth century B.C., the thousands of terracotta figurines made for the First Emperor, the timber tower which constructed of over 3000 wooden parts, and the innumerably porcelain wares that exported abroad (Ledderose, 2000, p. 1).

According to Lothar Ledderose (2000), reasons can be given as an invention so- called “modular system” of mass production. It allows Chinese people to devise numerous types of standardized parts in order to assemble them to various units with different appearances and functional features, and to further enrich the cultural diversity of China. The book Ledderose (2000) writes, Ten Thousand Things: Module and Mass Production in Chinese Art, starts with the general idea of the modular system. Then the detailed cases are stated to demonstrate the universality of modular system in Chinese material culture. Here, the author will generally illustrate this idea followed by the typical cases.

(1) General introduction

Hegelian once claimed China as a country of eternal stasis, begged for explanation

(p. 1). In the introduction of the “modular system,” Ledderose arises the most popular work of binary code – the book of Change, I Ching (<易經>) – specified the divinations and wisdoms in China, which shows a classic carrier of modular thought with eight combinations of three lines including two types: broken line, and unbroken line. By doubling the number of lines in six, one could get sixty-four total different combinations covering natural attributes along with the complex varieties of transformations. This ancient book is believed to be compiled in the late eleventh century B.C. (Rutt, 2002, p. 6), shows the diachronic patterns of thought in China that exceeds the West for a long period.

The modular system contributes to patterns of China in crucial ways while disadvantages appeare obviously. On the one hand, the modular system helps to form the social structure either in the factory side or the consumer side. The concept of mass production in the West that emerges after the industrial evolution, has been existed in China for at least three thousand years, and provides huge numbers of people participating in manufactured process which can be divided into separated procedures. The division of workforce is so progressive that guarantees both the volume of production and qualities of items – levels of workers, such as mangers, men who responsible for designing, organizing, controlling quantity, and so on.

From this point of view, modular production benefits the maintenance of Chinese society by keeping the populace in such administration. Similarly with consumers, the well controlled production flows may provide abundant products meeting the massive needs of people, and a concept of graded products is engaged with the

instance shown in the use of ritual vessel “ding (鼎, which also is a kind of ancient caldron),” it is regulated strictly with ruling power: Dead emperor could be buried with nine “ding,” feudal lord with seven, ministers with five, and scholar-bureaucrats with three or one” (JianMing Chen, Xu, & Fu, 2011, pp. 23-24). This kind of hierarchical separation takes the very essential position of social government that generally remains for about two thousand years; the system of grade has advantages for producers as well. It helps them to organize their production process and allows them to attract customers of different economic meanings (Ledderose, 2000, p. 5), like different sizes of paintings with more or less decorations toward various guests.

On the other hand, the disadvantage of modular system is described as follows:

Yet implementing module systems also required enormous sacrifices…

Indeed, module systems are bound to curtail the personal freedom of the

makers of objects, and the owners and users. Modular systems engender

unbending restraints on society. (p. 5)

When Chinese people develop the modular system of production, they actually adopt the natural principles in generating things in the way of growing:

Large quantities of units, building units with interchangeable modules,

division of labor, a fair degree of standardization, growth through adding

new modules, proportional rather than absolute scale, and production by

reproduction. (p. 6)

It is also called “physis28,” which is bringing-forth, not only referring to the law of natural process, but also covering visualizations of literatures, arts, and crafts

(Heidegger, 1977, p. 10). These normally happen in two ways when Chinese people manufacturing modularizations: The first one is that all modules grow proportionally other than absolute scales; to a certain proportion, the progress of growing ceased with new modules initiated. Chinese artists and craftsmen are specifically familiar with the method of natural reproductions of organisms, and consider them as the master, which is opposite with the Western thought of pursuing hand-made items that “looks like” creations of nature. Chinese people try to create things by following the principles of nature – the “spontaneity (ziran, 自然)” and “heavenly naturalness

(tianran, 天然),” or saying, they capture life as the nature does, and as the highest acclaim a Chinese critic can bestow (Ledderose, 2000, p. 7). For instance, the most marvelous and greatest invention throughout the human civilization, the technique of movable-type printing, embodies the typical thought of the modular system.

Nonetheless, the writer Ledderose still claims that the capacity of creativity is weakened by this stiff thought, however Chinese people firmly believe in, like the natural cycle, everything will be refreshed by season changes – the resuscitating and blooming of ten thousand things including growth, mutation, and reproduction – insofar the principles of module that nature governs. Here, a derived concept of modular ideology is brought in the sense of fangyuan (⽅圓), in which its proto- graph showing an inscribed circle inward a square (see Figure 3.2). More than that, it implies a doctrine of “one could get infinite changes under the basic frame of

28 The Greek word physis is “the essence of things that have a source of movement with themselves. The world, for Aristotle, is a world of selfmoving or self-developing things, and physis is the principle of growth and change” (Blackburn, 2017).

thought,” and at first reveals once again in an ancient ritual vessel called “cong (琮),” reflecting the original understanding of universe as “sky is a vault that covers the squared earth.” Regardless of the scientific validity of this theory, it doubtlessly associates with the modular system constituting in a harmonious entirety, and the detailed elaboration of this concept will be given later.

To demonstrate the modular system of cultural materials of China, Ledderose proposes series cases from the essential way of expression. Examples are introduced which relate to language study and designed artifacts.

(2) System of Chinese scripts

The Chinese philosophers Shao Yong and Zhou DunYi describe the essence of cultural construction: “Production happens by combing parts – typifies by the eight trigrams – and by reproducing, varying, and transforming established categories of units without end” (p. 9). The foremost and fundamental justification of modular system in China stands still the script, which deeply influences the courses of thought. It is first emerged at the 3600 B.C. in the Yangshao culture site (Ning

Wang, 2002), and plays in the predominant role today.

For the sake of analyzing Chinese scripts with about 50,000 characters,

Ledderose proposes a hierarchical five levels along with the complexity: element, module, unit, series, and mass level. First, the element level refers to the basic eight types of brushstrokes: dot (dian, 點), horizontal stroke (heng, 橫), vertical stroke (shu,

豎), hooked vertical stroke (gou, 勾), and four different diagonal strokes (pie, 撇; na,

捺; xiepie, 斜撇; and yangheng, 仰橫), which are called the “eight laws in the character yong (永字⼋法)” because it contains all the types of brushstrokes. Second,

the module level which is built in block or component which interchangeable, and turning directly to more complex, the third level – the unit level of single character, and then is gathered in levels of series and mass texture. Thus, the modular system in

Chinese scripts plays the essential part of people learning and using characters with the awareness of ideographic modules.

Figure 2.9 The “eight laws in the character yong”

(3) Casting Bronze with complicated way

Bronze vessels primary sever as dinnerware in ceremonial banquets and ritual meals in the honor of ancestors in ancient China, especially in the Shang and the Zhou dynasty, so many of those rituals are necessary that they had to be performed almost everyday (Li, 2000, p. 252). Correspondingly elaborate rules are known of governing in which types and how many vessels are allowed for particular rank of the nobility – the graded system within the aristocracy. Ledderose suggests three aspects of the modular system in making Bronze vessels: the decorative system, the technique, and being grouped as sets (Ledderose, 2000, p. 30).

To begin with, the decorative system of bronze vessels comprises two different layers. On the one hand, the motif of monster called “taotie (饕餮)” face stands in the center of decoration patterns with varied anatomical parts (Figure 2.10a), such as eyes, paws, horns, and jaws are grouped into numerous designs of faces with spirals

adornments. These anatomical parts of the “taotie (饕餮)” can be regarded as modules in compartments of decorative system, and they are composite, interchangeable parts, which are moderated in different decorative fields with proper sizes and shapes (no matter rectangle, square, triangle, and so on.). On the other hand, the extended modular system to the next level defines the compartment as module and the whole vessel as unit. Examples are stated in wine vessel of “fanglei (

⽅壘),” which the motifs of “taotie (饕餮)” are placed on different registers of vessels

– necks, shoulders, and bodies (Figure 2.10b). Then, not only the decorative system of Bronze vessels shows the modular thought, but also the entire technical system works in the same way, such as the joining molds, casting inscriptions, cloning vessels, and division of labors. By the help of the modular system, Chinese craftsmen could not only bend the soft clays to fit for variant surfaces of making vessels, but also manufacture large sets of the multitudinous bronze vessels for funerals and ceremonies, which meet the graded system of product in bureaucratic societies, sustained them in stable states.

a: rubbing of different motifs of “taotie” b: motifs of “taotie” on “fangleis” Figure 2.10 Modular system of decoration of fanglei Note: Source from http://sambali.blogspot.hk/2010_08_02_archive.html, http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/0c/bf/26.html, and http://www.shoucw.com/News/view.aspx?id=195426

The book of Ten Thousand Things: Module and Mass Production in Chinese Art mainly investigates the modular system that form the fundamental thought of

Chinese arts, techniques and constructions. It somehow corresponds to David

Keightley’s assumption called “componential cast mind” (Boltz, 1994, pp. 42-43).

After carefully comparing artifact productions (especially with bronze vessels and ceramics) and incising on vessels (original symbols of Chinese scripts) in ancient cultural sites of China, he proposes that the “componential mentality” plays the essential cause of emergency of the Chinese written language.

The argument is not that only those who made componential pots were

likely to invent a componential writing system. The argument is rather that,

given the increasing social and craft complexity evident in the Late

Neolithic, writing was more likely to develop first in the region where such

habits of organization, in various aspects of life, were more pronounced and

valued. (p. 43; Keightley, 1991, p. 198)

No matter the modular thought or the “componential mentality,” it is so valuable that allows researchers to develop deeper study on material culture based on the systematic principles. However, the pursuit of Chinese artist, which focuses on limitless variations under the confined roles and formulas, is paid less attention in the book – the concept of “fangyuan (⽅圓).” This requires more observations and researches conducted discreetly.

2.3 Preliminary Analysis of Applying Chinese Ideographs to Artifact Design

To sum up the research of Chinese philology and material culture, initial conclusion can be made in two points: First, both Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts are important cultural carriers for fitting the acculturation of China (the

“Westernization” process). Second, they share the identical feature of modular thought, such as the “Parts Theory (部件說),” the “Hanzi Tree (漢字樹),” the

“Chinese character series,” and the “modular system” of Chinese material culture.

Therefore, Chinese ideographs have coherent relation with designed artifacts, and it is possible to apply Chinese ideographs to artifact designing. General speaking, there are two major ways: direct use and indirect use. Here, the author chooses some typical artifact examples, revealing the combinations of Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts, in the meantime, highlighting cultural beliefs implanted in Chinese people’s mind.

2.3.1 Direct Use of Chinese Ideographs – “Beauty of Character” Artifacts

As known, construction of Chinese ideographs associates with the portrait of natural things and one’s thoughts. Thus the ideographic feature of Chinese written language

– “shaping meaning based on construction of character pattern (據形構義)” – offers great possibilities for people creating new objects which are also considered as parcels of meaning. Being in the thousands of years’ civilization, various man-made objects are found, combining designed objects and semantics with interpretations of characters. Here, the author selects representative examples from the book WenZi de

Li yu Mei written by Kouhei Sugiura (2011), which show the direct use of Chinese ideographs to create artifacts.

According to Sugiura, language is not only created for recording, but also a kind of distinct symbol that “embodying the rhythm of human body.” As to Chinese characters, one could find that their formations are not merely pictographic depictions, whereas coalitions integrated by natural views, animal gestures, and human actions. When people writing Chinese characters, they open their mind to the universe, capture the invisible quintessence, and infuse it to the calligraphic forms, especially with the so-called “ideograph (象意字)” proposed by Qiu (1988)

(see 2.1.3 The “Three Origins”). Such spiritual response also happens when people manipulating artifacts with the ideograph-like design.

(1) Design semantics of fragrance – censer

This white porcelain censer is made in the Kingdom of Great Joseon29, and the basic layout comprises an incense base and a bottom plate (Figure 2.11a). The central base is designed as the Chinese ideograph “fragrance ( 香 , xiang)” in four sides, representing either the functional information of the artifact, or the smell and the psychological response when people burning incenses. Particularly, this case shows that context of use that plays the decisive role in cognizing the embodiment of an artifact: People may only recall the concept of “burning incenses” when they using the censer in temples or at mourning halls, otherwise it may be failed due to various of meaning the Chinese ideograph “fragrance (香, xiang)” has, like “tasty of food” or

“sleep soundly.”

For one thing, appearance of this censer is directly borrowed from the pattern of

Chinese ideograph “fragrance (香, xiang),” implying the usage of it as “holding

29 Joseon is a Korean kingdom that established by Yi Taejo from 1392-1897 A.D.

incenses sticks (in Chinese language, it is also called ‘香’ or ‘線香’) on the top.” For another thing, cultural habit and belief is embodied in the design, that is, East Asian people always pay their respect to the heaven, communicate and worship ancestors by firing incense in ceremonies (Figure 2.11b). And the fragrant smoke emitted from incense can bring their wishes to deities and ancestors who living in the heaven (p.

24). Such convention can still be easily found in China today, such as in temples and ancestral shrines. Thus, design semantics of the censer is deeply understood by analyzing the Chinese character “fragrance (香, xiang).”

a: design of the censer b: firing incense in ceremonies Figure 2.11 The white porcelain censer and cultural habit of worshipping in China Note: Source from the book WenZi de Li yu Mei, http://toutiao.baike.com/article-1253655.html, and http://www.chinanews.com/tw/2011/10-15/3391204.shtml

Another instance is given by the Japanese designer Kajiwara (Strategy, 2017), who makes a shelf (Figure 2.12). Design of this furniture shares the similar thought with the white porcelain censer in the Qing dynasty, that is, Kajiwara directly takes the Chinese ideograph “fragrance (香, xiang)” as its main appearance, pointing to the usage of the furniture – putting censer on it for praying. Additionally, the material – aromatic wood with dark brown color - also reminds people’s impression of “solemn” and “religious,” which corresponds to the explanation of the Chinese ideograph

“fragrance (香, xiang):” Fragrant smell for appreciating divinity (<書君陳>: ⾄治馨

香，感於神明。). Interestingly, when people put others on this shelf – delicacy or flower – cognition of embodiment may be different due to the polysemy of Chinese character “fragrance (香, xiang):” delicious cuisine, or good smell of flower. Such phenomena mirror the cognition of an object varies due to the changing pragmatics of Chinese character.

Figure 2.12 Kajiwara’s design of shelf Note: Source from http://www.spoon-tamago.com/2013/09/10/typographic-furniture-by-saori- kajiwara-and-matt-innes/

(2) Drinking for blessing – wine bottle

Sugiura also states a wine bottle in the Qing dynasty (Figure 2.13). Chinese craftsmen endeavor their talents in bonding the auspicious character with artifact making. In the wine bottle design, the main body is made of plain tricolor porcelain, and the appearance is put in the shape of “cursive handwriting (in Chinese calligraphy)” of the Chinese ideograph “blessedness (福, fu).” More than that, cultural belief could be seen in the metaphorical meaning of this vessel.

The perfect combination of ideograph pattern and designed layout makes this vessel as an ideal example of integrating the utilitarian value and the spiritual value.

On the one hand, the Chinese calligraphy of “cursive handwriting” provides the possibility of connecting different strokes of the character “blessedness (福, fu)”

altogether, forming the body in intactness, which enables the function of this bottle effectively – holding and pouring wine. On the other hand, beyond a kind of alcoholic beverage, wine plays an important part in worshipping rituals, celebrating ceremonies, and feasts in China. Therefore, when drinking wine pouring out of the bottle, people may feel they are blessed due to the meaning of the Chinese ideograph

“blessedness (福, fu)” interpreted by them (p. 26). This example does not stand alone, similar vessels can be found in other character-like wine vessels of “longevity (壽, shou)” and “rich (祿, lu).”

Figure 2.13 The “blessedness” wine bottle made of plain tricolors porcelain Note: Source from http://www.shangci.net/jiaoyi/30491973.html#bimg

(3) Eating for long life – hamper

If someone asks what is the basic need of human keeping the life, the answer may be things that one takes to maintain the body organs functioning, like protein, vitamin, and glucose. In general, food, which is made for eating, and contains nutrients a human requires. This concept is more obviously shown by the proverb “food is the god of the people (民以食為天)” in China. So food has a special relationship with the hope of longevity in Chinese people’s mind.

The lacquer hamper given by Sugiura (2011) is designed in the shape of transformed Chinese ideograph “ten thousand ( 萬 , wan)” with auspicious

decorations (various forms of the characters, lotus, and bats), which implies the meaning of “myriad” or “boundless” as well (pp. 50-51). Hence the lacquer hamper of Chinese character “ten thousand (萬, wan)” carries the metaphorical semantics of

“attaining boundless longevity (萬壽無疆)” when people opening that box, and enjoying food in it. Additionally, this hamper is made for royal use in the Qing dynasty, and during that period, the proverb “may you attaining boundless longevity

(萬壽無疆)” is strictly stipulated as the dedicated words that worships the emperors

(Figure 2.14).

Figure 2.14 The “longevity” lacquer hamper Note: Source from the book WenZi de Li yu Mei

Beside the three cases, Sugiura proposes many examples of how Chinese ideographs are used in the artifact design, covering almost every aspect of normal life, like art of root carving, cloth, furniture, and even decoration of Chinese cake.

From this perspective, it is clearly seen that Chinese ideographs are important references in artifact designing, presenting all the material values (aesthetic needs), the utilitarian values (functional needs), and the spiritual values (mental needs) at the same time in man-made artifacts, especially with the “ideograph (表意字)” of the

“Three Origins,” such as the Chinese ideograph “fragrance (香, xiang),” “blessedness

(福, fu),” “ten thousand (萬, wan),” and so on.

Being as a kind of captivating written language, Chinese ideographs also attract foreign designers making artifacts, and embodying elements (including patterns and meaning) of Chinese ideographs to values of artifacts. However, not all designed artifacts pass on the precise information linguistically. Here, the author gives furniture works made by a French designer Sammy Engramer, which show the artifacts that are irrelevant with the meaning of Chinese ideographs based on the direct use.

(4) Sammy Engramer’s bookshelf design

In 2008 A.D., The French designer Sammy Engramer designs a series of bookshelves by using patterns of Chinese ideographs, including the “Voir” (Figure

2.15a), the “Terre” (Figure 2.15b), and the “Montagne” (Figure 2.15c). The “Voir” bookshelf gets its layout from the Chinese ideograph “see (見, jian);” the “Terre” is designed in the shape of “soil (⼟, tu);” and the appearance of “Montagne” borrows the pattern of Chinese ideograph “hill (⼭, shan).” From the three bookshelves, only patterns of Chinese ideographs are brought in the design process rather than combine their symbolic meaning and cultural beliefs (values) of furniture in oneness.

Since the meaning of all Chinese ideographs miss to represent the concept of a book shelf, so the design works can be simply deemed as the partly use of Chinese ideographs: the Chinese ideograph “see (見, jian)” means “catching sight of;” the

Chinese ideograph “soil (⼟, tu)” means “earth;” and the Chinese ideograph “hill (⼭, shan)” means “mountain.”

a: the “Voir” b: the “Terre” c: the “Montagne” Figure 2.15 Engramer’s bookshelf design Note: Source from http://sammy.engramer.free.fr/Page3.08.wo1.html

2.3.2 Indirect Use of Chinese Ideographs – The “Aura/Narrative Design”

Other than direct use of Chinese ideographs, many young Chinese designers have tried to utilize both patterns and semantics of Chinese ideographs making artifacts.

One of the representative cases is the “Aura/Narrative design,” which is practiced by a Hon Kong designer Mak (2017), and his master works include the “Moon Reach

Ladder,” the “Hua,” and the “Tian.” By examining the “Aura/Narrative design,” the indirect use of Chinese ideographs for designing artifacts can be seen: Designers may utilize the morphemic feature of the Chinese written language, creating artifacts by putting cultural beliefs (values: the material value, the utilitarian value, and the spiritual value) in morphemic symbols, like strokes and modular patterns.

(1) The “Moon Reach Ladder”

According to Mak (2017), design of the “Moon Reach Ladder” is inspired by the

Chinese ideograph “moon (月, yue),” and its layout is put in a functional way by stretching the frame of the character, and doubling the number of “horizontal stroke” inside the ideograph (Figure 2.16) – allows users to climb on it. More important, such disposition may recall people’s memory of “reaching the moon” in their childhood, and the famous myth in old times: The story of “the Goddess

Chang’s fly to the moon (嫦娥奔月).” Furthermore, Mak names this kind of style as the “Aura/Narrative design.”

Academically, the “Moon Reach Ladder” reflects the reproductive attribute of the modular thought (or “componential mentality”), that is, grows new modules proportionally on basis, which is so valuable for researchers to analyze cultural beliefs of Chinese people (see 2.2.3 The Modularity of the Chinese Material Culture). Mak infuses the utilitarian and the spiritual value of design to the horizontal strokes:

People may feel that they could reach the moon by climbing the stroke-like stairs.

Nevertheless, the designer might miss to consider the pictographic factor of the

Chinese ideograph “moon (月, yue),” which means, the two horizontal strokes originally imply the index meaning of “deficient” in the book ShuoWenJieZi Zhu (<說

⽂解字注>: 月, 缺也。滿則缺也。象形。象不滿之形。). Thus, the four

“horizontal strokes” of the ladder may lose their symbolic meaning linguistically, which deviate from the Chinese morphology, like the “Parts Theory (部件說).”

Figure 2.16 The “Moon Reach Ladder” Note: Source from: http://www.mikemak.com

(2) The “Tian” fruit plate

Similar to the “Moon Reach Ladder,” Mak (2017) chooses another Chinese ideograph “farmland (田, tian),” and designs an artifact called the “Tian” fruit plate.

Originated from the traditional agriculture civilization, Chinese people have a very special love knot with the farmland. So the design of the “Tian” fruit plate borrows the shape from the transformed Chinese ideograph “farmland ( 田 , tian)” – enhancing the number of checkers by doubling the inner strokes (Figure 2.17).

Although there may be a misunderstanding about the Oracle script of Chinese ideograph “farmland ( )” in the designer’s mind (Mak thinks the Oracle script of this character is ), but this designed artifact still reminds researchers of the “nine- square land system (井田制)30” – the most ancient land division system in slave society of China. As long as people put fruits on checker-like plate units, they may associate the scenario of those fruits that are cultivated in the miniature field, and ready for eating.

Figure 2.17 The “Tian” fruit plate Note: Source from http://www.mikemak.com

30 The “nine-square land system,” which is called “well-field system” as well, is a policy of land distribution from about 9th century B.C. (late Western Zhou dynasty) to the end of the Warring States period. This system is closely related to the Chinese character “well (井, jing),” which shows the theoretical way of dividing the land: a square land is divided into nine parts with the exact same proportions; the eight outer parts are the private cultivation lands (私田, sitian), while the central part is called the communal cultivation land (公田, gongtian) which is possessed by the landowning aristocrat (Fu, 1981).

Both the “Moon Reach Ladder” and the “Tian” fruit plate are created by the indirect use of Chinese ideographs: Mak considers strokes and morphemes as the elements of design, and embodies cultural values in them. Such way of applying

Chinese ideographs apparently shares the same thoughts with the morphological principle of the Chinese written language, and the modular feature of the material culture of China (the “componential mentality”). However, the “ideographs” Mak used in his design works are the transformed forms, which cannot be deemed as

Chinese ideographs strictly. So if designers intend to use Chinese ideographs indirectly to make artifacts, they might need not only to pay attention morphemic symbols, but also to understand the symbolic meaning of them, developing stories based on the original ones.

(3) The “Hua” vase

The “Hua” vase made by Mak (2017) gets the idea from the Chinese ideograph

“flower (花, hua).” The designer puts the lower pattern of “transform (化, hua)” as the main body of vase, which is an individual Chinese ideograph as well. It is different from the former cases that use strokes (Figure2.18). When flowers are arranged on the top, they will combine into an entire Chinese ideograph “flower (花, hua).”

Still, the morphemic feature of Chinese character plays the crucial part in this design, that is, Mak dynamically considers two patterns of the ideograph into different uses: the pattern of “transform (化, hua)” as the vase body (also an individual Chinese ideograph), while the pattern “grass (⾋, cao)” is replaced by actual flowers, which is usually called the “ideographic part” of an “phonogram”

(because flower still can be viewed as a kind of “grass” or “plant”), including the “Six

Character Origins (六書說),” the “Three Origins (三書說),” and the “Hanzi Tree

(漢字樹).”

Furthermore, according to Mak, the spiritual value is embodied that quotes from the famous Chinese poem (落紅不是無情物，化作春泥更護花。), showing the understanding of lifecycle of a blossom arranged in the vase: transformation from sprouting, growing, to blooming, and then fading to mud as nutrient for the new life.

In this case, this vase is a very classic instance of combining Chinese ideograph to modern design, though remains a debatable point: Some linguists may argue that the

Chinese ideograph “transform (化, hua)” is only the “phonetic part,” which only presents the pronunciation of the Chinese ideograph “flower (花, hua)” rather than carrying an actual meaning (see 2.1.2 The “Six Character Origins”). So the main body of the vase may represent the inaccurate semantics of the Chinese ideograph

“flower (花, hua)”.

Figure 2.18 The “Hua” vase Note: Source from: http://www.mikemak.com

(4) Xu ZiJun’s “sexual furniture” design

More radically, a Chinese artist Xu ZiJun makes a series of innovative design called

“sexual furniture,” integrating the gender characteristics of the mankind with the

strokes and morphemes of Chinese characters altogether (Figure 2.19). By transforming and combining existed patterns (to organs of human, including head, arms, and legs), the artist creates a man-like (using vertical stroke to present male genital organ) and a woman-like (using the pattern of “⼝” to present female genital organ) shape as basic element in designing furniture. And the attempts of design are shown in the figure.

Actually, all Xu’s hieroglyphics cannot be recognized as any real Chinese character that can be explained from neither the traditional theory (like the “Six

Character Origins” and the “Three Origins”) nor the modern theory (like the “Parts theory”) of philology. Although they appear to indirectly use Chinese ideographs in the furniture design – putting strokes and patterns in man-made forms, but the symbolic meaning is missing due to the illogical arrangements. Anyhow it is still a valuable practice of trying to get a breakthrough on the fundamental of ideographic feature of the Chinese written language. Nevertheless, the “sexual furniture” more seems to be artistic works than actual designed objects functionally.

Figure 2.19 Xu ZiJun’s “sexual furniture” Note: Source from http://www.xuzijun.com/c/c1-2.htm

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2.4 Summary

In this chapter, the author introduces relevant theories of Chinese linguistics

(philology), material culture at first. On the following, practical cases of how

Chinese ideographs are used in designing artifacts are given in two kinds: direct use of Chinese ideographs, and indirect use of ideographs. All of them show some sorts of relationships between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts roughly, while a theoretical investigation and a structural corpus is still required in detail, demonstrating the pervasiveness and the systematic characteristics of those relationships, the author calls it “Ideograph-Artifact Library.”

This library not only is going to collects as many as artifact samples that relate to

Chinese ideographs in different categories, but also uncovers the basic features of

Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts: corporeal feature (corresponding to the material value), behavioral feature (corresponding to the utilitarian value), and conceptual feature (corresponding to the spiritual value). Meanwhile, they reveal the ideology (view of the world) of Chinese people as the modular thought or the

“componential mentality.”

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Chapter 3 Theoretical Framework and the “Ideograph-

Artifact Library”

In this chapter, theoretical framework puts forward that is so crucial to this research.

Rather than using existing methods, the author proposes an original approach by integrating analysis models of Chinese philology and design psychology, which is suitable for studying semantics of designed artifacts in China. Starting with linguistics, a new model is brought in on the basis of the “Parts Theory (部件說)” and the “Hanzi Tree (漢字樹),” considering Chinese ideograph as a kind of human- centered language with modular parts, or saying, symbolic morphemes. Followed by that, psychological statement of design is given, focusing on how people designing and reacting to artifacts. To bridge the two models together, the author uses the

“Blending Theory,” and integrates them into a holistic analysis model for deductive analyzing semantics of designed artifacts in China.

As stated in the last chapter, a structural corpus is required that consists of both designed artifacts and relevant Chinese ideographs. After examining numbers of cases (by using the original analysis model), the author assembles them into groups

(the “ritual vessel” group, the “food-container” group, the “wine vessel” group, and the “cooking utensil” group), that is, the establishment of “Ideograph-Artifact

Library.” The library is not only the database for future research, but also a valuable tool for evaluating and making artifacts based on semantics of Chinese ideographs.

Furthermore, it perfectly shows the relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts in China systematically.

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Before that, the study of the semantics of designed artifacts from Chinese philology needs to be clarified, which sets up the academic foundation of this research, and plays the primary role in forming the theoretical framework.

3.1 Academic Foundation of the Theoretical Framework

Today, design as various elements gathered, is deemed as synthesis of signs, and they are named in the term of “semiology” and “semiotics” That is, practicing designers may see all components of a designed object as signs, and disposes them in forms integrated internally, such as shapes, color, functions and conventional identities; and user could unfold those messages consciously and unconsciously when interacting with designed object – explaining the signs, beside the fact that monistic knowing of semiology and semiotics, this process may be looked in a reverse direction advised by post-structuralists, that is, how user interpreting signs and responding to them plays a growing importance in innovative practices. According to

Donald Norman and Andrew Ortony (2003), “whatever designers intend, ultimately users’ emotions depend on the emotional affordances of products,” as well as different interpretations users give to products. For instance, designers may intentionally make a “chair” as “a tool of sit,” while users find their own ways manipulating or communicating with it, they might see the “chair” a table when they take food, a shelf for putting books on, even a collection for hobbies.

The term of “semiology,” according to the Encyclopedia Britannica, refers to the study of signs and sign-using behavior. It is defined by one of its founders, the Swiss linguist Saussure, as the study of “the life of signs within society.” Then, this idea is extended to an interdisciplinary mode for examining phenomena in different fields.

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Semiology thus is a science of forms postulating in two concepts: signifier and signified, which can be stated as “the signifier expresses the signified.”

Corresponding to the post-structualist thoughts, Roland Barthes in his best-known piece, the essay “The Death of the Author,” suggests “to give a text an Author,” that is, readers may think meaning of text in multi-layers, isolating the arbitrariness of the writer’s view, and leaving it aside. Barthes analogizes text as textiles in the way of

“text is a tissue (or fabric) of quotations,” which has “innumerable centers of culture” instead of a single point of views in dominance. This idea is so infusive that sent reader to the central stage of semiotic interpretation, since the essential meaning of text work largely ties to the impression of the reader other than the “passions and tastes” of the writer, hence “a text’s unity lies not in its origins” created, “but its destination” understood by audience. Similar with the inverse process of coding signs and symbols, either the systematic language study or the users’ determination of design work enables the research of design semiology releasing inboard the boundary of post-structuralism.

On the “semiotics” side, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, American philosopher, Charles Sanders Peirce sets up basic sign structure as three inter-related components: sign, object and interpretant, in his analytic model, a representamen

(sign) signifies an object which is signified, and this signifying process can only be interpreted by interpretant, who reveals the meaning of representamen (sign) in its use.

I define a sign as anything which is so determined by something else, called

its Object, and so determines an effect upon a person, which effect I call its

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interpretant, that the later is thereby mediately determined by the former.

(Atkin, 2017)

From this perspective, Peirce’s idea of semiotics close relates to “interpretant” with cognition, which means, “the interpretant stands in the representing relation to the same object represented by the original representamen, and thus the interpretant represents the object (either again or further) to yet another interpretant” (Burch,

2017). The sign relation in any case an object is signified by a repesentamen (sign) to one’s mind.

Figure 3.1 Basic sign structure of semiotics

Aiming at interpreting signification of an object, the term “semantics” involves that has been touched upon by more and more researchers. Originally in Greek, the word semasia refers to “signification, meaning,” which is replaced by semasiology later in 1847 A.D. In order to fully explain the term, basic definition of hermeneutics is brought in, which initially covers “the first order art and the second-order theory of

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understanding and interpretation of linguistic and non-linguistic expression.” After that, this idea turns to the philosophical and even the ontological technology, concerning not only “symbolic communication” of humans, but also the truth of their being and existence (Ramberg & Gjesdal, 2017):

Human beings exhibit, not only significant linguistic and conceptual-

intellectual similarities, but also striking linguistic and conceptual-

intellectual diversities, especially between different historical periods and

cultures, but even to some extent between individuals within a single period

and culture. (Forster, 2017)

Further, a German philosopher who follows the continental tradition31, Hans-Georg

Gadamer suggests:

Human being… is a being in language. It is through language that the

world is opened up for us. We learn to know the world by learning to

master a language. Hence we cannot really understand ourselves unless we

understand ourselves as situated in a linguistically mediated, historical

culture. Language is our second nature. (Malpa, 2017)

Language as a universal tool for people expressing themselves, fully embodies

31 One of the most important and persistent features of continental philosophy is its emphasis on the social, cultural and historical conditions of thought and existence. Continental philosophy is self- consciously historical. On the other hand, a major complaint against an Enlightenment too impressed by natural science is its willful ignorance of history.

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how people perceive, understand, and react to the environment around them. In another word, it manifests human capacity of cognition. Especially with the Chinese written language, this feature can be pervasively found. Taking Liao’s “Hanzi Tree” as an example, it categorizes Chinese characters based on the human organs, abilities

(vision, hearing, tactility, and feeling), and mentalities. In this case, the study of man-made objects, in terms of analytic topic, employs hermeneutical doctrine with linguistic principles – semantics of design, analyzing ideographic signs of coded object in contextual circumstance – “it is language that tells us about the nature of a thing, provided that we respect language’s own nature” (Heidegger, 2013, p. 144).

From the perspective of material culture differed from periods to periods, design involves tremendous revolutions only left the fundamental principles behind extremely complicated phenomena. Thus, this research starts with understanding the

Chinese language, which is considered as the basic tool for further explanations in general.

Adjustment within human populations also occurs in these ways, but

humans are also able to enhance their adjustment by means of an ongoing

invention, development, and use of tools of sorts. The most important tool

that at their disposal is language. (Hickman, 2001, p. 46)

Taking one of the ritual artifacts in China as an example (Figure 3.2a), cong (琮), the shape of which follows the linguistic description of tianyuan defang (天圓地⽅)32,

32 Tianyuan defang (天圓地⽅) is the traditional concept of universe in China (Figure 3.2b). It originally refers to “the square-shaped earth is covered by the circle-vault like sky, allowing men

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showing how Chinese people understand the cosmos in ancient times (Figure 3.2b).

More than that, it reveals the worship tradition of China (<周禮⼤宗伯>: 以⽟作

六器, 以禮天地四⽅… 黃琮禮地。) (Zhou, 1990). Subsequently, the concept of tianyuan difang (天圓地⽅) develops, like Mencius and other scholars suggest: “One could get infinite changes (due to moveable, instable and changeable shape of circle) under the basic frame of thought (due to unmovable, stable and unchangeable shape of square).” It then becomes the spiritual value of brilliant people being in the world

– fangyuan (⽅圓, Figure 3.2c), that is, an individual could develop himself liberally insofar the restrict orders (孟⼦曰: 離婁之明，公輸⼦之巧，不以規矩，不能成⽅

圓。<荀⼦禮論>: 規矩者，⽅圓之⾄也。). Hence the semantics of cong (琮), including the material value (jade made shape), the utilitarian value (for holding ritual in ancient times), and the spiritual value (understanding of the cosmos and one’s personality), are perfectly manifested in the Chinese language. In the same time, it implies the traditional world-view of China as “ethically fitting:”

… order was everything; man, the world in which he lived, the cosmos itself,

were of interest not as objects for intellectual speculation, or in and for

themselves, but rather only in as far as they reflected, or could be reduced to,

proper, ethically fitting, and rigid order – order that found its most tangible

expression in the monolithic despotism of the centralized Chinese state. (R.

A. Miller, 1975, p. 1215)

cultivating on the ground under the protection of the sky (<周髀算經>: ⽅屬地，圓屬天，天圓地⽅。 <晉書天⽂志>: 天圓如張蓋，地⽅如棋局。)” (Zeng, 2005).

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a: ancient ritual artifact of cong b: understanding of the cosmos c: photo-graph of fangyuan Figure 3.2 The ritual artifact of cong and the concept of tianyuan difang Note: Source from http://xueke.maboshi.net/wl/wlgj/wlsh/twsh/48466.html, and http://hollyduke.blog.163.com/blog/static/510156420083605534270/

As a consequence, study of designed artifacts successfully turns to the interpretation of semantics, which “needs to take language in the use of technology seriously. It is the use of language that distinguishes forms, materials, functions, and problems, and directs designers’ attention to what they are to do with them”

(Krippendorff, 2006, p. 23). To uncover the values of artifacts, language comes first in this research, acting as the central role for studying the material culture, especially with the relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts. Chinese ideographs, as the prior tool for interpreting other cultural materials, represent meaning based on the human features morphemically (corporeality, behavior, and concept). In the following, it is entitled to explore semantics of designed artifacts

(the material value, the utilitarian value, and the spiritual value). After that, mental way of people constructing meaning is introduced – conceptual blending – which plays a cogent part of interpreting things but invisible for most of times (Fauconnier

& Turner, 2002, p. xi). So, design or innovation process, as a communicating medium among participators; and design semantics as a substantial part of design, can be both delivered and understood among social members frequently, like language does.

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3.2 Semantic Analysis of Chinese Ideographs

After all terms have been defined, relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts is about to be inquired, which initiates with the linguistic study of

Chinese philology, including individual characters and a holistic system. Assisted by the morphemic feature, the author proposes a new approach of interpreting Chinese ideographs (series), highlighting the human centered embodiment of the Chinese written language.

3.2.1 Morphemic Basis of Chinese Ideographs

As stated earlier, the elemental formation characteristics of Chinese ideographs is

“shaping meaning based on character pattern (據形構義).” No wonder both Ning

Wang (2002) and Shirakawa (2014) propose philological theories that matter to morphemes of Chinese ideographs: The “Part Theory (部件說)” and the “pattern morph (形體素).” They show the “componential mentality” or the modular principle of the Chinese material culture, that is, put semantics of Chinese ideographs as the combination of symbolic morphemes (components or modules). Thus, the author defines the fundamental element of forming Chinese ideographs in the name of

“morphemic symbol,” which obtains two terms: morpheme and symbol.

Needless to say, morpheme is the important pattern that constructs a Chinese ideograph. Here, the author directly borrows the concept of morpheme from dictionary: a meaningful morphological unit of a language that cannot be further divided, which corresponds to Wang’s definition as well.

According to Charles Sanders Peirce, “symbol” refers to the “successful signification of the object requires that the sign utilize some convention, habit, or

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social rule or law that connects it with its object” (Atkin, 2017). In this case, “symbol” signifies cultural value that is generally acknowledged by interpretants in certain community.

Therefore, “morphemic symbol” is the semantic pattern of Chinese ideographs, which cannot be separated even more. Specially, it is worth to mention that a morphemic symbol sometimes is an individual ideograph, and sometimes becomes a part of other ideographs. For instance, the morphemic symbol of “mouth/ancient ritual vessel (⼝, kou),” which cannot be further divided, represents complete meaning with an “enclosed” pattern. So it is an independent ideograph, while it is used to form other Chinese ideographs like “commodity (品, pin),” “stage (台, tai),”

“tell (告, gao),” and so on. Followed by the introduction of morphemic symbol, the author suggests the analysis model with three layers, focusing on the semantics of

Chinese ideographs integrally.

3.2.2 Three Layers of Chinese Ideograph Formation

As stated, Chinese ideographs represent semantics based on human cognition, that deem the fundamental features of mankind as the foundation of ideograph formation in three levels, including corporeality, behavior, and concept (see 2.1 A Study of

Chinese Philology and Chinese Ideograph System ). More specifically, formation of

Chinese ideograph is defined based on morphemic symbols. This new concept suggested by the author aims at analyzing either expression (by writer and speaker) or understanding (by reader and listener) of Chinese ideographs, which includes three layers: the “Corporeal Layer” (abbreviating to “CorL”), the “Behavioral Layer”

(abbreviating to “BehL”), and the “Conceptual Layer” (abbreviating to “ConL”)

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(Figure 3.3). Interestingly, it also corresponds to the three basic phenomenological categories of Peirce: Firstness (quality of feeling), Secondness (reaction, resistance, dyadic relation), and Thirdness (representation, mediation) ("Categories," 2017).

Figure 3.3 Three layers of Chinese ideograph formation

(1) The “Corporeal Layer” (CorL)

The “Corporeal Layer” (CorL) of Chinese ideograph formation refers to pattern of morphemic symbol(s) – the sensorial depiction of an object, in another word,

“feeling quality of the object” ("Firstness," 2017). In the Chinese written language which originated from pictograph, the organic function more relies on visual sense – writers and speakers directly reconstruct what they saw in two dimensional symbols, and systemize them into regular shapes and patterns, including animals, objects,

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views and so on (Figure 3.3). Not only this type of symbol normally acts as hieroglyphic part of an ideograph, like the morphemic symbols “ (presenting a kind of ancient ritual vessel)” and “ (presenting a man’s hand),” and a stick-like stroke in the Seal script “lord ( , 君, jun);” but also can be seen as an individual ideograph sometimes, such as the morphemic symbol “hill (⼭, shan)” which its

Bronze script ( ) is drawn like the actual landscape of mountains.

The “Corporeal Layer” (CorL) of Chinese ideographs reveals as the most basic and direct aspect in process of interpretation for readers and listeners, though it is hard to analyze directly today because many morphemes have lost their original representations, such as the transformed morphemes in modern script of Chinese ideograph “lord (君, jun).” This may be due to changes of scripts happened in the thousands of years of evolution (from the most ancient pictograph to the Regular script, and then to the traditional script). Thus, when researchers tend to find clear clues of the “Corporeal Layers” of modern Chinese ideographs, they need to trace back to the beginning of their formations, acquiring how those ideographs are created in remote times.

(2) The “Behavioral Layer” (BehL)

The “Behavioral Layer” (BehL) that refers to spatial arrangement of morphemic symbols of Chinese ideograph, which close relates to human activities. More than that, it involves the dyadic relations among morphemic symbols ("Secondness," 2017)

- the scenario in which people associate with objects, and behave in the world

(Figure 3.3). For example, the morphemic symbol “an ancient officer ( , 尹, yin)” on the top of the Seal script “lord ( , 君, jun),” expressing the action of a man

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holding a ritual stick in his hand, and being as a host in some kinds of activities in communities. Like Shirakawa states, this scenario revivifies the scene of worshipping ceremonies in the Shang dynasty of China; meanwhile, it engages the context of use of artifacts during that time (in this case, the ritual stick).

Accordingly, the “Behavioral Layer” (BehL) shows a coherent relation with the human centered principle of Chinese ideographs, that is, large amount of corporeal symbols are comprised in ideographs, such as the morphemic symbol “heart (a human organ, ⼼, xin)” in the Chinese ideograph “think (思, si),” representing a kind of mental process in human’s mind; and the morphemic symbol “human (⼈, ren)” in the center of a frame, representing the meaning of Chinese ideograph “imprison (囚, qiu)” as “a person is arrested in prisoner’s cage” in the book ErYa ShiYan (<爾雅釋

⾔>: 囚，拘也。). Beside that, those ideographs that only contain corporeal factors

(are also called “pure pictographs” in traditional philology) could be either studied in the Behavioral layers as morphemes in derived ideographs. For example, the

“Behavioral Layer” of the Chinese ideograph “hill (⼭, shan)” can be understood in another ideograph “celestial (仙, xian),” showing how Chinese people considering and disposing it, which will be analyzed in details in the next section.

(3) The “Conceptual Layer” (ConL)

Comparing with former layers, the “Conceptual Layer” (ConL) generally expresses abstract meaning and mental images by the representable depiction of real things and behaviors, and occupies the central part in semantics of Chinese ideographs

(Figure 3.3). It matters the “representation” of morphemic symbol(s), and the

“mediation” between it (them) and object – interpreting thoughts of people

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("Thirdness," 2017). Such as the Chinese ideograph “big (⼤, da),” which the Oracle script ( ) reveals as a man opening his arms. In fact, this gesture does not necessarily express the real meaning of “big,” whereas readers and writers use this motion to stand for the concept of “a man occupying more space than the others.”

To further explain the “Conceptual layer,” the author here quotes two terms from semiology: denotation and connotation, and highlights signification that Chinese ideographs represent.

First, the term “denotation” generally describes to meaning of a sign of

“definitional,” “literal,” “obvious,” or “commonsense. In this case of linguistic signs, the denotative meaning is what the dictionary attempts to provide” (Chandler, 2002, p. 140). Here it refers to the literal meaning of Chinese ideographs, which directly associates with the explanation given by dictionary and literature document.

Specifically in the Chinese written language, the denotation of a Chinese ideograph can be also understood according to corporeal and behavioral morphemes despite of evolutionary transformations like loaning and synonymous phenomena. For instance, the Chinese ideograph “show (示, shi),” it gets the lexical meaning of “showing man’s fate when astronomical phenomena revealed in the ceremony” in the book

ShuoWenJieZi (<說⽂解字>: 天垂象，見吉凶，所以示⼈也。). In addition, the

Seal pattern of this ideograph ( ) depicts the scene of ancient worshipping ceremony taking place via the morphemic symbols “original word of up (上, the Seal script is , shang)” and “river (川, the Seal script is , chuan)” (also are individual ideographs).

Second, “connotation” in the sense of linguistics, “is used to refer to the socio- cultural and ‘personal’ associations (ideological, emotional, etc.) of the sign” (p. 140).

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Thereby, connotation of Chinese ideographs relates to subjective understanding of people (based on personal experiences) and cultural values based on the denotation of it. This concept is normally described in the sense of “intersubjectivity” as

“sedimented socio-cultural normativity” (Fusaroli, Demuru, & Borghi, 2009) –

“habits, beliefs, attitudes, and historically and culturally sedimented morphologies” of people (writers/speakers, and readers/listeners) toward ideographs. Take the Chinese ideograph “show (示, shi)” as an example again. When its transformed pattern (礻) is used in constructing other ideographs as a morphemic symbol, like “blessedness (福, fu)” and “rich (祿, lu)”, it always carries the propitious semantics. So the “Conceptual

Layer” (ConL) of this ideograph represents the spiritual value of China – worship traditions.

Furthermore, several characteristics of forming Chinese ideographs must be mentioned. Firstly, semantics of Chinese ideographs is dynamically shown instead of invariable interpretation, such as, the morphemic symbol “亻 (transformed ideograph of human, ⼈, )” usually means “a man” in the derived ideographs like “servant (僕, pu),” “you (你, ni),” and “nephew (侄, zhi),” but in some ideographs like “celestial

(仙, the Seal script is , xian),” this symbol represents an immortal who is not a mankind living in the mountain top ( , ). Secondly, layers of corporeality and behavior may not appear simultaneously in constructing the conceptual meaning of

Chinese ideographs, like the Chinese ideograph “blade (刃, ren)” contains a morphemic symbol “knife (⼑, dao, a pictograph)” and an index “、” without direct description of using a knife, while emphasizes the particular location of kin edge of it.

From this perspective, Chinese ideographs ingeniously combine the human nature

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(the three features: corporeality, behavior and concept) with the linguistic interpretation (morpheme based semantics), meanwhile, mirrors the deep-rooted cultural beliefs embedded in Chinese people’s mind.

3.2.3 Semantic Model of Chinese Ideographs

On the fundamental of the formation of Chinese ideographs, the author proposes semantic model by integrating the three layers altogether: the “Corporeal Layer”

(CorL), the “Behavioral Layer” (BehL), and the “Conceptual Layer” (ConL).

Accordingly, structural principles of Chinese ideographs are combined in communications between writers/speakers and readers/listeners.

Differed from other written languages like English alphabet, a Chinese ideograph is constructed by meaningful symbol(s) (據形構義), which is (are) defined as “morphemic symbols(s)” in this research. Thus when writers and speakers infuse ideas in language form, and spread to others, they actually draw vivid scenarios of natural landscapes, human activities and mental images to readers/listeners. While the audiences tend to take those references, they may draw information smoothly from either ideographic morphemes or sense-groups of sentences. All of them are generally based on readers/listeners’ perceptual capacities (the “Corporeal Layer” and part of the “Behavioral Layer”) and learning experiences (part of the “Behavioral

Layer” and the “Conceptual Layer”) of Chinese language. In that case, the best instance stands believable in Chinese poetry, which is regarded at highest level of expressing deep emotion and inner spiritual world of Chinese people with only tens of ideographs consisted. Here, the author quotes a part of the famous poetry written by Wang Wei in the Tang dynasty – ZhongNanBieYe (<終南別業>):

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⾏到⽔窮處，坐看雲起時。

偶然值林叟，談笑無還期。

The four sentences depict a “leisurely and comfortable villeggiatura” that the poet leads. To start with, Chinese ideographs with pictographic characteristics in the poetry may be captured by audiences directly at first – “water (⽔, shui, which implies the rivulet in the poem),” “cloud (雲, yun, which implies the water fog in the poem),” and “timberland (林, lin),” picturing the peaceful view of a recluse living in the woods. When people read and recite the sentences, they could easily get images of natural views from those symbolized portraits of “rivulet ( ),” “water fog ( ),” and

“woods ( ),” like they are looking at ancient cave paintings to some extents. Then, elements of human activities enter in the interpretation process by the ideographs

“walk (⾏, xing)”/“end (窮, qiong),” “sit (坐, zuo)”/“rise (起, qi)” and “chat (談, tan)”/“laugh (笑, xiao),” they are combined into picturesque scenarios, and tells audiences a story: The poet wanders (⾏到, xingdao) along the rivulet bank till its end (⽔窮處, shuiqiong chu), enjoying (坐看, zuokan) the view of water fog suffusing around the woods (雲起時, yunqi shi); sometimes he encounters elders (林叟, linsou) there, may have pleasure chats with them (談笑, tanxiao), and even forgets the time pass (無歸期, wu guiqi). This beautiful story is so memorable that not only because the lifesome pictures those ideographs the poet writes, but also for recalling the ideal lifestyle and imaginary world they offer to the audiences, which coherently relate to the perceptual system of people.

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Therefore, semantic model of Chinese ideographs refers not merely to denotation given by either the morphemic configuration or the explanation from dictionary, but connation with mental attitudes and spiritual values. Here, the word

“representation,” from the perspective of “intersubjectivity,” is not only about how readers/listeners understanding and reacting to the grammatical combinations of vocabularies by writers/speakers, but also the way they perceive the denotative and connotative meaning of those ideographs based on their experiences. In the relation study part, the author pays more attention to the interpretation of Chinese ideographs for the sake of finding connections between the written language and existed artifacts, while the expression process will be emphasized when the author intends to propose a new approach of designing modern artifacts based on Chinese ideographs. The process of interpretation mainly includes three phases: morphemic decomposition, semantic comprehension, and intersubjective understanding.

(1) Morphemic decomposition

Analysis of the “Corporeal Layer” (CorL) comes first in this phase, involving both sides of communicative participants. On the one hand, writers/speakers always construct their sense-groups based on the most fundamental symbol of the Chinese language – morphemic symbol. Especially to literati and poets who express words and sentences on hard materials or in software, they must finish every individual of them morpheme by morpheme. On the other hand, in the interpretation process, readers/listeners tend to decompose patterns of Chinese ideographs into analytic morphemes. All morphemes can be considered as either actual portraits or abstract symbols, and enable to translate in denotations from ideographic features and

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dictionaries (Figure 3.4). Here, a distinct characteristic must be raised that some morphemes may get totally different significations to scholars. Such as the morphemic symbol “ (sai)” refers to the human organ of mouth for most of traditional Chinese linguistics, while according to Shirakawa, it represents a kind of ancient ritual vessel (see 2.1.6 The “Chinese Character Series” Study). This issue may be solved in investigations of other two layers, comprehending both the behavioral and conceptual factors with interpretations, and corresponding to researchers’ point of views in mind.

Moreover, for those Chinese ideographs (“pure pictographs”) that only contain single morphemic symbols and cannot be decomposed, the analysis relies more on patterns of the Chinese ideographs themselves. One could grasp their explanations from pictographic symbols, dictionaries and designatums of derived ideographs. For instance, the Chinese ideograph “door (門, men),” one may get its pictographic meaning from the Oracle script ( ), which symbolizes the actual appearance of ancient door with a frame and two planks. Though it had lost most of representational semantics today because of the different appearances of doors in modern times, nevertheless the denotation of this ideograph still can be found in the dictionary KangXiZiDian as “implement for men going in and out” (<康熙字典>: ⼈

所以出⼊也。), or from the derived ideograph “latch (閂, shuan),” suggesting “a crosspiece which is used to close the door.”

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Figure 3.4 The morphemic decomposition phase

(2) Semantic comprehension

As stated before, the “Behavioral Layer” (BehL) of Chinese ideographs involves the spatial layout of all morphemes in two-dimensional plane. So the elemental way of expressing and interpreting Chinese ideographs is to combine all denotations of morphemic symbols together (based on the morphemic decomposition and analysis,

Figure 3.5). Taking the Chinese ideograph “classical book (典, dian)” as an example, the Seal script ( ) reveals as “a roll of bamboo slips (ancient books in China) putting on a table,” that is, the morphemic symbol “volume of books (冊, the Seal script is , ce, also an individual ideograph)” is arranged on the top of “base with feet (丌, the

Seal script is , qi),” representing the original semantics of this ideograph as “the most classical books written by the “Five Emperors33” that are placed on tables

33 The “Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors” are mythical governors and deities of ancient China from about 2852-2070 B.C., and they are considered as cultural heroes today (Hucker, 1975). And there are several versions of members of the “Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors,” for example, in the famous history book ShiJi, the “Three Sovereigns” are Fuxi (伏羲), Nvwa (⼥媧), and Shennong (神農); and the “Five Emperors” are Yellow Emperor (黃帝), Zhuanxu (顓頊), Emperor Ku (嚳), Yao (堯), and Emperor Shun (舜).

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respectfully” in the book ShuoWenJieZi (<說⽂解字>: 五帝之書也。從冊在丌上，

尊閣之也。).

Subsequently, two things must be indicted here. For one thing, semantic comprehension of Chinese ideographs refers to denotations instead of connotations for most of the time, which points to literal meaning. So both psychological attitudes and cultural beliefs embodied in Chinese ideographs need to be investigated in depth.

In the next phase, the author is going to dig deeper in interpretation process, concerning the intersubjective understanding of Chinese ideographs. For another thing, during over three thousand years’ development, large amount of Chinese ideographs experience tremendous changes in patterns and semantics, like the

“Clerical script evolution (隸變, libian)34” and the “two ways of using character (see

2.1.2 The “Six Character Origins” and 2.1.3 The “Three Origins”).” Especially to researchers who trace back to the forming period of a Chinese ideograph, they may confuse about the semantic differences between the original and modern meaning.

So it requires that researchers fully get familiar with the transmutation of ideographs, putting all diachronic denotations in considerations of academic studies and practices

(including artifact designs combining with Chinese ideographs).

34 The popularity of the Clerical script is a phenomenon of using a more common and vulgar form of writing (with simplified and condensed pattern of character) from the Qin to the Han dynasty (Qiu, 1988, p. 104).

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Figure 3.5 The semantic comprehension phase

(3) Intersubjective understanding

On the basis of morphemic composition and semantic comprehension (analysis of denotation), essence of cultural belief (connotation and the spiritual value) enables exploration by examining the intersubjectivity of Chinese ideographs (Figure 3.6).

This phase shows a consistent connection with the perceptual capacity of human.

On the one hand, as stated, intersubjectivity works when people express and interpret meaning to and from various forms including language, object, and social event, which associate with one of the most pervasive factors of the mankind – metaphor – as the foundation of conceptual system in nature (Lakoff & Johnson,

2008, p. 3). In general, speakers/writers get accustomed to express contextual ideas in words, just like they put objects in containers; and if listeners and readers tend to interpret information (objects) out of words (containers) correctly, they must know the so-called “common-sense” sharing in their cultural community at first, then both connotations and cultural values may be understood figuratively. In that case,

“essence of metaphor is understanding and experiencing one kind of thing in terms

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of another” (p. 5). This theory plays an important role in the “Conceptual Layer” of

Chinese ideographs, revealing either a kind of cultural coherence and relation with the mankind, like “orientational metaphor 35 ,” “ontological metaphor

(personification)36,” “metonymy37,” and so on. Taking the example of the Chinese ideograph “classical book (典, dian)” again, the morphemic arrangement of the Seal script ( ) manifests the orientional metaphor of “up is good” by the scene of “a volume of bamboo slips (ancient books in China) on a table.” More particularly, in the Oracle script of this ideograph ( ), the structural pattern portraits a scenario of

“two man hands raising up a roll of bamboo slips (ancient books in China),” implying the meaning of the Chinese ideograph, and reflecting the pious respects of

Chinese people toward classical books because of this metaphorical behavior.

Furthermore, the figurative semantics of the Chinese ideograph “classical book (典, dian)” is deemed as “norm (準則, zhunze),” “ceremony (典禮, dianli),” “literary quotation (典故, diangu),” suggesting things that men must highly regard for.

35 The “orientational metaphor” is established on the concept of spatial orientation, it arises from the fact of bodies that human have, and that their functions as they doing in the physical environment, such as, up-down, in-out, front-back, on-off, deep-shallow, central-peripheral (p. 14). According to George Lakoff and Mark Johnson (2008, p. 19), human cannot comprehensively interpret metaphor independently unless they have the same experiential basis.

36 The “ontological metaphor” refers to a kind of metaphor that associates with the human experience of physical objects as entities and substances, especially with human bodies, including ways of events, activities, emotions, and ideas (pp. 25-26). Moreover, human may spontaneously comprehend a wide variety of experiences with nonhuman entities in terms of human motivations, characteristics, and activities, it is called “personification” (p. 33)

37 In the personification, it is obviously seen that human impute human qualities to things that are not human (p. 35). By utilizing one substance (entity) to represent another, which showing the similarity between the two, it is defined as “metonymy.” Beside that, there is another rhetorical way called “synecdoche,” referring to the metaphor where the part (of a substance) stands for the whole.

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Figure 3.6 The intersubjective understanding phase

From the semantic model of Chinese ideographs, researchers could conduct academic studies based on morphological principles and semiotic theories. In this case, the interpretation process requires that the three phases operate either individually or synthetically, and provides a practical framework for bridging semantics of Chinese ideographs to designed artifacts.

3.3 Semantic Analysis of Artifact Design

In this section, model for analyzing semantics of designed artifacts is drawn upon. It not only is the most essential references of studying material culture in China, but also acts the crucial part in the establishment of “Ideograph-Artifact Library.” It is worth to mention that, just like the semantic model of Chinese ideographs, the semantic model focuses on embodiment of designed artifacts, trying to find a systematic way of interpreting meanings from them. More importantly, it could set

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an academic connection with Chinese linguistic study, integrating psychological analysis of designed artifacts with the semantics of Chinese ideographs.

3.3.1 Psychological Model of Designed Artifacts

To set an academic model covering mental effects in appreciating, using and thinking about designed artifacts – the embodiment of them, every aspect of making and using artifacts should be drawn upon. Along with the development of human civilizations, people endeavor themselves in shaping and altering the natural environment into the so-called “artificial environment” with artifacts manufactured by natural substances, and “cultural environment” with mental products (Gibson,

1977). In the design domain, Norman and Ortony (2003) extend this idea to a theory, evaluating psychological responses of participants (designers and users) in design process in three levels: the “Visceral level,” the “Behavioral level,” and the

“Reflective level.”

(1) The “Visceral level” of design and perceptual reaction of participants

The “Visceral level” of artifacts engages biological features such as appearances, colors, and materials, which are oriented from the protective mechanisms of the mankind – safe and dangerous, warm and cold, beauty and ugly, and so on (Figure

3.7). All of them closely relate to physical dispositions of natural resources that men take for creating new affordances.

All perceived affordances are not randomly put in forms, but controlled by designers in given attributes; and users normally could feel them correctly without divergences (Figure 3.7). Such as a coach which is made of lint always gives users a

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first impressions of “classical style,” “soft” and “comfortable.” So the emotional reaction of the “Visceral level” gets its definition of “proto-affect” that configures psychological responses in higher levels (2003).

Figure 3.7 The “Visceral level” of design and perceptual reaction of participants

(2) The “Behavioral level” of design and psychological prediction of participants

Beside the facial sense and artistic appreciation, designers farther attach utilities and functions to artifacts. It is called the “Behavioral level,” which normally involves manipulating skills invented by designers, and learning for users to acquire (2003)

(Figure 3.8).

Therefore, users’ psychological activities toward the “Behavioral level” may rely on the “feeling of control” and induced expectation subjectively (2003), which means, being as the initial emotional recognitions, some sorts of predictable or expectable thoughts may occur when people going through the learning process of using artifacts (based on past experiences and skills), such as the prediction of satisfied relaxing when users stretching on “lay-on-able” coaches (Figure 3.8). Though if they are failed with getting such interaction results (speculated by designers), the

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psychological responses will be so negative that even cause them to abandon the whole using route.

Figure 3.8 The “Behavioral level” of design and psychological prediction of participants

(3) “Reflective level” of design and self-examination of participants

At the highest position of people’s mental work, the “Reflective level” links their feelings and behaviors to self-examinations (2003), considering the former two levels

– the “Visceral level” and the “Behavioral level” – as affective references of people reacting to designed artifacts, and generating articulated emotions like proud, humiliating, grateful, critical, and so on (Figure 3.9). This concept somehow shares the consistent relations with social conventions, popular fashions, and cultural beliefs in community groups natively, whereas it sometimes depends on personal experiences, revealing totally diverse psychologies for individual members, and changing through time. Hence, comparing to the “Visceral level” and the

“Behavioral level” of user’s mental space which are easier for designers to control, the

“Reflective level” may appear in dualistic situations: On the one hand, users might

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follow the designed appearances, functions, and intentions (by designers) of artifacts, achieving the satisfactions of ownerships and brand effects when they interacting with those artifacts (the “Visceral level”), reaching their goals (the “Behavioral level”), and acquiring some sorts of reflective considerations” (2003). On the other hand, accidences might happen in whole interaction processes, causing negative responses beyond designers’ expectations, which are considered as uncontrollable factors.

Figure 3.9 The “Reflective level” of design and self-examination of participants

However, such phenomenon may not usually happen in traditional design of

China, especially for seeing designed artifacts in the sense of the Chinese written language. Like the traditional censer and wine bottle (see 2.3.1 Direct Use of

Chinese Ideographs - "Beauty of Character" Artifacts), people may get first impressions from pattern-like appearances (the “Visceral level”), and clues of how to use them (the “Behavioral level”). Following that, semantics of the Chinese ideographs may come to users’ mind, explaining both inspirations and thoughts of designers when they making those artifacts (the “Reflective level”). Nevertheless, it

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still requires more theoretical supports how such psychological activity works in people’s mind, which is named as “conceptual blending” by Gilles Fauconnier and

Mark Turner (2002). Normally, the blending process happens in human’s nervous system, and fills the representation gap between Chinese ideographs (including expression and interpretation process) and artifact design.

3.3.2 Conceptual Blending Process in Perceptual System

Aiming at investigating the working mechanism of “conceptual blending,” psychological framework must be suggested in the research, focusing on how constructed meaning is seized in human’s perceptual system – the “Blending

Theory.” According to the founders Fauconnier and Turner (2002, pp. 5-6), one of the most brilliant capacities of human being is to construct meaning in substantial forms, like language, math, music, and art, and even the simplest meaning depends on the extremely complicated process of identity, integration, and imagination. All of them closely relate to mental spaces in which are described as “small conceptual packets:”

Mental spaces are very partial. They contain elements and are typically

structured by frames. They are interconnected, and can be modified as

thought and discourse unfold. Mental spaces can be used generally to model

dynamic mapping in thought and language. (p. 40)

As the writers stated, matching of concept is a fundamental feature in the mankind.

Such integration may happen continuously without interrupts in setting up mental

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spaces at first, and connecting across them selectively. Then, an integration network is established by “locating shared structures, projecting backward to inputs, recruiting new structure to the inputs or the blend, and running various operations in the blend itself” (p. 44). By this means, a new psychological structure emerges in the perceptual system of human, changing existing understanding and ideologies in breakthrough patterns.

Fauconnier and Turner (2002) further draw a map, showing how the matching process proceeds in mental spaces (input spaces, generic space and blended space) through the procedure of cross-space mapping. From the diagram (Figure 3.10), the basic pattern of conceptual blending comprises three phases: First, two input spaces, which refer to partial mental structures with analogical concepts in mind, are placed in the perceptual system. Then, different counterparts in input spaces connect selectively across spaces. And the generic space emerges, mapping onto every similarity of counterparts (“vital relations”). Finally, the third mental space called

“the blend” comes, projecting new concepts by accomplishing three cognitive operations: composition, completion, and elaboration.

Composition: Taken together, the projections from the inputs make new

relations available that did not exist in the separate inputs.

Completion: Knowledge of background frames, cognitive and cultural

models, allows the composite structure projected into the blend from the

inputs to be viewed as part of a larger self-contained structure in the blend.

The pattern in the blend triggered by the inherited structure is “complete”

into a larger, emergent structure.

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Elaboration: The structure in the blend can be elaborated. This is “running

the blend.” It consists in cognitive work performed within the blend,

according to its own emergent logic. (Fauconnier, 1997, pp. 150-151)

Figure 3.10 Basic map of conceptual blending process

Typical instance is given in linguistic phenomenon of metaphor, “time is money,” which according to Lakoff and Johnson (2008), can be understood by people because both concepts – “time” and “money” – share the similar experiences and thoughts in their social community. And the conceptual blending process begins with the ascertainment of two input spaces in human mind, that is, concept of “time” and “money” show the perceptual identities due to the same cultural background and knowledge that either the writer/speaker or the reader/listener has (completion operation): Some refer specifically to money (spend, invest, budget, profitably, and cost), others to limited resources (use, use up, have enough of, and run out of) and still others to valuable commodities (have, give, lose, and thanks for) (p. 9). When all counterparts in the input spaces assemble in the “generic space,” and match cross- space, they build new relations which are available to blend (composition operation).

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At last, the emergent mental structure arises in the elaboration operation, expressing the metaphorical meaning of “time” in the sense of “a precious, spend-able, and owned thing,” just as “money” doing in man’s daily life. Likewise in Chinese language, there is a proverb, saying “a piece of gold cannot buy a piece of time (⼀⼨

光陰⼀⼨⾦，⼨⾦難買⼨光陰。).”

Specifically in this study, conceptual blending approach of the “Blending

Theory” could set up an ideal systematic framework in explaining semantics of designed artifacts, and enable scholars to conduct deep analysis by bridging it to

Chinese ideographs. In the next section, semantic model is given, playing as the most essential methodology of researching the relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts.

3.3.3 Semantic Model of Designed Artifacts

After the settlements of all theoretical statements, the author proposes the core analysis model of this research, namely, the cognitive semantic model, focusing on studying the link between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts. In short, it draws on the integration of semantic model of Chinese ideographs (see 3.2) and psychological model of designed artifacts (see 3.3.1). To fully describe this model, three things must be explained here, from role-playing relations between designers/users and writers/readers (speakers/listeners), then to the conceptual blending process layer by layer (the “Corporeal Layer”/the “Visceral level,” the

“Behavioral Layer”/the “Behavioral level,” and the “Conceptual Layer”/the

“Reflective level”), and finally to semantics of designed artifacts based on Chinese ideographs.

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(1) Role-playing of participants

Being a participant in various activities, there are always different roles that one may play in the daily life, sometimes he/she is a designer who creates new things on his/her intentions, and when he/she deals with problems by manipulating tools, he/she soon becomes a user; while sometimes he/she tells a story, or writes a novel to friends, he/she may consider himself a speaker or a writer, on the contrary, he/she is a listener or a reader. All of these roles seem irrelevant with each other, and appear so “unstable” that might change from time to time. So, the first issue must be clarified is the relation of role-playing of participants (including designers, users, writers/speakers, and readers/listeners) in the whole artifact designing and using process, which involves both the role identification and the transition of roles.

Basically, identification of role relies on duties a participant does in certain social positions. On the one hand, designers intend to put numbers of contextual constraints in an entity, including “functionality, physical limitations, appearance, cost, time-to-market, characteristics of market segments, legacy and brand-identity issues, and so on” (Norman & Ortony, 2003), while users could engage affective reactions to all the factors, fulfilling the artistic needs, achieving the utilitarian goals, and satisfying the emotional requirements. On the other hand, writers or speakers normally organize a group of Chinese ideographs and words in specific orders based on grammars and syntaxes, expressing feelings and ideas in strict forms stipulated by linguistics; and readers or listeners must decompose such orders for comprehending meanings, and even gives feedbacks. Hence, it is a bit difficult to find obvious correspondences between the two types of participants: designers/users in the semantic model of Chinese ideographs, and writers/readers (speakesr/listeners) in

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the psychological response to designed artifacts. However, if researchers see this topic from the semiotic perspective, clear relations of participants may be indicated by the conceptual blending method, that is, similarities of different participants’ duties can be seen in the consideration of “signs” – both constraints of artifacts and

Chinese ideographs of language as assemblies. Hence, participants whose duty is

“coding signs” is called “encoder (designer, writer, and speaker),” and “decoder (user, reader, and listener)” is in the charge of interpreting those signs (Figure 3.11).

Particularly, encoders construct different signs with meaning in substances (language and designed artifacts), which enable decoders to deconstruct in detail, interpreting semantics according to their experiences.

Figure 3.11 Role-playing of participants – “encoder” and “decoder”

Moreover, roles of “encoders” and “decoders” do not remain stable in communication, they may exchange dynamically in modern times. For Barthes

(1990), readers may make meaning of text in multi-layers, isolating the arbitrariness of the writer’s view, and leaving it aside. Barthes analogized text as textiles in the way of “text is a tissue (or fabric) of quotations,” which has “innumerable centers of culture” instead of a single point of views in dominance. In that case, decoders reveal

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some sort of “encoder roles” in their understandings and attitudes toward language expressions. Similar in designed artifacts, although designers may intentionally put rough materials in appearances and functions, users usually develop their own ways interacting with them. By doing so, they in somehow become “encoders” instead of original ones (designers), providing new embodiment to designed artifacts.

(2) Conceptual blending process

On the fundamental of participant role-playing, further blending conducts between semantic model (of Chinese ideographs) and psychological model (of designed artifacts) from the most direct to the deepest hierarchies. The complete blending process of cognitive semantics model comprises three phases: sensorial composition, behavioral completion, and intellectual elaboration.

• Sensorial composition

In Norman and Ortony (2003)’s theory of participants’ emotional responses to designed artifacts, the “Visceral level” refers to the pure surface features of products, implicating users’ understanding of “perceptual properties of objects, and a quick classification of them as safe or dangerous, good or bad, cold and forbidding or warm and inviting.” Similar situation normally happens in one’s learning process of writing

Chinese ideographs, especially with ancient forms like the Oracle script, the Bronze script, and the Seal script. For instance, the Oracle pattern of Chinese ideograph

“water ( , ⽔, shui)” could give learners the first impression of softness and fluidity with five smooth curves, and certainly remind them a comfort feeling. According to the sensorial feature of Chinese ideographs – the “Corporeal layer” (CorL), it is

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possible to set a connection between it and the “Visceral level” of artifact design, it is called the “sensorial composition” (Figure 3.12).

Figure 3.12 The sensorial composition phase

Sensorial composition generally takes the first place when one seeing artifacts.

Because of the structural characteristics of Chinese ideographs – “shaping meaning based on construction of character pattern (據形構義),” morphemic symbols play the most fundamental part in the way people perceiving the appearances of artifacts, such as a kind of earthen utensil named “li,” which is used in cooking porridge in the

Neolithic Age, one could easily relate the pattern of Chinese ideograph “caldron (the

Bronze script is , ⿀, li)” in different periods to the appearance of the vessel, even though some pictographic factors have lost. Hence the composition between

Chinese ideographs and designed appearances can be established in one’s perceptual system because the sense of ideograph “ancient caldron”-like shape in human mind

(Figure 3.13). Accordingly, when designers create something new inspired by

Chinese ideographs, they could deconstruct patterns of Chinese ideographs in rational morphemic symbols at first, then use them as original shapes of artifacts, which means, “encoders” could organize morphemic symbols and patterns in substantial forms, following linguistic principles; and “decoders” may get the pictographic meanings by learning the structures of those ideographs.

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Figure 3.13 The Sensorial composition between the Chinese ideograph “⿀” and ancient artifact of “li” Note: Source from http://gj.yuanlin.com/Html/Detail/2008-6/6005.html

• Behavioral completion

The next step of the blending process is the behavioral features of Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts. According to Norman and Ortony (2003), “the

‘Behavioral level’ (BehL) is where skills and routine behavior reside and are controlled,” which relies on user’s learning process sub-consciously and automatically.

As in Chinese ideographs, the “Behavioral Layer” (BehL) inclines to the revivification of how people treat things. Proof stands solid in the Chinese ideograph

“crusade (the Seal script is , 伐, fa),” the basic pattern reveals as “a man (the Seal script is , ren) holding a dagger axe (the Seal script is , ge),” and represents not only the design of ancient arm (shape, dimension, and so on), but also the way of a warrior dealing with it – sticking and chopping (Figure 3.14). Hence, the

“Behavioral Layer” (BehL) of Chinese ideographs indeed takes the essence of second level of design – guiding man to use a specific item.

However, not all Chinese characters embody the behavioral feature ideally, especially with some pure pictographs. Those characters seem recessive in actions and functions, though insinuate prediction of and expectations about interaction and reaction towards designed artifacts. On the one hand, number of this type of

Chinese characters is less than the others. On the other hand, they normally play the

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part of elementary morphemes in constructing complex ideographs (Ning Wang,

2002, p. 35), providing environment and scene factors of describing a scenario. Such as the pattern of “⾖ (dou)” beneath the Chinese ideograph “etiquette (禮, li),” represents one of the functions of the ritual vessel of “dou:” putting the harvest in it, praying. So, these characters are available for analysis through the morphological study of complex ideographs.

Figure 3.14 The behavioral completion between the Chinese ideograph “伐” and ancient arm of dagger-axe Note: Source from http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_537e36690102vnx3.html

Therefore, the behavioral completion can be explained in the sense of “story telling process.” Designers intentionally put usages of artifacts in “screenplays” or

“scenes,” and assume that users may complete whole using processes as their expectations, like behavioral scenarios of corresponding ideographs shown.

Interestingly, even if users develop their own ways dealing with the artifacts, they may at the same time satisfy with the guidelines that behavioral completion provided.

In that case, the behavioral completion undoubtedly sets a perfect bridge between duties of “encoders” and “decoders,” showing the utilitarian values of cultural

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materials (Figure 3.15). For instance, the “Behavioral layer” (BehL) of the Chinese ideograph “crusade ( , 伐, fa)” points out the main function of dagger-axe as a weapon in the ancient times, while people (decoders) might use it in different ways, fitting to different circumstances, like digging the ground as a “hoe,” or leaning on it as a “crutch.”

Figure 3.15 The behavioral completion

• Intellectual elaboration

On the basis of two blending processes, cognitive semantics study of designed artifacts in China enters the core area – psychological reflections toward man-made objects, including devout, proud, disappointed, and so on. Norman and Ortony

(2003) suggest this spiritual phenomenon as the highest “reflective level” of

“intellectual functioning in a person,” which “is influenced by experience and culture as well as by one’s social group and by the whims of fashion.” Hence in order to link the “Conceptual Layer” (ConL) of Chinese ideographs to the “Reflective level” of designed artifacts, the third layer (the “Conceptual Layer”) must be investigated on the fundamental of former two layers (the “Corporeal Layer” and the “Behavioral

Layer”).

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For one thing, the “Corporeal Layer” (CorL) and the “Behavioral Layer” (BehL) of Chinese ideographs provide plenty of data of organizing meaning, such as the

Chinese ideograph “burn (the Oracle script is , 焚, fen),” which gets its explanation from the description of “setting fire on woods.” For another thing, as stated before, substance of spiritual values is embedded in patterns of Chinese ideographs.

Shirakawa thinks that Chinese character is the “myth telling medium” – “the character could tell the myth itself” (Sugiura, 2013). Here, “the myth” refers to the inherited worship tradition of China. And one of the most important morphemic symbols in the mythical system of Chinese character is “ ,” which according to

Shirakawa, refers to an ancient vessel for ritual (載書祝冊之器), in the same time, reflects the wizardry belief in ancient times of China (Bai, 2006).

Therefore, the elaboration process between the “Conceptual layer” of Chinese ideographs and the “Reflective level” of designed artifacts match (Figure 3.16). In

Norman and Ortony (2003)’s theory, “the designer is concerned with transforming the multiple constraints and dimensions of a product into a single, coherent design”, but it may cause unpredictable result when the user interacts with it. Different from

Norman and Ortony’s argument, designed artifacts in China normally absorb their cognitive semantics from meaning of Chinese ideographs, especially with their denotations and connotations. In other words, the intellectual elaboration between mental works of encoders and decoders naturally keep the denotations consistent, while further counts for diverse connotations on that basis.

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Figure 3.16 The intellectual elaboration phase

In order to illustrate this phase, the author gives an example of the bronze lamp in the Spring and Autumn period, which is designed in the appearance of “a half- naked man carrying a light holder on the head with the gesture of kneeing down on the ground” (the “Visceral level”). Such designed appearance corresponds to the gesture of “long time kneeing (跽, ji),” which shows the attitude of “reverence” (<釋

名>: 忌也。見所敬忌，不敢自安也。) of Chinese people. And the “Behavioral level” of this lamp requires users to put fire on top of the holder. When it is lightened, the “Reflective level” of the bronze lamp is shown as “getting light (fire) above men reverently.” More than that, the scenario may remind people of the cognitive semantics of lamp: “praying and pursuing they are blessed by their deities”

(which will be analyzed in detail in Chapter 5). Such physical dispositions, using scenario, and intentional expression could match to the Oracle script “light ( , 光, guang)” in three phases, generating the cultural values (the utilitarian value and the spiritual value) of the lamp. Especially with the third phase – the intellectual elaboration, the “Reflective level” blends to the connotation of the Oracle script

“light ( , 光, guang):” Shining and illuminating by virtues (<書洛诰>: 惟公德明光

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於天下。) and the cognitive semantics of lamp design in China, generating the spiritual value of the bronze lamp as “reverent people are brightened by deities with lofty virtues above them” (Figure 3.17).

Figure 3.17 The intellectual elaboration between the Chinese ideograph “光” and the bronze lamp design

(3) Cognitive semantics

Comprehending all terms, methods, and models, the author raises an explicit definition of “cognitive semantics,” and gives a full picture of how it is used to interpret designed artifacts in China. Comparing to traditional notion like design semantics, cognitive semantics of an artifact not only is about embodied meanings in designed symbols, but also highlights the ways of representing them, and plays the intermediary role in “encoding” and “decoding” process, including “encoders

(designers)” infusing meanings in specific forms, and “decoders (users)” extracting meanings from them. In this case, it is obviously seen that cognitive semantics of an artifact couples with the perceptual capacity of human; meanwhile it shows the relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts (Figure 3.18).

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On the one hand, cognitive semantics is the ideal concept for analyzing embodied meanings in physical forms. It is so crucial for studying cultural beliefs of making artifacts, as well as aesthetic and utilitarian values that fulfill various demands of people. Being the most representative capacity of human cognition, language comes first in the process of investigation (Lakoff, 1990, p. 113), comprehending different aspects of artifact making in oneness. Especially with designed artifacts in China, which perfectly shows such relation to native language, it shares the coherent significance with Chinese ideographs, more importantly, corresponds to the course of Chinese people appreciating, behaving, and thinking. In this case, cognitive semantics given by morphemic analysis of Chinese ideographs is useful for either studying designed artifacts, or exploring approaches of design.

On the other hand, either “encoding” or “decoding” process requires delicate neural works, involving perceiving, interpreting, expressing, and so on. Accordingly, all of them may cause the so-called “emotion-by-accident” to designed artifacts for

Norman and Ortony (2003), that is, “decoders (users)” sometimes experience totally different mental journeys when they interacting with utilitarian functions of artifacts, which generally occur when artifacts fail, or exceed their expectations. These phenomena may perplex “encoders (designers)” when they making new artifacts based on their intentions. However, assisted by conceptual blending, “encoders

(designers)” and “decoders (users)” may reach agreements when they express themselves (through designed artifacts), and making meaning from using artifacts, thus cognitive semantics generally plays the part of interpreter in both “encoding

(design)” and “decoding (use)” process.

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Figure 3.18 Definition of cognitive semantics

Specific example is given to elaborate cognitive semantics, in other words, how it works in communication between “encoders” and “decoders” – the wine bottle design based on the Chinese ideograph “blessedness (福, fu)” (see 2.3.1 Direct Use of

Chinese Ideographs - "Beauty of Character" Artifacts). On “encoder” side, when craftsman (who plays the role of designer in old times) intends to make a meaningful artifact for holding wine, original motivation emerges at first – “happiness,” but the question is, how to define “happiness?” Here, Chinese ideographs that represent the concept of “happiness” may come into craftsman’s mind naturally (as the

“Conceptual Layer”), like “blessedness (福, fu),” “longevity (壽, shou),” “rich (祿, lu),” and so on. In this case, the craftsman chooses the Chinese ideograph “blessedness

(福, fu)” to match with the semantic expression of artifact, and generates the sense of

“a wine bottle that makes people feel they are blessed to happiness” (as the

“Reflective level”). Then, to combine the usage (the “Behavioral level”) and the appearance (the “Visceral level”) of the artifact with the Chinese ideograph

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“blessedness (福, fu)” (the “Behavioral Layer” and the “Corporeal Layer”), the craftsman uses the “cursive handwriting” of Chinese calligraphy as the basic shape of wine bottle, and transforms the pattern of ideograph into the main body and the lid of wine bottle. More than that, the craftsman also adds decorative elements to the design, enhancing the semantic representation of the bottle, including flowers, lianas, and a painting portraying an old man sitting in courtyard peacefully.

On “decoder” side, when people (users) seeing the wine bottle, they may soon link the pattern of the Chinese ideograph “blessedness (福, fu)” with the designed shape of wine bottle even though it may be a little bit hard to identify, because of the sense of “a Chinese ideograph ‘blessedness (福, fu)’-like shape.” On the following, hint of how to use this bottle could be given by curved handle and spout, and “礻”- like lid, which means, as long as people (users) open that bottle and pour wine inside, they are infusing some kinds of magic liquid in the bottle; and when people drinking wine from it, they could feel that they are blessed by such wonderful meaning (both denotation and connotation) of the Chinese ideograph “blessedness (福, fu),” and they will lead a happy life from then on.

3.4 Building the “Ideograph-Artifact Library”

Since the core analysis model is anchored, the author conducts series case studies based on the model, and establishes an “Ideograph-Artifact Library,” focusing on the relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts, and cognitive semantics of designed artifacts in China based on Chinese ideographs. This library covers main categories of artifacts in human’s daily life, and plays the crucial database of theoretical investigation and a structural database, not only providing rich

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materials and references for the further study and practice, but also attesting the scientific and practical values of the analysis models.

Besides that, two more characteristics of this library need to be clarified. For one thing, instead of investigating the cognitive semantic relation in individual instance, this library turns the topic to a systematic subject, which offers a solid foundation for researchers analyzing existed artifacts in traditional times of China, and even for designers creating new things inspired by cases in the library. For another thing, derivations of Chinese ideographs are also drawn upon with their script developments involved. It is so important to this research that considers both

Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts as members of an intrinsic cultural system, sharing cultural beliefs internally, and transforming throughout the history. Thus, under the final goal of reviving cultural glories of China, such considerations must be deeply understood, keeping the consistency of culture inheritance, meanwhile fitting the trend of acculturation in modern times.

In this section, the author lists principles for establishing the “Ideograph-

Artifact Library” at first, taking the fundamental part of configuration of library.

And then, typical samples of Chinese ideographs and artifacts are clarified, arranging them into the ideograph derivation map. At last, macroscopic analysis of the library is given, emphasizing the connection between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts in a big picture.

3.4.1 Configuration Principle of Library

Before drawing the full library, there are two configuration principles in correspondences of different aspects between Chinese ideographs and designed

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artifacts, including systematic groups of derivations, and cognitive relations of semantics. All of them set foundations in forming the whole library, determining the configuration of it.

(1) Categorization correspondence

To investigate the cognitive semantics of Chinese material culture (designed artifacts) systematically, categorization of designed artifacts is mentioned. In traditional point of view, basis of classification of design artifacts includes historical periods, aesthetic styles, functions, and so on, however in this research, the author raises a new way categorizing existing artifacts based on ideographs that represent them, and it is called “cognitive categorization of artifacts.”

For Lakoff (1990), “language is among the most characteristic of human cognitive activities” (p. 113). So if researchers deem design process as a kind of cognition activity, infusing meaning in man-made things, it is possible to categorize designed artifacts from representation of cognitive semantics. In this case, the nature of Chinese ideographs – morphemic symbol – plays the initial role in categorizing the artifact system of China, and the so-called “metonymy model” is drawn upon, referring to the second principle of corresponding Chinese ideographs and design artifacts.

In the book Women, Fire, and Dangerous Things, Lakoff (1990) suggests that metonymy is one of the most fundamental capacity in human’s cognition system, expressing concepts (entireties or parts of them) by using more familiar or well- known ones. And the “metonymy model” is described as “a model that represents a part-whole structure, there may be a function from a part to the whole that enables

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the part to stand for the whole” (p. 114). Generally, it has the following characteristics:

– There is a “target” concept A to be understood for some purpose in some

context.

– There is a conceptual structure containing both A and another concept B.

– B is either part of A or closely associated with it in that conceptual

structure. Typically, a choice of B will uniquely determine A, within that

conceptual structure.

– Comparing to A, B is either easier to understand, easier to remember,

easier to recognize, or more immediately useful for the given purpose in

the given context.

– A metonymy model is a model of how A and B are related in a

conceptual structure; the relationship is specified by a function from B to

A. (pp. 84-85)

From this perspective, categorization of the artifact system starts with simple

Chinese ideographs that represent original forms of artifacts in China, which are also morphemic symbols constructing complex ideographs, or associating others. The author calls them “core Chinese ideographs,” they not only are the “concept Bs” in the metonymic categorizations, explaining other ideographs derived from them

(“target As”), but also take up the central places in all categories (groups).

Additionally, the metonymic categorization shows the ontological characteristics of either Chinese ideographs or designed artifacts, concerning their essential beings

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rather than evolutionary forms. It is crucial to this research, especially for investigating original meanings hidden by various layouts of artifacts.

(2) Semantic study correspondence

With the help of analyzing model, the third principle of the library configuration suggests, that is, the correspondence of semantic analysis between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts. On the one hand, the author proposes a new approach of understanding Chinese ideographs in three layers: the “Corporeal Layer”

(CorL), the “Behavioral Layer” (BehL), and the “Conceptual Layer” (ConL), which all of them highlight the fundamental features of the mankind embodied in patterns

(see 3.2.3 Semantic Model of Chinese Ideographs). On the other hand, psychological responses of users (decoders) and designers (encoders) to artifacts are given by Norman and Ortony (2003), involving three levels: the “Visceral level,” the

“Behavioral level,” and the “Reflective level” (see 3.3.1 Psychological Model of

Designed Artifacts). The two analysis models enable matching not only in investigating semantics of designed artifacts of China (see 3.3.3 Semantic Model of

Designed Artifacts), but also among objects (in individual category) and different categories.

3.4.2 Map of Chinese Ideograph Groups

Before the establishment of holistic library, Chinese ideographs need to be categorized based on the “metonymy mode,” determining the structures of either the basic elements or the configurations of the library. So it is necessary to target the three types of Chinese ideographs at first. And then an essential model for the

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categorization is given with the formations of groups. Differed from the traditional classifications of Chinese philology, the “Chinese ideograph groups” show the cognitive features and derived system of morphemic symbols, and correspond to the

“cognitive categorization of artifacts.”

(1) Categorization model of Chinese ideographs

According to the author, three types of Chinese ideographs inform the categorization of designed artifacts: the “core Chinese ideograph,” the “derivative

Chinese ideograph,” and the “associative Chinese ideograph.”

As stated earlier, morphemic symbol is the core part for constructing Chinese ideographs (normally is individual ideograph as well), which also carries the key semantics of ideograph groups. The author names it the “core Chinese ideograph,” such as the Chinese ideograph “ancient ritual vessel (⼝, kou),” “utensil (⽫, min),”

“horn (角, jiao),” and so on. They not only are all ancient artifacts (original forms) in

China, but also set the very fundamental piths of the whole library.

Derived from the “core Chinese ideograph,” there is another type of Chinese ideographs – the “derivative Chinese ideograph,” which contains “core Chinese ideographs” and other patterns. “Derivative Chinese ideograph” also corresponds to designed artifacts, and generally shows a kind of denotative relation to the “core

Chinese ideograph,” which means, its semantics is partly endowed by the “core

Chinese ideograph.” Such as the Chinese ideograph “two Chinese liter wine cup (觚, gu),” it comprises the core Chinese ideograph “horn (角, jiao)” and the morphemic symbol of “melon (瓜, gua),” representing the semantics of “a kind of wine vessel

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(cup for holding two Chinese liters wine)” given by the “角” (the original wine vessel, see Chapter 6).

The third type of Chinese ideographs is called the “associative Chinese ideograph,” which can be seen as the connotative reference to the “core Chinese ideograph,” while its pattern does not necessarily contain the “core Chinese ideograph.” This type of Chinese ideographs mainly comes from explanations and rhetorical descriptions (of the “core Chinese ideographs” and the “derivative Chinese ideographs”) in historical documents and literary works, but still can be used as sources for designing artifacts. Such as the “associative Chinese ideograph” “light (光, guang),” it describes the effect (or the aim) when people using lamps, and can be taken to design the bronze lamp instead of the derivative Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou, the original ideograph of lamp, see Chapter 5).” And a more complicated blending process actually takes place between the bronze lamp, the

“associative Chinese ideograph” “light (光, guang),” and the cognitive semantics of lamp design in China (see Figure 3.17).

So far, the three types of Chinese ideographs can be summarized in a concentric circle diagram, manifesting their relations (denotative and connotative relation), and forming the basic frame of categorizing the volume of Chinese ideographs into groups (Figure 3.19).

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Figure 3.19 The three types of Chinese ideographs

(2) Categorizations of Chinese ideograph groups

In this section, the author gives four Chinese ideograph groups: the “mouth/ancient ritual vessel” group (Table 3.1), the “utensil” group (Table 3.2), the “horn” group

(Table 3.3), and the “caldron” group (Table 3.4). They cover the majority of designed artifacts for daily use, more than that, provide a linguistic corpus for the later research. It is worth to mention that each group has the great extensibility – new Chinese ideographs could be added continuously as long as they meet with the categorization model.

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Table 3.1 The Chinese ideograph group of “mouth/ancient ritual vessel”

Core Chinese ideograph Derivative Chinese ideograph Associative Chinese ideograph

“together (共, gong)”

“vessel (器, qi)”

“meticulous (周, zhou)”

“name (名, ming)”

“lord (君, jun)”

“lucky (吉, ji)”

“wish (祝, zhu)”

“ancient (古, gu)”

“mouth/ancient ritual vessel (⼝, kou)” “commodity (品, pin)”

“word (⾔, yan)”

“light (光, guang)”

“star (星, xing)”

“meat utensil (⾖, dou)” “shoot (⼷, yi)”

“gift (禮, li)”

“ceremonial vessel (豋, deng)”

“earthen crock (⽸, fou)”

Note: Format of the information of Chinese ideographs: “name (the Oracle script, the Bronze script, the Seal script, the Regular script, pronunciation)”

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Table 3.2 The Chinese ideograph group of “utensil”

Core Chinese ideograph Derivative Chinese ideograph Associative Chinese ideograph

“wash hands (盥, guan)”

“spill (益, yi)”

“fill (盛, cheng)”

“oath (盟, meng)”

“full (盈, ying)”

“squared grain utensil (簠, fu)” “a status of beginning (甫, fu)”

“round-mouth grain utensil (簋, “kernel (皀, yi)” “utensil (⽫, min)” gui)”

“bowl (盂, yu; 盌, wan)”

“plate (盤, pan),” “tray (槃, pan)”

“gourd-shape ladle (匜, yi)”

“pot (盎, ang; 盆, pen)”

“ancient wine shaker (盉, he)”

“meat utensil (⾖, dou)”

Note: Format of the information of Chinese ideographs: “name (the Oracle script, the Bronze script, the Seal script, the Regular script, pronunciation)”

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Table 3.3 The Chinese ideograph group of “horn”

Core Chinese ideograph Derivative Chinese ideograph Associative Chinese ideograph

“the tenth earthly branch (⾣, you)”

“aged wine (酋, qiu)”

“double-fermented wine (酎, zhou)”

“libation (酹, lei)”

“pay respect (奠, dian)

“sacrificial wine (鬯, chang)”

“horn (角, jiao)” “one Chinese-liter wine cup (爵, jue)”/“small jade wine cup (斝, jia)”

“two Chinese-liter wine cup (觚,

gu)”

“three Chinese-liter wine cup

(觶, zhi)”

“four Chinese-liter wine cup (角,

jue)”

“seven Chinese-liter wine cup (觥,

gong)”

“bronze wine vessel (彝/尊,

yi/zun)”

“bronze wine pot (卣, you)”

Note: Format of the information of Chinese ideographs: “name (the Oracle script, the Bronze script, the Seal script, the Regular script, pronunciation)”

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Table 3.4 The Chinese ideograph group of “caldron”

Core Chinese ideograph Derivative Chinese ideograph Associative Chinese ideograph

“half-timber/ancient bed (⽙, pan)”

鼎 “bronze caldron ( , ding)” “half-timber (片, pian)”

“virtuous (貞, zhen),”

“boiler for steaming rice (甑, “big boiler (鬵, zeng)” “caldron (⿀, li)” zeng)”

“composite steamer (甗, yan)” “boiler (鉹, chi)”

“cauldron (鬴, fu)” “a status of beginning (甫, fu)”

“caldron with three legs, a handle

and a peak (鬹, gui)”

Note: Format of the information of Chinese ideographs: “name (the Oracle script, the Bronze script, the Seal script, the Regular script, pronunciation)”

3.4.3 Layouts of “Ideograph-Artifact Units”

In the configuration of “Ideograph-Artifact Library,” the basic element is called

“ideograph-artifact unit,” which comprises two main parts: information of Chinese ideographs and relative artifacts. Here, the author is not going to emphasize the internal relation between specific ideograph and artifact within a unit, but to focus more on assembling all useful data for later analysis, including patterns of Chinese ideographs (in different scripts), descriptions in different documents, and typical samples of artifacts.

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For one thing, similar with the semantic model, information of Chinese ideographs is either divided in three layers: the “Corporeal Layer” (CorL), the

“Behavioral Layer” (BehL), and the “Conceptual Layer” (ConL). First, the

“Corporeal Layer” (CorL) comprises morphemic symbols of the Oracle script, the

Bronze script, the Seal script, and the Regular script of tradition, showing their structural characteristics in the development history. After that, both the “Behavioral

Layer” (BehL) and the “Conceptual Layer” (ConL) are given based on spatial arrangements of morphemic symbols and classical document, explaining human actions and cultural values embodied in those Chinese ideographs. For another thing, the author selects typical artifacts from the material culture history of China as the other part of a unit – information of artifacts. All of them provide database for studying the Chinese material culture (by investigating cognitive semantics of designed artifacts), as well as references for setting systematic connections (among different artifacts). There are also three types of “Ideograph-Artifact Unit” in the library, corresponding to the categorization of Chinese ideograph groups: the core unit, the derivative unit, and the associative unit.

(1) Core ideograph-artifact unit

Since the whole “Ideograph-Artifact Library” is established based on “metonymy model,” so it is necessary to bring core units in the first place when the author building the library, which act as the “concept B(s)” in every category. On the one hand, core “ideograph-artifact unit” shows essential values of culture, that is, how

Chinese people thinking, behaving and reacting to the world from the very beginning of this civilization. It may involve simplest Chinese ideographs and

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rough-wrought objects, though takes the vital place in material culture of China. On the other hand, it can be used as the central reference of investigating other units in the library: The “Corporeal Layer” (CorL) of a core Chinese ideograph stands a

(transformed) part in patterns of ideographs in derived units (“target As”); the arrangement of morphemic symbols and semantics of the core Chinese ideograph also offers solid materials for explaining derived ideographs (the “Behavioral Layer” and the “Conceptual Layer”); and samples in the core unit can be deemed as primary forms of corresponding man-made artifacts in China.

(2) Derivative ideograph-artifact unit

Followed by the core units, there are some derivative ideograph-artifact units in a category, being as group members (target “As”) in investigating cognitive semantics of certain kind of artifacts. On the written language side, Chinese ideographs in derivative units are derived from core ones, or transformed from others in derivative units, sharing identical morphemic symbols, behavioral clues, and expression intentions of the core Chinese ideograph. Thus, it is convenient to put all related ideographs (with artifacts) in the systematic way, and to interpret those cultural materials reasonably. On designed artifacts side, in “ideograph-artifact units,” researchers not only could find similarities between artifacts and original ones (in the core units), but also could analyze their cognitive semantics by blending process in core units.

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(3) Associative ideograph-artifact unit

Besides the core and the derivative unit, the associative “ideograph-artifact unit” needs to be brought in the library, being another important part for understanding and developing designed artifacts in China. Generally, the associative unit is formed by the “associative Chinese ideograph.” It might not contain existing artifacts (unlike the derivative ideograph-artifact unit), whereas it still can be used for explaining the core and the derivative unit, or creating new artifacts. Such as the “associative

Chinese ideograph” “light (光, guang)” and the bronze lamp design (see Figure 3.17).

However, the author encourages designers and researchers to pay more attentions on this type of unit, attempting new possibilities based on specific morphemic analysis

(of Chinese ideographs) and blending processes.

3.4.4 Design of “Ideograph-Artifact Library”

So far, the author designs the “Ideograph-Artifact Library,” this innovative library that has never been established before, and aims at exploring cognitive semantics hidden by appearances of designed artifacts in China. To achieve this goal, the author uses the special relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts as the theoretical foundation, that is, the cognitive semantics analysis model

(see 3.3.3). And then, the author categorizes Chinese ideographs based on morphemic symbols (Chinese ideograph groups), and relative artifacts that ideographs represent can be either classified in different categories. By doing so, the library opens a brand-new sight of view for researchers examining the cognitive semantics of design in China (from the perspective of Chinese ideographs), at the same time, it enables scholars to consider cultural values of material (the material

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value, the utilitarian value, and the spiritual value) as a branch of whole ideological system.

In this thesis, the author plans to introduce four groups of the “Ideograph-

Artifact Library” in accordance with the four Chinese ideograph groups (mentioned in the last section): the group of “ritual vessel” (corresponding to the “mouth/ancient ritual vessel” group), the group of “food-container” (corresponding to the “utensil” group), the group of “wine vessel” (corresponding to the “horn” group), and the group of “cooking utensil” (corresponding to the “caldron” group). All categories close relate to the main topic of this research – designed artifacts in China. Although the library does not comprehend all kinds of designed artifacts yet, but one could see clear traces of how original artifacts evolve and derive to others (appearances, usages, and self-expressions), like a tree growing on the ground, generating new branches and leaves (the derivative units and the associative units) proportionally from the trunk (the core units).

(1) Core ideograph-artifact units

At the beginning of establishing “Ideograph-Artifact Library,” the core ideograph- artifact units are given, playing as the role of “trunk” in supporting “crown,” and transporting “nutrient” to it. Which means, they are the most fundamental references to configure the library, and to interpret other units and groups. Here, the author suggests four core ideograph-artifact units, relating to the four core Chinese ideographs: the “mouth/ancient ritual vessel” unit, the “utensil” unit, the “horn” unit, and the “caldron” unit.

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• The “mouth/ancient ritual vessel” unit

For now, this unit only contains the core Chinese ideograph “mouth/ancient ritual vessel (⼝, kou),” which involves two different explanations in the Chinese linguistic field. In this library, the author uses Shirakawa’s statement to represent the unit because it proposes a possible origin of designed artifacts in China, suggesting the

ConL (the “Conceptual Layer”) of this ideograph as “an ancient ritual vessel for containing scroll of praying (載書祝冊之器)” (see 2.1.6 The “Chinese Character

Series” Study). Thus, the CorL (the “Corporeal Layer”) gets a kind of vessel-like patterns, and the BehL (the “Behavioral Layer”) can be investigated by the spatial arrangement of the associative unit “together (the Oracle script is , 共, gong)” – two hands holding a ritual vessel at the same time, and paying respect in ritual ceremonies.

• The “utensil” unit

Here, the author puts the core Chinese ideograph “utensil (⽫, min)” in a single unit.

The analysis conducts in three layers. First, the CorL is given in various scripts, getting container-like patterns from the most ancient to the modern forms. Then, the BehL of this unit can be understood by the associative unit “fill (盛, cheng)” and

“spill (益, yi),” representing the usage of such container as “filling with things like grain and water” (<說⽂解字>: ⿉稷在器中，益祀者也。<說⽂解字注>: 饒也。).

At last, the ConL points to the general term of “container for eating and drinking”

(<說⽂解字注>: 然則⽫專謂食器，器乃器統稱。器下云⽫也，散⽂則不別也。

⽊部曰，有所盛曰器，無所盛曰械。).

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• The “caldron” unit

The third core ideograph-artifact unit relates to the original ware for cooking food, it is called the “caldron” unit, which also involves the Chinese ideograph “caldron (⿀, li).” According to the semantic analysis model, this unit can be investigated from the

CorL: The Oracle script “ ” depicts the typical appearance, and it is also described as a kind of ding with hollow feet (<爾雅釋器>: 鼎款⾜謂之⿀。). Then, the

BehL is either given based on the explanation of the derivative unit “bronze caldron

(the Oracle script is , 鼎, ding),” which both of them belong to the same category

(鼎屬). It refers to “cooking with caldron by firing wood pieces” (<易>: 巽⽊於下者

為鼎，象析⽊以炊也。). At last, the understanding of ConL relies on the associative unit “bronze caldron (鼎, ding),” which shows its origin as well – “virtuous

(the Oracle script is , 貞, zhen),” implying the spiritual value of “divination” since the ancient time of China (<說⽂解字>: ⼘問也。).

• The “horn” unit

Another core unit is about the core Chinese ideograph “horn (角, jiao),” which is considered as the primary wine utensil by the author. Its CorL directly depicts the shape of animal’s horn, especially with the Oracle and the Bronze script, and it is explained in the way of “primary utensil for drinking wine” in classical documents, like “holding a horn-like utensil in ritual” (the BehL, <禮記禮器>: 宗廟之祭，尊

者舉觶，卑者舉角。), and “animal horn might be the primary form of wine utensil”

(the ConL, <禮記特牲餽食禮>: 角四升，疑古酒器之始，以角為之。). This concept will be comprehensively analyzed in later chapter.

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(2) Ideograph-artifact group “ritual vessel”

The Chinese ideograph group “mouth/ancient ritual vessel” gives rise to the first ideograph-artifact group called the “ritual vessel” (see Table 3.3), which means, all members in the group get the cognitive semantics of core Chinese ideograph

“mouth/ancient ritual vessel (⼝, kou)” – the sense of “worshipping.” This is a very special group because it is hard to find archaeological evidence of such “ritual vessel.”

However, the author still quotes the statement from Shirikawa, suggesting the following units in the central of the “mouth/ancient ritual vessel” unit (Figure 3.20).

First, one of the derivative units is the “meat utensil (⾖, dou).” The CorL of this unit gets the pattern by combining the Chinese ideograph “ancient ritual vessel (the

Oracle script is , ⼝, kou)” and “utensil (the Oracle script is , ⽫, min).” And the

BehL and the ConL can be given in the Chinese ideograph “ceremony vessel (the

Seal Script is , 豋, deng)” and “together (the Oracle script is , 共, gong),” representing the scenario and meaning of “putting meat in an ritual vessel by hands, and worshipping” (<⽑⽒曰>: …豋⾖之豋，上从月从又，月卽⾁字，又卽⼿字，

持祭⾁于⾖之義。). Furthermore, the “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” unit leads to two directions. On the one hand, it relates to a kind of artifact called “lamp (燈, deng),” which manifests the connotative relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts. On the other hand, it engages the “food-container” group that refers to the primitive utensil for containing meat. And the associative units include the “light (光, guang),” the “star (星, xing),” “shoot (⼷, yi),” the “gift (禮, li),” and the “ceremonial vessel (豋, deng).”

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Second, another derivative unit is “earthen crock (⽸, fou),” which plays the original part of ancient instrument and wine container (<說⽂解字>: 瓦器。所以盛

酒漿。秦⼈鼓之以節謌。).

Third, other associative units are given to illustrate the core unit: the “together

(共, gong),” the “vessel (器, qi),” the “meticulous (周, zhou),” the “name (名, ming),” the “lord (君, jun),” the “lucky (吉, ji),” the “wish (祝, zhu),” the “ancient (古, gu),” the “commodity (品, pin),” and the “word (⾔, yan).”

Among them, the representative one is the associative unit “vessel (器, qi).”

Borrowed by the core unit “ancient ritual vessel,” the CorL of unit “vessel (器, qi)” contains four morphemic symbols “ ” on the corners, and a dog-like morphemic symbol “ ” in the center. Especially to its Oracle script ( ), one may easily link the spatial arrange of morphemes to a vivid scenario, that is, “a dog standing in some objects.” So it gets the explanation from the book ShuoWenJieZi as “important objects are guiding by a dog (<說⽂解字>: ⽫也。象器之⼝, ⽝所以守之。),” though it refers to the ancient sacrificial scene to Shirakawa (2010), which both the morphemic symbols “dog” and “ ” are oblations in rituals (p. 70). Here, the author intends to use a compromise as the BehL of this unit, that is, “important ritual vessels are guided by a dog.” In this case, the ConL enables investigation from the viewpoint of ancient wizardry: Vessels in China connotes the spiritual value of

“worshipping” no matter what things are filling in them.

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Figure 3.20 Ideograph-artifact group “ritual vessel”

(3) Ideograph-artifact group of “food-container”

In the “Ideograph-Artifact Library,” the second group is “food-container,” which focuses on the cognitive semantics of food-containers based on the Chinese ideograph group “utensil” (see Table 3.4). Derived from the core unit “utensil (⽫, min),” there are two main sub-groups that further divides designed artifacts in this group in specific categories, showing the denotative relation between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts (Figure 3.21):

• Associative units include the “wash hands (盥, guan),” the “spill (益, yi),” the

“fill (盛, cheng),” the “oath (盟, meng),” and the “full (盈, ying).”

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• Sub-group “grain utensil” includes two derivative units: the “squared grain

utensil (簠, fu)” with the associative unit “a status of beginning (甫, fu),” and the

“round-mouth grain utensil (簋, gui)” with the associative unit “kernel (皀, yi).”

• Sub-group of “water utensil” includes three derivative units: the “bowl (盂, yu;

盌, wan),” the “plate (盤, pan)” with the associative unit “tray (槃, pan),” and the

“gourd-shaped ladle (匜, yi).”

• Others includes three derivative units: the “shaker (盉, he),” the “pot (盎, ang; 盆,

pen),” and the “meat utensil (⾖, dou).

Figure 3.21 Ideograph-artifact group “food-container”

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(4) Ideograph-artifact group “wine vessel”

The third group is “wine vessel” with the core unit “horn” in the center. Comparing to other groups, it shows both kinds of relationships among all units, that is, almost all members are developed from the core unit semantically (Figure 3.22).

• Associative units include “the tenth earthly branch (⾣, you),” the “aged wine (酋,

qiu),” the “double-fermented wine (酎, zhou),” the “libation (酹, lei),” the “pay

respect (奠, dian),” and the “sacrificial wine (鬯, chang).”

• Sub-group of “wine cup” includes five derivative units: the “one Chinese-liter

wine cup (爵, jue)”/the “small jade wine cup (斝, jia),” the “two Chinese-liter

wine cup (觚, gu),” the “three Chinese-liter wine cup (觶, zhi),” the “four

Chinese-liter wine cup (角, jue),” and the “seven Chinese-liter wine cup (觥,

gong).”

• The derivative unit “the tenth earthly branch (⾣, you).”

• Sub-group of “wine container” includes two derivative units: the “bronze wine

vessel (彝/尊, yi/zun),” and the “bronze wine pot (卣, you).”

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Figure 3.22 Ideograph-artifact group “wine vessel”

(5) Ideograph-artifact group of “cooking utensil”

On the basis of the core ideograph-artifact unit “caldron (⿀, li),” cooking utensils in traditional times of China are proposed from the three layers of Chinese ideographs and corresponding designed artifacts, including the following derivative and associative units (Figure 3.23):

• The derivative unit “bronze caldron (鼎, ding)” with three associative units: the

“half-timber/ancient bed (⽙, pan),” the “half-timber (片, pian),” and the

“virtuous (貞, zhen).”

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• Sub-group “boiler and steamer” includes two derivative units: the “big boiler (鬵,

zeng)” and the “composite steamer (甗, yan).” And two associative units: the

“boiler for steaming rice (甑, zeng)” and the “boiler (鉹, chi),”

• The derivative unit “cauldron (鬴, fu)” with the associative unit “a status of

beginning (甫, fu)”

• The derivative unit “caldron with three legs, a handle and a peak (鬹, gui).”

Interestingly, the author finds that Chinese ideographs may involve transformations along with the development of artifact designing and techniques. Representative example can be given between the derivative units “cauldron (鬴, fu)” and “metal cauldron (釜, fu),” that is, the original cauldron in China is normally made of ceramics, so the Chinese ideograph that represents this artifact (鬴, fu) gets the pattern “caldron (⿀, li).” Then, when Chinese people learn how to cast metal

(bronze), they start to make the metal caldrons, and the corresponding ideograph soon is replaced by a new one – “metal cauldron (釜, fu)” with the morpheme “metal

(⾦, jin)” on the bottom.

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Figure 3.23 Ideograph-artifact group “cooking utensil”

Since all groups are ascertained, the author is going to conduct deep investigations toward typical units in each group. With the introduction of

“Ideograph-Artifact Library” (focusing on relations among groups and units), the following study will pay more attention to cognitive semantics of designed artifacts

(based on Chinese ideographs) within specific units: Chapter 4 is about the ideograph-artifact group “food-container,” Chapter 5 is about the ideograph-artifact group “ritual vessel,” and Chapter 6 is about the ideograph-artifact group “wine vessel.”

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3.5 Summary

In this chapter, the author at first gives relative definitions of all analysis models, including the semantic model of Chinese ideographs, and the semantic model of designed artifacts. After that, a systematic categorization of designed artifacts is established on the foundation of Chinese ideograph groups, which is called the

“Ideograph-Artifact Library.” In the following chapters, the author selects representative units and groups, conducting deep analysis on “food-container” group,

“meat utensil” unit, and “wine vessel” group. All the cases demonstrate how researchers could use Chinese ideographs to explain the embodiment of designed artifacts in China, and how Chinese designers (craftsmen) infuse cultural beliefs

(represented by Chinese ideographs) into man-made forms.

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Chapter 4 Ideograph-Artifact Group of “Food-Container”

From this chapter, this research enters cognitive semantics studies of designed artifacts in “Ideograph-Artifact Library” groups. Although the author has drawn theoretical framework in the former chapters and presents how to interpret semantics of designed artifacts by the help of Chinese ideographs (based on the morphemic symbols). Detailed investigations are still needed for exploring systematic relations between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts.

In this chapter, the author chooses the ideograph-artifact group of “food- container” as main object (see Figure 3.21). To begin with, comprehensive analysis of core ideograph-artifact units is conducted, playing as the essential part in understanding artifacts design in China. Then, typical unit of the group are given, and blending process is shown, extracting results of matching at last.

4.1 The Core Ideograph-Artifact Unit “Utensil”

As mentioned before, the core ideograph-artifact unit must be analyzed at first, in this case, the “utensil (⽫, min)” unit. This unit is so important to this research because it is used as the general term in language, standing for all contain-able artifacts. Thus, it not only depicts the very basic layouts when Chinese people start to make objects fulfilling their needs, but also represents the primary values of culture embodied in Chinese ideographs.

In the book ChangYongZiJie, the core unit “utensil ( , ⽫, min)” is explained in the pictographic shape of flat plate (the CorL), and engenders related Chinese ideographs of water containers (Shirakawa, 2010, p. 393), whereas it refers to food-

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containers in the book ShuoWenJieZi (<說⽂解字>: ⽫，飯食之用器也。與⾖同意。

象形。). In this research, the author uses a broader concept, covering both food and water containers. Thus, the BehL can be analyzed by the original ideograph “spill

(溢, yi)” – “益 (yi)” – which its Seal script “ ” shows “an ‘utensil ( )’ is filled with

‘water ( ).’” Based on that, the author gives connotation of the ConL of this unit besides the denotation of “container.” According to the book ShuoWenJieZi, the

Chinese ideograph “fill ( , 盛, cheng)” means “millet is contained in the utensil for ritual” (<說⽂解字>: ⿉稷在器中，以祀者也。), and it is obviously seen that

“something ‘matured ( , 成, cheng)38’ is in an ‘utensil ( )’” from the pattern of this ideograph, so the term of “utensil” definitely implies the concept “worshipping” in the Chinese language, and even in the substantial forms (Figure 4.1).

Figure 4.1 Semantics of the core unit “utensil”

38 The Chinese ideograph “matured ( , 成, cheng)” connotes to the meaning of “grown millet” (<史記龜筴傳>: 螟螽歲⽣，五穀不成。叶上祥。)

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4.2 Cognitive Semantics of the “Grain Utensil” Units

On the basis of analyzing the core unit, derived units (including derivative and associative units) in the “food-container” group enable study in details, which share identical characteristics with the semantics of “utensil ( , ⽫, min)” unit. In general, it is clearly seen that there is a relation between the core unit (the “utensil” unit) and derivative units: All Chinese ideographs of the derivative units are constructed with the morphemic symbol “⽫ ( ),” so the study proceeds on the basis of the core

Chinese ideograph “utensil ( , ⽫, min)” from the CorL to the BehL, and then to the ConL. Following by that, conceptual blending process takes place between morphemic analysis of Chinese ideographs and psychological analysis of people using food-containers.

Semantics of designed artifacts (food-containers) in China is perfectly represented in the ordinary artifact that people use in daily lives – the utensil for eating, in this case, the grain utensil which is originally made for containing and storing the harvest. Here, the author chooses one of the “food-container” group in the “Ideograph-Artifact Library” – the sub-group “grain utensil” – as a case, which involves two units: the “squared grain utensil (簠, fu)” unit and the “round-mouth grain utensil (簋, gui)” unit, both of them set the very basic form of artifact designing in about 3,000 years ago. So it is necessary to bring them to the front, exploring the root of Chinese material culture.

Following the procedure of research given by the Chapter 3, investigation of the sub-group “grain utensil” is conducted in three phases: morphemic analysis of ideographs, collection of utensils, and conceptual blending process. After that,

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cognitive semantics of the units can be extracted, suggesting the relationship between Chinese ideographs and food-containers (designed artifacts).

4.2.1 Morphemic Analysis of Ideographs in the “Grain Utensil” Units

At first, two Chinese ideographs in the units are analyzed based on the semantic model: the Chinese ideograph “Squared grain utensil (簠, fu),” and the Chinese ideograph “round-mouth grain utensil (簋, gui).” They share similar construction of patterns in a vertical layout with three morphemic symbols. And such kind of structure could help the analysis in all three layers (the CorL, the BehL, and the

ConL).

(1) The Chinese ideograph “squared grain utensil (簠, fu)”

According to the scripts in the unit, it can be obviously found that the CorL of this ideograph contains three morphemic symbols: “bamboo (⽵, zhu),” “a status of beginning (甫, fu),” and “utensil (⽫, min).” Specifically, its Seal script “ ” shows a scene-like arrangement of morphemes, that is, “something ( ) is put in a bamboo made ( ) utensil ( ).” In Chinese philology, the morphemic symbol “ (甫, fu),” which is also an individual ideograph, normally plays the “phonetic part” in Chinese ideographs for most linguists. Though if researchers consider the morphemic construction of Chinese ideograph “squared grain utensil (簠, fu),” they may discover that the morphemic symbol “ (甫, fu)” could get the pictographic meaning of

“growing eatable plant” from the dictionary KangXiZiDian (<詩小雅><箋>: 甫草

者，甫田之草也。<集韻>: 彼五切，音補。種菜曰圃，或省作甫。). That is the

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reason why its Oracle script has the pattern like “ ,” just like millet seeding is cultivated on farmland. Therefore, the BehL of Chinese ideograph “squared grain utensil (簠, fu)” informs its usage as “to put grown millet in an utensil.”

Subsequently, the ConL of this ideograph is given in two senses. For one thing, the denotation is “an utensil that contains millet” (based on the CorL and the BehL).

For another thing, the connotation relies on the analysis of core Chinese ideograph

“utensil ( , ⽫, min)” which carries the traditional concept of wizardry. Thus the

Chinese ideograph “squared grain utensil (簠, fu)” can be further explained as “a kind of worshipping artifact” in the book GuangYun (<廣韻>: 簠簋，祭器也。).

(2) The Chinese ideograph “round-mouth grain utensil (簋, gui)”

Another Chinese ideograph “round-mouth grain utensil (簋, gui)” either shows similar characteristics with the Chinese ideograph “squared grain utensil (簠, fu),” which means, it can be analyzed in the way of “something is contained in a bamboo made utensil.” In order to analyze this ideograph evidently, the author uses its Seal script of “ ” as the research object, which basically comprises the morphemic symbols “Bamboo (⽵, zhu),” “fragrance of millet ( , 皀, bi),” and “utensil (⽫, min)”

(the CorL). Here, one of morphemic symbols “fragrance of millet ( , 皀, bi)” involves the scenario of “scooping up millet from the pack ( ) by dagger-like spoon

( )” (<說⽂解字注>: 匕，所以扱之… 匕，所以比取飯… 扱者，收也。<儀禮

⼠昏禮>: 匕俎從設，鄭⽞注: 匕，所以別出牲體也。). Correspondingly, such behavioral information may be more obviously represented in the Bronze script

“round-mouth grain utensil ( , 簋, gui),” it symbolizes the image of “pack of millet”

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in the shape “ ” (which transforms into the Seal script of “ ,” <說⽂解字>: 象嘉穀

在裹中之形。) with a hand ( ) holding a dagger-like spoon ( ), scooping it. So the Chinese ideograph “round-mouth grain utensil ( , 簋, gui),” and the BehL is given on the arrangement of morphemic symbols – “a pack of millet (which is taken by spoon) is put in an utensil.”

On the fundamental of former analysis, the author is going to explore the ConL from the perspective of “container.” Beside the denotation of “an utensil that contains a pack of fragrant millet,” the connotation is also suggested in the sense of

“worshipping artifact” because of the structural morphemic symbol “utensil ( , ⽫, min).”

Above all the statements, a full picture of the semantics of “grain utensil” units can be extracted (Figure 4.2). First, the Chinese ideographs in the units have the same CorL structure: the morphemic symbol of “Bamboo ( , ⽵, zhu)” on the top of the pattern, the “utensil ( , ⽫, min)” at the bottom, and the “grain ( , 甫, fu; ,

皀, bi)” in the middle. Second, the BehL shows that “grain ( , 甫, fu; , 皀, bi) is put in utensils.” And the ConL refers to a kind of grain container which is used in the worshipping ceremony. Additionally, the morphemic symbol “Bamboo ( , ⽵, zhu)” needs to explain in the sense of design material. In the book ShuoWenJieZi Zhu:

“The grain utensil for ritual is made of bamboo or wood originally” (<說⽂解字註

>: …因製從⽵之簋字。⽊簋⽵簋禮器。瓦簋常用器也。). Another evidence is given in the Bronze script “bracket ( , 筐, kuang),” it shares the identical pattern with the Bronze script “squared grain utensil ( , 簠, fu),” which is still made of

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bamboo pieces mainly today, and inherits the basic layouts from the those ancient utensils.

Figure 4.2 Semantics of Chinese ideographs in the sub-group “grain utensil”

4.2.2 Collection of Grain Utensils

In this section, designed artifacts in the sub-group of “grain utensil” are collected, including the “squared grain utensils” and the “round mouth grain utensils.” Here, two things must be mentioned. First, although both kinds of grain utensils are vanished in people’s life today, they have left prototypes of appearances, functions, and even self-awareness expressions to modern forms. Second, all samples appear differently with materials because most of them are made by bronze and ceramics but bamboo pieces, the reason may rely on the archaeological issue – wooden artifacts are extremely hard to preserve in tombs and relics.

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(1) Squared grain utensils (簠)

As stated before, squared grain utensil is “a kind of ancient ritual utensil containing millet,” so the author chooses eight samples from the main types: Type A, Type Ba, and Type Bb (Hu, 2007). They mainly cover the history of the Chinese material culture. (Table 4.1).

Table 4.1 Squared grain utensils in different periods

Period Type Name of utensil Sample Generic figure

夔鳳紋簠 A (late Zhou)

奢虎簠

A (early Spring and Autumn period)

Embryonic period (770-221 B.C.) 蔡⼤膳夫簠 Ba (early Spring and Autumn period)

盛君縈簠

Bb (Warring states period)

曾⼦簠

C (Spring and Autumn period)

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Period Type Name of utensil Sample Generic figure

白瓷簠

(Qing)

Transitional period 銅仿古簠 (1840 A.D.-today) (Qing)

和田⽟仿青銅簠

(Qing)

Note: Source from http://www.xiangyang.gov.cn/know/lsxyzy/tpxw/201209/t20120914_343739.shtml, https://bronzeschinois.wordpress.com/nourriture-食器/fu-簠/kuifengwen-fu-夔鳳紋簠/, http://www.pgm.org.cn:8088/Pgm_Collection/findCollectById?collect.Id=1017, http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/0c/cd/75.html, http://www.hbwh.gov.cn/ggwh/whsz/bwg/sz/3831.htm, http://www.zdia.com/index.php?m=content&c=index&a=show&catid=40&id=5486, http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/59/c9/9e.html, and http://auction.artron.net/paimai- art5018968179/

From the table, all three types of squared grain utensil (簠) have the basic appearance of “rectangular shape with diagonal body, handles, distinct corners, plat bottom, open mouth and edges” (Xu, 2013). And motifs like dragon kui (夔), phoenix, taotie (饕餮), cloud and thunder (雲雷紋) are decorated on surfaces of the bronze made utensil. So the “Visceral level” of squared grain utensil may show the sense of hardness by the metal material, the sense of solemnity by the designed layout, and even the sense of reverence by the terrified decorations. All of them may

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be intentionally disposed by the “encoders” (craftsmen), and delivered to the

“decoders” (wizards, nobles, and prayers).

On the following, it is not hard to find that the squared grain utensil (簠) appears a symmetrical molding with the cover and the body, that makes it can be used either in the combined or the separated way (2013). In this case, the utensil could be generally considered as a combination of two identical halves, which is more flexible for people preserving things and manipulating it. Archaeologists suggest that the squared grain utensil not only fills with millet, but also contains dumpling-like food (Hu, 2007). Besides that, it is worth to mention that the squared grain utensil experiences a great change of context of use in the Qing dynasty – when almost all ancient forms of artifacts are revived (may have disappeared before) with the most exquisite ornamental disposition – it losses the wizardry value, and turns to the artistic value instead.

(2) Round-mouth grain utensils (簋)

Another kind of utensil is called “round-mouth grain utensil (簋),” which is well known in China while involves divers of categorizations, and the author uses the most common one: Type A with round base, type B with square base, and the type

C with feet (Ren, 2014). Again, most of samples in this research are chosen from the typical periods of the history of the Chinese material culture.

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Table 4.2 Round-mouth grain utensils in different periods of China

Name of Period Type Sample Generic figure utensil

Pre-Embryonic 乳丁紋簋 Ab period (bowl-like) (late Shang)

Aa 縣妃簋 (pot-like) (Zhou)

Ac 雙龍紋簋 (jar-like) (Zhou)

Ad 原始瓷簋 (dou-like) (late Zhou)

Embryonic period (770-221 B.C.) 鳳紋⽅座簋 Ba (Zhou)

追簋 Ba (Zhou)

頌簋 C (Zhou)

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Name of Period Type Sample Generic figure utensil

官窯青瓷簋

(Song) Mature period

(960-1368 A.D.) 哥窯青釉

龍耳簋式爐 (Song)

青⽟乳丁簋

(Qing)

Transitional period (1840 A.D.-today) 影青瓷禮器簋

(Qing)

Transitional period 北京簋街雕塑

(1840 A.D.-today) (modern)

Note: Source from http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/0c/bf/2c.html, https://bronzeschinois.wordpress.com/nourriture-食器/gui-簋/xian-ji-gui-縣妀簋/, http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/0c/c0/39.html, http://www.shxkgy.cn/contents/39/1640.html, https://bronzeschinois.wordpress.com/nourriture-食器/gui-簋/fengwen-fanzuo-gui-鳳紋⽅座簋/, https://bronzeschinois.wordpress.com/nourriture-食器/gui-簋/zhui-gui-追簋/, http://collection.sina.com.cn/tqfx/20130122/1555100858.shtml, http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/0c/bf/b9.html, http://www.boosc.com/museum/museum_show.aspx?id=4269, http://hongjiazi.home.news.cn/blog/a/01010032FCDE08AD4C0BDDEB.html, http://catalog.digitalarchives.tw/item/00/0c/c4/d3.html, and http://saa.auto.sohu.com/autourlife/thread-80511471663722-1.shtml

Comparing with squared grain utensil (簠), round-mouth grain utensil (簋) appears more colorful forms and styles, though it still can be abstracted in several nonobjective figures, which is generally comprised by three part with symbolized

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decorations (like the squared grain utensil): cover (not necessarily in every utensil), main body, and base. Thus the “Visceral level” may give people the impression of

“solemn,” just like squared grain utensil (簋). And then, according to archaeological findings, functions of round-mouth grain utensil are given in three ways as the

“Behavioral level” (2014): First, the utensil may hold grain and meat due to the animal’s bones and mixture residues (rice and meat) discovered in unearthed utensils.

Second, since smoked trails are also found on the bottom of the “type C” utensils, it may play the part of cooking utensils in ancient times. Third, some inscriptions on the surface of round-mouth grain utensils (簋) imply another usage – measuring vessel – which is ruled in the book KaoGongJi as “holding 1.8 kilogram” (<考⼯記>:

旊⼈爲簋，實⼀觳39，崇尺。). More than that, round-mouth grain utensil (簋) has not lost much of the original symbolization of wizardry until the end of the Zhou dynasty, but only decorative meaning left.

Furthermore, the author is going to analyze the “Reflective level” of the grain utensils by assembling two former levels of the squared grain utensil (簠) and the round-mouth grain utensil (簋). In the book LunYuZhou, it records that “both the squared utensil (簠) and the round-mouth utensil (簋) are ritual utensils for ancestor’s shrine40, which contain millet” (<論語註>: 周曰簠簋，宗廟盛⿉稷之

器。). Hence semantics of the utensils carry the concept of “worshipping ancestor by contributing the harvest in ceremonies.” And when rituals are held in ancient times,

39 “觳 (hu)” is a unit of measurement in old times of China. One “觳 (hu)” equals to about 1.8 kilograms today.

40 Ancestor’s shrine is the temple where nobilities consecrate their forefather’s memorial tablets in the cultural sphere of Chinese character (<釋名>: 宗，尊也；廟，貌也，先祖形貌所在也。).

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they are usually put on the ground because people are used to knee down on the floor during that period, eating, talking, and praying (<祭>: …古者用籩⾖簠簋等陳於地，

當時只席地⽽坐，故如此飲食為便。). Such descriptions complete the

“Behavioral level” of those grain utensils on the one hand. On the other hand, they show the self-awareness of Chinese people valuing their world – the “ritual and music” system (禮樂) of worship in the Zhou dynasty when the grain utensils are so popular among royals, bureaucrats, and ordinary citizens.

4.2.3 Conceptual Blending of the “Grain Utensil” Units

After the analysis of Chinese ideographs and grain utensils, the conceptual blending of the sub-group “grain utensil” is about to conduct, searching for the systematic relationship between the Chinese ideographs and grain utensils, and uncovering the cognitive semantics behind various appearances of them. Stated in Chapter 3, this process mainly takes three phases: sensorial composition, behavioral completion, and intellectual elaboration.

(1) Sensorial composition of the “grain utensil” units

The sensorial composition refers to the mixture between the CorL of Chinese ideographs and the “Visceral level” of designed artifacts. The purpose of this phase is to set the facade basics for latter blending. In this case, both the “squared grain utensil (簠)” and the “round-mouth grain utensil (簋)” units are brought in individually, investigating the relation between patterns of the Chinese ideographs and designed appearances of grain utensils.

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• The “squared grain utensil (簠)” unit

The sensorial composition of the “squared grain utensil (簠)” unit involves two parts

(Figure 4.3). For one thing, the Bronze script “ ” shares an identical layout with the top view of the utensil, that is, one could easily find the similarity between the box- like pattern and the rectangular mouth. For another thing, the morphemic symbol “

” (on the bottom of the Seal script “ ”) has the analogical pattern with the side view of the squared grain utensil (簠).

The only thing that may confuse researchers is the bronze and ceramics material of utensil samples appear differently with the representation of the Chinese ideograph “squared grain utensil (簠)” and “round-mouth grain utensil (簋),” which the morpheme “ ” (on the top of the ideographs) refers to a kind of bamboo made utensil. According to the morphemic analysis of Chinese ideographs, the wooden grain utensils may be the original form of such kind of designed artifact though they are extremely hard to preserve underground. Not until the bronze casting technique is well spread, the grain utensils can be unearthed by archaeologists, and play the classical samples in this research.

• The “round-mouth grain utensil (簋)” unit

As to the other sub-unit, the composition seems much simpler (Figure 4.3). Besides the morphemic symbol “ ,” which shows the basic layout of the round-mouth grain utensil (簋), one could also link another morphemic symbol “ ” to the rounded body shape of the utensil.

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Figure 4.3 Sensorial composition of the “grain utensil” units

(2) Behavioral completion of the “grain utensil” unit

The next phase of the blending process is called the “behavioral completion,” which links the BehL of Chinese ideographs and the “Behavioral level” of the designed artifacts. By doing so, deeper relationship can be explored, and the whole picture of how to use grain utensils can be also drawn. In this section, the author will consider the blending processes of two units in one, conducting integrative study towards it

(Figure 4.4).

On the one hand, it is seen in the morphemic analysis, the BehL of both the

Chinese ideograph “squared grain utensil (簠)” and “round-mouth grain utensil (簋)” refer to “putting the harvest in the utensils.” On the other hand, the “Behavioral level” of utensil samples gets the functions like food-container (for millet, meat, and well prepared food), cooking utensil, and measurement vessel. More than that, the usages of two kinds of grain utensils are added, such as the flexible use of squared grain utensil (簠), and the way of taking things from the round-mouth grain utensil (

簋). So far, elements in the two input spaces are located, they could blend selectively,

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generating a new understanding of the utilitarian value the grain utensils: They are the most major containers for holding cooked food (rice, meat, and other food), while may play other roles in daily life.

Figure 4.4 Behavioral completion of the “grain utensil” units

(3) Intellectual elaboration of the “grain utensil” units

At last, the intellectual elaboration takes place, matching the ConL of the Chinese ideographs and the “Reflective level” of designed artifacts. On the basis of former study, the third phase highlights psychological expressions of making grain utensils, uncovering meanings hidden by appearances and functions (Figure 4.5).

On the written language side, both the Chinese ideograph “squared grain utensil

(簠)” and “round-mouth grain utensil (簋)” shows the ritual tradition of Chinese people when they use such kinds of artifacts. On the designed utensil side, the author already suggests that the grain utensil involves not only the cultural phenomenon of “ancestor sacrificial ritual,” but also the essence of classical doctrine

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called the “ritual and music system (禮樂).” According to W. Zhao (2013), the sacrificial activity in ancient times of China mainly includes three objects: Gods in heaven, deities on earth, ghosts and immortals (<周禮春官⼤宗伯>: 夫宗伯之職，

掌建幫之神、⼈鬼、地祇之禮。). Among them, the “ghosts and immortals” refer to ancestors, dead emperors, sages, and martyrs, who are worshipped by delicacies in different seasons (<禮記王制>: 天⼦諸侯宗廟之祭，春曰礿，夏曰諦，秋曰嘗，

冬曰蒸。).

Figure 4.5 Intellectual elaboration of the “grain utensil” units

Therefore, when researchers want to explore the cognitive semantics of grain utensil design in China, they could match the morphemic analysis of Chinese ideographs to psychological analysis of the utensils, receiving the semantics of

“worshipping ancestors by serving them with well prepared food.” Scientific supports can be found in archaeological research, that is, the grain utensils act as the important artifacts in the sacrificial ceremonies with others.

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4.3 Cognitive Semantics of Food-Container Design

Since the conceptual blending process has been completed in three phases, this informs the cognitive semantics of grain utensil design, in the same time, the expression of making food-container in China. Integrating all results of the blending processes, the cognitive semantics of “grain utensil” units can be extracted (Figure

4.6): First, similarities between the Chinese ideographs and grain utensils are found from the top view to the side view of the layouts. Second, the behavioral features shown by the ideograph patterns map with the functions of utensils, suggesting the utilitarian value of those utensils. Finally, semantics comes out by matching the lexical meaning to the psychological research, generating the essential concept of how Chinese people considering the grain utensils, that is, they embed the spiritual value of “worshipping ancestors by sacrificing delicious food in grain utensils” in designed forms. This statement is fully persuadable, such convention still can be found in China today. For example, Chinese people are used to putting cooked wheaten food (like cakes, steamed breads, sweet desserts, and so on) and fruits in front of the forefather’s grave during the “tomb-sweeping day,” praying for their well-being under the ancestors’ protection.

Moreover, the cognitive semantics of the “grain utensil” units in China could extend to the whole “food-container” group, such as the water utensil of “bowl (盂, yu; 盌, wan)” and “plate (盤, pan).” All Chinese ideographs that represent those utensils contain the morphemic symbols “utensil (⽫, min),” which can be analyzed in the sense of “ritual artifact.” Thus, the cognitive semantics of food-container design in China carries the cultural value of “worshipping” initially. More important,

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it sets the most basic tune of Chinese people expressing themselves through man- made object.

Figure 4.6 Cognitive semantics of the “grain utensil” units Note: Source from http://www.weixinyidu.com/n_571765

4.4 The “Denotative Relationship” of Cognitive Semantics

Obviously seen from the analysis, Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts may involve a kind of relationship which makes researchers could link them immediately without much trouble. The author calls it the “denotative relationship,” and it can be also understood in three levels.

First, being in the “denotative relationship,” Chinese ideographs share the identical patterns with appearances of corresponding designed artifacts directly. Such

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as the Bronze script “ (簠, fu)” and the squared grain utensil; and the Seal script

“ (簋, gui)” and the round-mouth grain utensil.

Second, the utilitarian value of designed artifacts can be acquired from the blending between the BehL of Chinese ideographs and the “behavioral level” of artifacts. For example, the spatial arrangement of both the Chinese ideograph

“squared grain utensil (簠, fu)” and “round-mouth grain utensil (簋, gui)” point to the functions of corresponding utensils, including “holding the harvest,” and “taking millet by scooping.”

Third, one could understand the spiritual value of designed artifacts by mapping the ConL of Chinese ideographs and the “Reflective level” of artifacts, meanwhile, they show a perfect matching with the mental reaction of how people appreciating and using the artifacts. Like the connotation of “worshipping” represented in the morphemic symbol “utensil (⽫, min)” which plays the ideal object for investigating the semantics of grain utensil, it could set a direct blending with the psychological response of Chinese people towards those utensils.

As to modern design, the “denotative relationship” exists pervasively in designed artifacts today, which means, designers like to directly use ideograph patterns (or morphemic symbols) as basic shape of artifacts. Then, functions are given by the behavioral affordances represented by Chinese ideographs. However, the author argues in this research that such kind of design may lose the most crucial characteristics of cultural values – the figurative expression of language and other man-made things – which influences the way of Chinese people elaborating artifacts as well. Taking a stationary holder design as an example, the encoder (designer) intends to put the original pattern of the Chinese ideograph “mound ( , the modern

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script is ⾩, fu)” as the layout of the holder, and its usage relates to “climb-able” characteristics shown by the morphemic symbols. Hence when “decoders” (users) manipulating the holder, the blending process occurs spontaneously in their mind

(Figure 4.7): The side view of the artifact (the “Visceral level”) may remind their memories of how to write this ideograph (the CorL). Its function (the “Behavioral level”) could still be learnt from the “climb-able” characeristics as “putting pens in holes of the holder step by step,” and it could further blend to the BehL of the

Chinese ideograph “mound ( , fu)” – one may climb up a mound by steps (<說⽂解

字注>: …釋名曰。⼟⼭曰⾩。象形者，象⼟⼭⾼⼤⽽平。可層絫⽽上。首象其

⾼。下象其三成。) – generating the utilitarian value of “people storing pens like mountain-climbing.” More than that, the using scenario implies the “Reflective level” of the design as “putting pens on the holder higher and higher is similar to the study journey,” so the spiritual value of the stationary holder emerges by matching the

ConL (soil mound) and the “Reflective level:” Using the stationary holder is like climbing up a mound, encouraging people to study hard (書⼭有路勤為徑).

Nevertheless, the psychological cognition of “decoders” (users) using this holder may be different from the semantics of Chinese ideograph “mound ( , fu),” because it refers to the meaning of “thick soil gathered” (figurative expression of “mound”) instead of “journey of the edges going around a core” (direct representation of semantics of the holder). Unless “decoders” (users) could understand the meaning, then it is a failed representation of artifact designing based on the Chinese ideograph.

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Figure 4.7 Blending process between the Chinese ideograph “mound” and the stationary holder design Note: Source from https://hauyeow.wordpress.com/2010/09/05/muji-award-06/

4.5 Summary

In the chapter, the author first conducts morphemic analysis on the core ideograph- artifact unit “utensil (⽫, min).” Then, one of the typical sub-groups in the “food- container” group is drawn upon with blending process taking place, investigating the cognitive semantics of grain utensil design in China. After that, the author proposes the first kind of relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts, and it is called the “denotative relationship.”

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Chapter 5 Ideograph-Artifact Unit of “Meat Utensil”

In this chapter, the author selects the special unit that has been mentioned before – the derivative unit “meat utensil” (in the “ritual vessel” group with the core unit

“mouth/ancient ritual vessel,” see Figure 3.20) – as the material, studying cognitive semantics of it and the associative unit. After that, the second kind of relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts is proposed. The reason why the author selects this unit instead of others (like the group of “cooking utensil”) is because it plays the most significant role in the development of material culture, and its derived outcomes still influence creative activities in China.

5.1 The Core Ideograph-Artifact Unit “Mouth/Ancient Ritual Vessel”

Before studying the derivative unit “meat utensil (⾖, dou),” the cognitive semantics of the core unit “mouth/ancient ritual vessel (⼝, kou)” unit needs to be understood.

According to Shirakawa (2014), the Chinese written language emerges from engraving lines (on turtle shells and animal bones) which record wizardry events in ancient ritual ceremonies. Thus, the Chinese ideograph is such a kind of written language that visualizes those worship activities in symbolized forms. Here, the so- called “visualization” not simply refers to direct portraits of scenes, more importantly, it shows the way of figuration that Chinese people express themselves habitually (p.

5). In other words, Chinese ideographs represent the figurative relation between language and object in morphemic symbols and patterns.

On the fundamental the morphemic feature of Chinese ideographs, this core unit is studied from the perspective of ritual activities, considering the Oracle script

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“ ” as an abstract symbol of “an ancient ritual vessel for containing scroll of praying

(載書祝冊之器).” In that case, many other Chinese ideographs that contain this morphemic symbol can be either analyzed reasonably, including the Chinese ideograph “lucky (吉, ji),” “tell (告, gao),” “ancient (古, gu),” and “history (史, shi)”

(see 2.1.6 The “Chinese Character series” Study). Although it is hard to find substantial relics of that vessel in China today, clue still can be found in the design of

Chinese censers (Figure 5.1), showing similar appearance with a deep body and two handles on sides. Hence the author deems the CorLs of the unit based on the layout of “ancient censer-like ritual vessel.”

The BehL relies on how Chinese people use the vessel. The ideal reference of analyzing it is the Oracle script “together ( , 共, gong),” which arranges the three morphemic symbols in a certain order, like two hands holding up the ritual vessel

“ .” This action generally expresses one’s respect to others in the Chinese tradition, thus the Chinese ideograph “together (共, gong)” is the original character “respectful

(恭, gong),” representing the behavioral factor of “together” (because of “two hands”), and implying the meaning of “deferential” in Chinese language (Shirakawa, 2010, p.

84).

At last, the author proposes the ConL of the unit, that is, the connotation of

“wizardry worshipping.” It is important for this research that traces back to the primary semantics, considering it as the basis of interpreting designed artifacts in

China, even though the Oracle script “ ” has transformed into the Chinese ideograph “mouth (⼝, kou)” with the original meaning lost (H. Liu, 2007). The ancient wizardry not only plays the most vital role in the society of China (especially in the Shang dynasty), but also endows its essence in the formation of Chinese

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ideographs, setting up the spiritual value of Chinese material culture. It is called the

“polytheism,” which means, people in ancient times believe that all things in nature may possess spirits or even divinities, and they could get benefits from worshipping them by achieving “oracles” (Shirakawa, 2010, p. 8). Such kind of animistic thought can still be found in constructions of Chinese ideographs, and designed artifacts as well.

Figure 5.1 Semantics of the “mouth/ancient ritual vessel” unit

5.2 Study of the Chinese Ideograph “Meat Utensil (⾖, dou)”

The study of “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” unit begins with the interpretation of corresponding Chinese ideograph, and then it leads to various directions. In this section, the author starts with the morphemic analysis of Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou).” Being one of the most important Chinese ideographs, it represents a kind of artifact in ancient times of China, which is loaned to another meaning

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today, referring to “bean.” Again, the morphemic analysis includes three layers: the

CorL, the BehL, and the ConL (Figure 5.2).

In the Oracle script, this ideograph has a cup-like pattern, deep body, thin neck, and flat base. Actually, the author considers the CorL as derived from the pattern of

Chinese ideograph “mouth/ancient ritual vessel ( ),” which makes it analyzable on the basis of the core unit (as an “artifact-like utensil”). Even with its modern form of pattern “⾖,” analogic outlines still can be found in the pattern.

In that case, the BehL is given from the perspective of people dealing with such kind of “artifact-like utensil.” Here, a derived Chinese ideograph is brought in – the

“ceremonial vessel (豋, deng)” – which is also the original script of modern Chinese ideograph “ascend (登, deng)” (<六書略>: 豋，⾖也。借為升登之登。). From the pattern of Oracle script “ ,” one can see the scenario of people manipulating with the “meat utensil ( , ⾖, dou):” People holds the utensil with meat in both hands, and raising it on top of the head (<說⽂解字>: …持⾁在⾖商，會意。<⽑⽒曰

>: … 豋⾖之豋，上從月從又，月即⾁字，又即⼿字，持祭⾁於⾖之意。).

Taking references from above analysis and classic documents, the author gives denotations of the Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” in four aspects.

Certainly, the first denotation refers to a kind of “container for holding meat” from the BehL and the book ShuoWenJieZi (<說⽂解字>: 古食⾁器也。). Then, it turns to one of the important “ritual vessels” in ancient times. Especially in the Shang and the Zhou dynasty, when ritual ceremonies play the most vital role in people’s daily life, the “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” and other vessels are the dominant artifacts for worshipping activities (<史記樂書>: 簠簋俎⾖，禮之器也。). Differed from the

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classic explanations, the author further suggests another denotation of this ideograph, standing for the original ideograph of lamp in China, which will be investigated in details in the following sections (<禮祭統>: 執鐙。<註>: 鐙，⾖下跗也。).

Besides that, it is also loaned to a botanical term, referring to all kinds of beans in general (<博雅>: ⼤⾖，菽也。小⾖，苔也。<周禮天官⼤宰三農⽣九穀註>:

⿉、稷、秫、稻、麻、⼤小⾖、⼤小麥為九穀。).

In order to put this research concerning modern artifact, the author chooses lamp design as the major object, exploring its relationship with the Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” (as the original ideograph that represent lamp). In the next section, blending process is settled, including sensorial correspondence, behavioral projection, and intellectual elaboration. Then, cognitive semantics of lamp design in China is extracted.

Figure 5.2 Semantics of the Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)”

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5.3 Cognitive Semantics of Lamp Design

5.3.1 Sensorial Composition

According to the former statement, lamp as an illuminating tool, originated from a kind of ancient artifact called “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” linguistically, and served as the ritual vessel for deities as well. During that period, Chinese ideographs (mainly the

Oracle and the Bronze script) were evolving in a relatively chaotic situation of diverse but irregular patterns. Until the establishment of the Qin dynasty (221-207

B.C.), Chinese ideography became stable gradually due to the so-called “Clerical script evolution (libian, 隸變).” From this perspective, semantic research of lamp design in China begins with linking the “Visceral level” of appearance to the CorL of the Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou).” At first, lamps and patterns of the

Chinese ideograph in different periods of China are collected (Table 5.1).

Table 5.1 The Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” and designed lamps in different periods of China

Period Patterns of Chinese ideograph Designed lamps

Pre-Embryonic period Oracle script (1400-1100 B.C.) (a) (b) (c) (d)

Bronze script

(e) (f) (g) (h)

Embryonic period Seal script (1300 B.C.-8 A.D.)

(i) (j) (k) (l) (m)

Clerical script

(n) (o) (p) (q) (r)

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Period Patterns of Chinese ideograph Designed lamps

Mature period and Transitional period Regular script

(Since 220 A.D.) (s) (t) (u) (v) (w)

Transitional period Simplified script (Since 1949 A.D.) 豆

(x) (y) (z) Note: Names of lamps in the “design of lamp” column. (a) ceramic “dou” in the Lingjiatan culture, (b) ceramic “dou” in the Dawenkou culture, (c) ceramic “dou” in the Spring & Autumn period, (d) ceramic “dou” in the Warring States period, (e) ceramic “dou” in the Songze culture, (f) gray ceramic “dou” in the Warring States period, (g) jade lamp with cloud decoration in the Warring States period, (h) bronze lamp with bird shape in Warring State period, (i) ceramic “dou”-like lamp in the Han dynasty, (j) bronze “dou”-like lamp in the Western Han dynasty, (k) bronze lamp with wild goose foot shape in the Han dynasty, (l) handy bronze lamp in the Western Han dynasty, (m) bronze lamp with cover, vent and three feet in the Western Han dynasty, (n) bronze “dou”-like lamp in the Han dynasty, (o) bronze lamp in the Han dynasty, (p) bronze “dou”-like lamp in the Han dynasty, (q) white porcelain lamp in the Tang dynasty, (r) hypothermal celadon lamp in the Northern Qi dynasty, (s) celadon oil lamp with brown glaze in the Eastern Jin dynasty, (t) white porcelain lamp in the Tang dynasty, (u) blue and white Porcelain oil lamp in the Yuan dynasty, (v) kerosene lamp in Republic of China, (w) famille rose lamp in the Qing dynasty, (x) and (y) modern lamp in P.R. China, (z) modern lamp designed by Naoto Fukasawa in Japan.

It is obvious that traditional layouts of lamps have surprisingly similarities with different structures of the Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” (Figure 5.3).

Such similarities not only exist in ancient times, but also can be found in modern forms of lamps and Chinese ideographs (the Regular and the simplified script).

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Figure 5.3 Sensorial composition of the “meat utensil” unit

5.3.2 Behavioral Completion

The next step of the blending process is about the utilitarian value, in this case, the

BehL of the Chinese ideograph “meat utensil” and the “Behavioral level” of designed lamps in China. Thus, the BehL of Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” is studied by the assistance of another Chinese ideograph “ceremonial vessel (豋, and the loaned script is 登, deng),” which gets a connotation of “a ‘meat utensil’-like vessel is used for worshipping the heaven (the sky)” in the book ErYa ShiQi and

ShuoWenJieZi Zhu (<爾雅釋器>: 瓦⾖，謂之登。<說⽂解字注>: …⽊曰⾖。瓦

曰登… 箋云。祀天用瓦⾖。陶器質也。然則瓦登用於祭天。廟中之鐙。笵⾦

為之。). From the BehL of Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou),” it can be seen a clear way of how people in ancient times manipulating with the artifact (see

5.2 Study of the Chinese Ideograph “Meat Utensil”). When it is brightened, the illuminating tool called “lamp (燈, deng)” emerges. Here, the original way of how people pursue brightness and avoid darkness is given – setting fire. This idea

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corresponds to the pattern of the Chinese ideograph “light ( 光 , guang) 41 ,” representing the spatial arrangement in the Oracle script “ ” as “fire ( , ⽕, huo) on the top of a man ( , ⼈, ren),” and acquiring the explanation of “brightness emitted by fire shining above man” in the book ShuoWenJieZi (<說⽂解字>: 明也。從⽕在

⼈上，光明意也。). More than that, this explanation can be proved in the manipulation of vessel of “lamp (燈, deng),” which is also described as “putting a candle on a food utensil (錠, ding), which originated from the meat utensil” in the book ShuoWenJieZi and GuangYun (<說⽂解字>注: 臣鉉等曰: 錠中置燭，故謂之

鐙。今俗別作燈，非是。<廣韻>: ⾖有⾜曰錠，無⾜曰鐙。Figure 5.4).

Figure 5.4 Linguistic study of the Chinese ideograph “lamp (燈, deng)”

Thereafter, the two input spaces are located, one is the BehL of Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou),” and the other one is the “Behavioral level” of a kind of food utensil. They are blended selectively in people’s mental space, forming the whole scenario of using a lamp (燈, deng) – setting fire on top of a “meat utensil”

41 It is also an associative Chinese ideograph (see Table 3.3).

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originated vessel, brightening above men, and becoming the behavioral habit in people’s daily life (Figure 5.5). Although the resource that brings brightness to men has changed tremendously along with the development of technology (from candle to oil, and then to electricity), the basic layout (sensorial composition) and usage

(behavioral completion) of lamps have been kept continuously.

Figure 5.5 Behavioral completion of the “meat utensil” unit

5.3.3 Intellectual Elaboration

Followed by the sensorial composition and the behavioral completion processes, semantic study of designed artifacts in China enters the core area, bridging the

ConL of Chinese ideographs to the “Reflective level” of designed artifacts (Figure

5.6). On the one hand, based on both the CorL and the BehL, the ConL of the

Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” has been inquired as “a kind of ritual vessel,” which acts as one of the denotations of this ideograph as well. Further, the semantic analysis involves the spiritual realm, showing the idealistic value of Chinese

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culture as its connotation, meanwhile, rooting in Chinese people’s thought – the wizardry worshipping tradition – “praying and pursuing they are blessed by their deities.” In China, such worshipping ceremonies are pervasively deemed as the most important activities in old times, because deities (sometimes their forefathers) are able to communicate through ritual activities, and have the ability to ensure descendants well-being with their hopes coming true (Yang, 1957).

On the other hand, aiming at bringing light to people, making and using lamp undoubtedly involves the self-awareness of “searching for brightness,” so the author here choose the Chinese ideograph “brightness (明, ming)” to investigate the

“Reflective level” of designed lamp in China. According to the book I Ching, this ideograph not only is about the optical phenomenon, but also implies the significance of enlightenment of people (<易乾卦>: ⼤明終始。<疏>: ⼤明，曉乎

萬物終始。<韓非⼦難三篇>: 知微之謂明). In that case, besides the functional feature, lamp carries the spiritual value of “guiding people becoming wise and bright.”

This notion at the same time meets with the use of lamp (燈, deng): People might be inspired by setting fire (lighting up) the vessel of “meat utensil” originated vessel (錠, ding). Another evidence is the “Lighting Festival” of Tibetan Buddhism in

Dunhuang, respecting the master named Tsonkapa. The main rite on that day is lighting the so-called “light wheel” and “light tree.” Descriptions of the deity praise are found in the DunHuangWenShu No. S.4625, such as “Goodness gathered. The light wheel brightened, shining like stars, saint” (<敦煌⽂書>: 眾善遐集。其燈乃

神光晃耀，炯皎⽽空裡星攅，聖。) (Ma, 1997).

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Figure 5.6 Intellectual elaboration and semantics of the “meat utensil” unit

Above all statements, the ConL of Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” is able to blend selectively with the “Reflective level” of lamp designing in China, which means, the self-awareness of “brightness” finally matches with the worshipping tradition with meat utensil (⾖), generating the cognitive semantics of designed lamp as “lighting up the ‘meat utensil’ originated vessel (錠), and being brightened by deities.” This blending process either shows the “denotative relationship” between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts including the CorL and the “Visceral level,” the BehL and the “Behavioral level,” and the ConL and the

“Reflective level” (see 4.4 The “Denotative Relationship” of Cognitive Semantics).

Particularly, connotation of the Chinese ideograph “brightness (明, ming)” that the

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author quotes shows the metaphorical rhetoric in interpreting cognitive semantics of lamp design in China, implying a new link of semantics.

5.4 Other Cases Study

Besides the general investigation, the author is going to conduct another case study, which ideally shows the second kind of relationship between Chinese ideograph and designed artifact – the “fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan” in the Warring States period of China (about 475-221 B.C.). In addition bridging the lamp design to the

Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou),” the author uses another associative unit

“star (星, xing),” and sets up a connection between the Chinese ideograph “star (星, xing)” and a specific lamp sample. Like former cases, this case study starts with the morphemic analysis of the Chinese ideograph in the unit, and then, to the conceptual blending process with semantics of the “fifteen-branches lamp of

Zhongshan” raising.

5.4.1 Linguistic Study of the Chinese Ideograph “Star (星, xing)”

If researchers trace back to the starting point, considering courses that mankind avoiding the darkness, and pursuing the light, they can seek for meanings hidden by designed lamps. Since the Homo erectus learnt how to manipulate fire, human world had entered a more civilized era. Fire brought about not only heated food and warmth, but also possibility of driving darkness away – the original way of human pursuing light.

Based on the cognitive semantics of lamp design in China, linguistic study moves to related Chinese poetry and literary works. Take the classic “five-branches

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lamp” as an example with records in the volume 3 of XiJingZaJi: “When the first emperor of the Han dynasty entered the Xianyang palace… there was a five-branches lamp, which had seven and a half Chinese feet height, and was decorated with dragon figures as light holders. When it is brightened, the blinking lights liked stars shining in the sky” (<西京雜記>: ⾼祖初⼊咸陽宮… 有青⽟五枝燈, 燈然鱗甲皆

動, 炳若列星。). Obviously seen from this document, use of lamp is metaphorized to the concept of “stars in the sky” in Chinese poets and literati. Once again, written language is the best implement for accomplishing the analysis. The Chinese ideograph “star (星, xing)” gets the semantics of “star is given birth by the sun (<說

⽂解字註>: 日分為星。故其字日⽣為星。)” in the book ShuoWenJieZi Zhu.

According to the semantic model, its Bronze script “ ” contains morphemes “sun

( , 日, ri)” and “birth ( , ⽣, sheng).” Again in the book ShuoWenJieZi, “birth ( ,

⽣, sheng)” means “bring forth, like grass and tree growing on earth” (<說⽂解字>:

進也。象⾋⽊⽣出⼟上。). So tree, in terms of the deific plant in ancient times, not only refers to the path heading to heaven because it grows on the earth, and reaches the sun in the sky, but also is praised as the carrier of ancestor’s soul (D.

Jiang, 2008) – the essence of human beings, which also implies to the substantial part of the sun (<史記天官註>: 日者，陽精之宗。<釋名>: 日，實也，光明盛實

也。). Therefore, connotation of the Chinese ideograph “star (星, xing)” shows the oneness of the earth, sky, divinities (ancestors), and mortals (descendants and prayers), which indicates the correspondence between the fourfold and the “myth telling medium (講述神話的⽂字)” of Chinese ideographs (see 2.1.6 The “Chinese

Character Series” Study).

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5.4.2 Design of the “Fifteen-Branches Lamp of Zhongshan”

The “fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan” in the Warring States period, which is made of bronze, is unearthed from the tomb of “King Cuo” as burial object in Hebei province of China, as well as is served for ritual affair that could be demonstrated by the lettering on foot (⼗祀，左車，嗇夫事斁，⼯弧，冢⼀⽯三百五⼗五⼑之冢，

右轡者。Figure 5.7). It has 82.6 centimeters height with seven dismountable parts decorated by features of birds, apes, “dragon kui (夔),” and “dragon li (螭).” The

“fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan” is so classical that embodies the relations of the fourfold gathered. Both the main body and the decorative features are involved in this concept with the tree-like shape. Evidence can be argued in detail.

Firstly, the sculpture of “dragon li (螭)” entwining with the trunk of lamp refers to a kind of dragon who is born in forest (<左傳⽂公⼗⼋年>: 螭魅，⼭林異氣所

⽣，為⼈害者。); wild animals like apes and birds live on the branches, and two men stand on the bottom, feeding the apes. All these characteristics vividly deposited on the tree. Tree in Chinese traditions, especially with the mulberry tree, which is deemed as the mythical sun tree connecting with deity, mortal, and demon in hell (<

說⽂解字>: 桑，神⽊，日所出也。<⽞中記>: 天下之⾼者，扶桑無枝焉，上⾄

天，盤蜿⽽下屈，通三泉。). In this case, the design of “fifteen-branches lamp” has brought the fourfold gathered from the remoteness to the object that self- supported.

Secondly, when oil is ignited in lighting holders, fire receives the concept of

“essence of the sun” (<後漢荀爽傳>: 在地為⽕, 在天為日。<淮南⼦天⽂訓>: ⽕

氣之精者為日。). Hence, the “fifteen-branches lamp” uncovers the semantics of

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“sun tree” (<楚辭九歌東君>: 暾將出兮東⽅，照吾檻兮扶桑。). As a consequence, the connotation of the lamp which is originated from the meat utensil

(⾖) – “star (星, xing)” – “the essence of sun (fire)” is demonstrated, imitating the view of stars shining in the sky, allowing people to communicate with divinities

(ancestors) and to get protection by them.

Furthermore, the bronze material and dismountable structure has made the lamp getting an incredible height of 82.6 centimeters. During the Warring State period, sitting posture of men appears as “the knees down on grass-mat” about 60 centimeters height of eye (G. Zhao, Ma, & Chen, 2008), that means, the fire on the top of lamp brightening above men, corroborates with the explanations of Chinese ideograph “light” (光，⽕在⼈上。) and “star” (星，日⽣為星。), showing the semantics of “lighting hope” and imitating the worship activity with the lamp.

Figure 5.7 The fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan Note: Source from http://www.guokr.com/post/620869/focus/0066839609/

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5.4.3 Semantics of the “Fifteen-Branches Lamp of Zhongshan”

When people appreciate, use, and react to the “fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan,” conceptual blending process may take place in their nervous system. Since the linguistic study and design sample are settled, the input spaces are given, including the former result of conceptual blending of lamp design, the morphemic analysis of

Chinese ideograph “star (星, xing),” and the psychological analysis of the lamp on the other (Figure 5.8).

For one thing, the author introduces the three layers of Chinese ideograph “star

(星, xing):” the CorL with morphemic symbols “sun (日, ri)” and “birth (⽣, sheng)”

(especially with the Oracle script); the BehL of how Chinese people thinking about the emergence of stars – giving birth by essence of the sun, and how they appreciating stars by looking up to the sky; and the ConL, which involves its denotation of “stars shining in the sky,” and connotation of the fourfold gathered

(sun and tree) in ancient times. For another thing, based on the investigation of

“fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan,” the “Visceral level” of lamp is shown with holders, sculptures, and decorations; the “Behavioral level” indicates that people’s behaviors of how they manipulate with it; and the “Reflective level” embeds the spiritual needs of people, such as “communicating with ancestors.”

From this perspective, concepts in the input spaces enable to match together in three phases, generating the cognitive semantics of “fifteen-branches lamp of

Zhongshan.” At first, the layout of lamp shares the identical structures with the

Bronze script of “ ” and the basic appearance of designed lamp (see 5.3 Cognitive

Semantics of Lamp Design), that is, the whole body of the “fifteen-branches lamp of

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Zhongshan” is made similar with the pattern “ ,” and the holder design follows the common shape of original lamp. expressing the meaning of “sun (fire) on the tree.”

Secondly, behavioral elements are blended, including “firing a ‘meat utensil’ originated artifact above man,” the way of people looking at stars (which are given birth by the sun), and the special using scenario of the lamp (requiring a man looking up when they knee down on the floor). All of them project a whole picture of the usage of “fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan,” or even all floor lamps – people need to light up lamp higher no matter they are kneeing down on the ground, sitting on couch, or even standing up. Besides that, when the “fifteen-branches lamp of

Zhongshan” is brightened, the scene may recall the memory of people when they enjoy the view of stars shining in the sky.

Finally, the cognitive semantics of lamp design in China maps to the “Reflective level” of “fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan,” then to the connotations of Chinese ideograph “star ( , 星, xing)” metaphorically, generating semantics of the floor lamp:

Orison (hope) for well-being of prayers, who are protected by their personal god living in the heaven – ancestors and forefathers. Moreover, another “hypothermal celadon lamp” with decoration of lotus in the Northern Qi dynasty (550-577 A.D.) either shows the semantics of “hope,” as well as the connotation of Chinese ideograph “star (星, xing).” Since the Buddhism imported to Chinese in the Han dynasty, both cultural materials (language and design) and cultural values are greatly influenced by it. In the Buddhist doctrine, lotus is symbolized as one of the important vehicles of guiding men to the “Western Paradise,” or the “Nirvana” – the immortal life of happiness – expressing the religious hope, in the meantime, cooperating with the Regular script “星.” Thus the cognitive semantics of celadon

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lamp is uncovered by selectively blending among the Chinese ideograph “star (星, xing),” the semantics of lamp, and the concept of “lotus,” generating new sense of

“praying one’s soul (the essence) for entering the nirvana.” Such idea still exists in modern time, carrying the cultural significance of “pursuing hope and making wish,” like the water lantern and Kongming lantern.

Figure 5.8 Cognitive semantics of the “fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan”

5.5 The “Connotative Relationship” of Cognitive Semantics

Based on the derivative unit “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” and the associative unit “star (星, xing),” the author suggests the second kind of relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts – the “connotative relationship,” which closely relates to the most fundamental capacity of the mankind. According to Lakoff and

Johnson (2008), “the essence of metaphor is understanding and experiencing one kind of thing in terms of another” (p. 5). As stated before, if one deems language

(characters and words) as container for filling meanings (ideas) as objects, metaphor

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will have no meaning unless one puts it in certain contexts for understanding. In this case, the connotation of Chinese ideograph “brightness (明, ming)” metaphorizes the cognitive semantics of lamp design; and the Chinese ideograph “star (星, xing)” metaphorizes the design of “fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan.” All of them not only appear in classical poetry and literary works, but also impacts semantics of artifact design in China. To demonstrate this idea, the author gives the definition of

“connotative relationship” in three aspects.

Just like the first “denotative relationship,” the structural similarity is firstly found between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts, such as the Bronze script

“ ” and the appearance of “fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan” (the associative unit

“star”). Thus, the associative units are normally chosen for setting up the

“connotative relationship,” designers and researchers could choose the associative units in the “Ideograph-Artifact Library,” and put them into physical forms with semantics metaphorically.

The BehL of Chinese ideographs also plays significant role in studying the utilitarian value of designed artifacts. In this research, the action of people appreciating stars (by looking up to the sky) may be taken to the usage of “fifteen- branches lamp of Zhongshan.” And researchers could investigate the detailed ways of using artifacts by matching them to the BehL of corresponding Chinese ideographs, such as the spatial arrangement of Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” could blend to the “Behavioral level” of “meat utensil” originated artifact (錠), projecting the function of lamp comprehensively. Moreover, scenarios depicted in Chinese ideographs set the contextual scenes of using artifacts, like the lighting status of

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“fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan” imitates the beautiful view of stars blinking in the sky.

The metaphorical semantics is best presented in the blending process between the ConL of Chinese ideographs and the “Reflective level” of designed artifacts, in the same time, it perfectly shows the implicit and euphemistic habits of Chinese people expressing themselves. Taking the lamp design as an example, the connotation of Chinese ideograph “brightness (明, ming)” is commonly used in interpreting the metaphorical semantics of lamp: Buddhists often light the

“everlasting lamp (長明燈)” in front of Buddha, metaphorzing they could get liberation and wisdom from worshipping Buddha (<觀⼼論>: 長明燈者，正覺⼼也。

覺知明了，喻之為燈，是故⼀切求解脫者，常以身為台，⼼為燈盞，信為燈柱，

增諸戒⾏以為添油，智慧明達喻燈光常然。). Additionally, the fourfold gathered in Chinese ideographs may also be embodied in cognitive semantics of designed artifacts, such as the traditional sense of “tree” is brilliantly shown in the design of

“fifteen-branches lamp of Zhongshan,” implying the ancient belief of how people communicating with the heaven. Therefore, the “connotative relationship” specifically manifests the cultural coherence between the self-expression of language and artifact making.

For the author, the “connotative relationship” is a recommended way for designers fitting the acculturation in modern times of China. Comparing to the direct use of Chinese ideographs, designers (“encoders”) who articulate design intentions in figurative ways could get more meaningful and reflective experiences of use to users (decoders). One of the best instances is given in the “blessedness” wine bottle in the Qing dynasty (see 2.3.1 Direct Use of Chinese Ideograph - “Beauty of

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Character” Artifacts); another modern instance can be shown in the “auspicious” wine bottle, which is designed by a young Chinese designer Chen Nan. The main body of wine bottle is put in the pattern of ideograph “auspicious (吉, ji),” and the cover is made in the appearance of ancient bronze caldron (鼎).

The blending may happen in users’ cognitive system when they pouring or drinking wine from the bottle, matching the semantics of Chinese ideograph

“auspicious (吉, ji)” to the cultural tradition, and getting the embodiment of good luck in their mind (Figure 5.9). At first, the sensorial composition happens between the CorL of Chinese ideograph “auspicious (吉, ji)” and the “Visceral level” of the bottle. Then, the BehL (of Chinese ideograph) shows the scenario of “a ‘scholar (⼠, shi)’ being with an ‘ancient ritual vessel ( , ⼝, kou)’,” which could match with the

“Behavioral level” (of the bottle) as “a scholar putting a ‘ritual vessel’ in front of him/her, and using it as a wine container” (the behavioral completion). Moreover, a

“scholar” in China connotes the personality of junzi (see footnote 7), so the ConL of

Chinese ideograph refers to “(a person with) ethical manner is auspicious.” (<周書

武順>: 禮儀順祥曰吉。). And it could map with the “Reflective level” of the wine bottle (the semantics of “abstinence,” see Chapter 6), generating the cognitive semantics of “a person with abstinent manner (also is one of the personalities of a

‘scholar’ in China) when using the wine bottle is auspicious” (the intellectual elaboration). However, design of the bottle cover – bronze caldron (鼎) – shows the arbitrary use of traditional element China. Although it involves the sense of “ritual vessel” in China, but is irrelevant with the semantics of wine vessel design. It will be investigated in the next chapter.

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Figure 5.9 Blending process between the Chinese ideograph “auspicious” and the wine bottle

5.6 Summary

In this chapter, the author conducts a deep study focusing on the derivative unit

“meat utensil (⾖, dou),” and one of its derived concept – lamp. On the basis of semantic analysis of the derivative unit, the cognitive semantics of lamp design is suggested. Then, the author chooses another associative unit “star (星, xing)” as the research object, which engages the designed artifact of the “fifteen-branches lamp of

Zhongshan” in the Warring States period of China, emphasizing the second kind

“metaphorical relationship” between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts.

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Chapter 6 Ideograph-Artifact Group of “Wine Vessel”

Subsequently, this research moves to another group “wine vessel” in the “Ideograph-

Artifact Library,” highlighting how the two relationships working together, and even forming artifact series (see Figure 3.22). For a long period of time, study of wine vessel design in China remain in arguments of general theory and investigations of individual object. Few of them focus on relations of different artifacts for specific uses (like eating, drinking, working, and so on), and their connections to cultural beliefs of Chinese people.

In this chapter, the author chooses wine vessel design as the analysis topic.

Firstly, the core ideograph-artifact unit “horn (角, jiao),” the derivative unit “the tenth earthly branch (⾣, you),” and a group of classic wine vessels (bottom-pointed vessels) are drawn upon. By the help of semantic model, design of ancient wine vessel (bottom-pointed vessel) blends to Chinese ideographs with the generation of emergent mental space, suggesting a new argument of the origin and semantics of wine vessel design in China. After that, the author also gives case study of other units in the “wine vessel” group, fully demonstrating the denotative and the connotative relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts, such as the derivative unit “four Chinese-liter wine cup (角, jiao),” the unit “one Chinese- liter wine cup (爵, jue),” and others.

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6.1 The Core “Ideograph-Artifact Unit” “Horn (角, jiao)”

6.1.1 A Background of Wine Culture in China

China has a considerably long history of making and drinking wine. There are many ancient myths depicting how ancestors preparing alcoholic beverages. The earliest one may retrospect to about 7,000 years ago. In the traditional medical book

HuangDiNeiJing, Qibo said that both glutinous rice wine (醪, lao) and sweet wine

(醴, li) are made of crop, and cooked by straw (<黃帝內經湯液醪醴論篇第⼗四>:

黃帝問曰：為五穀湯液及醪醴奈何？岐伯對曰：必以稻米，炊之以稻薪，稻米

者完，稻薪者堅。). Others are more mythic, like the first winemaker Yi Di (an officer who is in charge with wine making in the age of Dayu), the story of Du Kang

(a boy who accidentally discovers the fermentation of rice and crop), and even the natural habit of apes and monkeys (they put fruits in caves, waiting them ferment into “wine”) (Huang, 2008, pp. 11-16). Since then, China has developed a colorful habit of brewing, tasting, and evaluating wine. Accordingly, there are various vessels for preparing, holding and drinking wine. However, the origin of designing the vessels in China, as well as their meaning remains unsettled. One of the clues is listed in the comment of the book LiYi TeShengKuiShiLi: “Wine vessel in China might be originated from animal’s horn (<禮儀特牲饋食禮>注: 角四升，疑古酒

器之始，以角為之。).” To answer these questions, the author at first conducts deep investigations on the core Ideograph-Artifact unit “horn (角, jiao).” And the first research object of the research is language, which not only carries the essence of culture intrinsically, but also reveals the nature of man-made things, in this case, wine vessel in China.

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6.1.2 Origin of Wine Vessel Design in China

In order to investigate the origin and cognitive semantics of wine vessel design in

China, first of all, semantic analysis of the Oracle script “horn ( , 角, jiao)” and “the tenth earthly branch ( , ⾣, you)” are given, finding the linguistic expression of wine vessel in ancient times of China. Then, psychological analysis of “bottom-pointed vessel” is drawn upon, which could set connection to the result of linguistic study.

(1) Morphemic analysis of Chinese ideographs

Since the first piece of pottery with inscriptions was found in the Yangshao culture site, the Chinese written language is acknowledged to linguists for about 6,000 years of history with different forms. Both patterns and meanings change remarkably along with the development. In this case study, the author chooses the most ancient

Oracle script “horn ( )” and “the tenth earthly branch ( )” as core Chinese ideographs, they are the ideal materials that share the relatively coherent cultural values with the original design of wine vessel in China (during the Neolithic Age from about 7500-1200 B.C.).

• The Chinese ideograph “horn (角, jiao)”

The origin of wine vessel is speculated to be animal’s horn, thus the linguistics study begins with the Chinese ideograph “horn ( , 角, jiao).” Three layers are shown in the diagram (Figure 6.1).

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Figure 6.1 Semantics of the Chinese ideograph “horn (角, jiao)”

First, the CorL of the Oracle script “ ” directly portrays the outline of animal’s horn with textures. Second, the BehL relies on the functions of horn, that is, how people put this biological organ in actual use. According to the famous dictionary

KangXiZiDian, explanations of “horn” include “horn bow (角弓),” “weapon (⼤角),”

“measuring vessel,” “water tank (⽊角),” and so on. All of them tightly relate to the perceptual feature of the mankind, which show the motivations and thoughts of

Chinese people disposing to an object. Such as the aesthetic need of decorating a bow with horns (<康熙字典>: 以角飾弓也。), the offensive intention by sounding horn clarion during war (<演繁露>: 蚩尤率魑魅與黃帝戰，帝命吹角爲龍鳴禦

之。), technological invention of standardizing volume (<管⼦七法篇>: ⽃斛也，

角量也。<禮喪⼤記>: 虞⼈出⽊角。). Specifically, the measuring function is used in surveying not only water and millet, but also wine in ancient times. Such as in the

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famous novel ShuiHuZhuan, a monk Lu Da said “bring me four ‘jiao’ of wine” (<⽔

滸傳>: 魯達道，先打四角酒來。). So it can be seen that a horn may be a common object for filling wine in traditional times. Moreover, the spiritual value of wine culture in China is also symbolized in the semanrics of Chinese ideograph “horn.”

• The Chinese ideograph “the tenth earthly branch (⾣, you)”

Furthermore, another relative Chinese ideograph needs to be analyzed (Figure 6.2) –

“the tenth earthly branch ( , ⾣, you),” which is deemed as the primary word for wine and vessels for filling it to most researchers nowadays (JiaNing Chen & Yang,

2011). In the book ShuoWenJieZi, the Chinese ideograph “the tenth earthly branch

( , ⾣, you)” is explained as “millet is harvested in the Chinese lunar calendar of

August, and it is possible for making wine” (<說⽂解字>: 就也。⼋月⿉成，可為

酎酒。). Later, meaning of the Chinese ideograph “the tenth earthly branch (⾣, you)” becomes more abstract, referring to a particular sign of time42. However, modern scholars argue that the pattern of Oracle script of “the tenth earthly branch

42 Heavenly stems and earthly branches are collectively known as Stem-Branch or Gan-Zhi. The ten heavenly stems are “Jia (甲),” “Yi (⼄),” “Bing (丙),” “Ding (丁),” “Wu (戊),” “Ji (⼰),” “Geng (庚),” “Xin (辛),” “Ren (壬),” and “Gui (癸).” The twelve earthly branches are “Zi (⼦),” “Chou (丑),” “Yin (寅),” “Mao (卯),” “Chen (辰),” “Si (巳),” “Wu (午),” “Wei (未),” “Shen (申),” “You (⾣),” “Xu (戌 ),” and “Hai (亥).” Each heavenly stem is paired with an earthly branch to form the Gan-Zhi sexagenary cycle that starts with Jia-Zi.

The use of Gan-Zhi to record the years, months, days and hours all started in different periods in history. The Gan-Zhi years and days have been used for two to three thousand years. In ancient time, the months and the hours (the hours are called shichen) were named after the earthly branches only. Through the years, people started to make stems of the months after the stem of the year, and stems of the hours after the stem of the day. The Gan-Zhi’s of year, month, day and hour together form the Eight Characters ("Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches," 2017).

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( )” comes from the appearance of a kind of ancient water container (Guo, 1982, pp.

215-216), which acts as the CorL of this ideograph. In this case, the BehL can be understood in the sense of its usage. Here, a derived Oracle script “respect ( , 尊, zun)” is helpful, showing the conventional manner of holding a bottle of wine and toasting. This tradition and semantics of the Chinese ideograph “the tenth earthly branch” (as the original word of wine) implies the concept of wine culture in China as well. On the one hand, its phonetic-loan ideograph “wine ( , 酒, jiu)” refers to the “causality of luck or disasters of life” (<說⽂解字>: ⼀曰造也。吉凶所造也。)

(JiaNing Chen & Yang, 2011). That may be the reason of wine playing the main oblation in ancient sacrificial ceremony (<周禮天官酒正>: 辨三酒之物，⼀曰事

酒，⼆曰昔酒，三曰清酒。<註>: 事酒，有事⽽飲也。昔酒，無事⽽飲也。清

酒，祭祀之酒。). On the other hand, an individual’s personality – good (being polite in feast and ceremony) or evil (intemperance and obscenity) – could be seen when drinking wine (<說⽂解字注>: 就也，所以就⼈性之善惡。賓主百拜者，

酒也。淫酗者，亦酒也。). Since one might behave freely without wariness after drinking wine, so others could know him/her by the true nature that he/she shows.

The corresponding proverb can be found in Acient Europe as well, the Romans say:

“In vino veritas,” which means, “in wine there is truth.”

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Figure 6.2 Semantics of the Chinese ideograph “the tenth earthly branch (⾣, you)”

• Relations between Chinese ideographs

Based on the Chinese ideograph “horn ( ,角, jiao)” and “the tenth earthly branch

( , ⾣, you),” the author locate the relations between the two Chinese ideographs.

By selectively bridging relative elements (because of the polysemy for each ideograph), the essence of wine culture in China is indicated with convincing deduction. Firstly, the CorL relation between the Chinese ideograph “horn ( )” and

“the tenth earthly branch ( )” relies on structural identities and diversities of the

Oracle scripts. On the one hand, they have similar triangle patterns with horizontal strokes inside, which share a basic shape in general. On the other hand, differences between the two Chinese ideographs are obvious with ends and orientations. The reason is stated in the intention of creating their patterns: The Oracle script “horn

( )” shows a direct depiction of biological organ, though a hollow horn must be

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used upset down when people cut it off from animal’s head for containing water

(wine). Evidence can be found not only in Chinese history, but also in other civilizations, such as the so-called “Khantsi” which is a sort of drinking horn for ritual toasting in Georgia ("Toasting in Georgia," 2017) (Figure 6.3).

Figure 6.3 The drinking horn of “Khantsi” in Georgia Note: Source from: https://www.etsy.com/listing/71182691/georgian-wine-drinking-horn-called

In the BehL, function elements in the two Chinese ideographs link logically: the usage of horn as measuring vessel and the action of toasting ( ). Then, the appropriate manner of drinking wine in the banquets and ceremonies is ascertained, that is, people hold a wine container (in this case, an animal’s horn) with the appropriate volume (corresponding to the “measuring”) of wine in both hands, proposing a toast. Such convention is still popular in China today, showing respect to others (hosts, guests, elders) during feasts, and as one part of good etiquette in daily behavior.

At last, ideological relation can be found in factors of the ConL, combining the denotation of drinking wine with the connotation of evaluating individual’s morality.

The significance of wine drinking in China includes the amount that one should have at a time – no more than four Chinese liters. Han Shi explains this concept as:

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Drinking one Chinese liter of wine with “jue” is the best, drinking two

Chinese liters with “gu” is good enough, drinking three Chinese liters with

“zhi” is acceptable, drinking four liters with “jue” is a lot and wrong, and

drinking five Chinese liters with “san” is too much (⼀升曰爵。爵，盡也，

⾜也。⼆升曰觚。觚，寡也。飲當寡少。三升曰觶。觶，適也。飲者

當適。四升曰角。角，觸也。次不自適，觸罪過也。五升曰散。散，

訕也。飲不自節，為⼈謗訕也。). (Du, Kong, Li, & Pu, 2001, pp. 174-

175)

From this perspective, it is an animal’s horn is seen as the primitive form of wine jug, acts measuring one’s tolerance, and values his/her personality (good or bad) by drinking wine from a horn. Therefore, the connections between the Oracle script

“horn ( )” and “the tenth earthly branch ( )” in all the three layers demonstrate the origin of wine vessel linguistically, and the ideological convention of wine culture in

China – drinking wine should follow ethical roles and manners, otherwise it is inappropriate (Figure 6.4). In the next phase, deeper investigation is going to conduct, mapping the result to the archaeology findings (the bottom-pointed vessel).

Figure 6.4 Relations between the Chinese ideographs

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(2) Bottom-pointed vessel

In over 2,000 years of civilization, Chinese people have created countless objects, arts, and architecture with embodied meaning, though most of them are destroyed. Thus, one of the main tasks of this research is to revive these precious traditions, and to make them applicable to contemporary design. Additionally, to fully demonstrate the origin of wine vessel, hard evidence is required beside the linguistic deduction. In this research, the authors select “bottom-pointed vessel” as research object, which is thought as the possible origin of wine container.

• Introduction of bottom-pointed vessel

As one of the major pottery wares in the Neolithic Age, the “Bottom-pointed vessel” distributes widely throughout China, including the Yangshao Culture site (around the upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River), the Dawenkou Culture site

(around the lower reaches of the Yellow River) and the ancient Shu Culture site (in the Sichuan province). Despite of different characteristics of layouts in vessels, the essential parts are similar. According to archaeological references, there are three representative types of “bottom-pointed vessel” in general (Table 6.1): “pointed- bottom jar” in both the Yangshao culture site and the Dawenkou culture site, “Small mouth bottle with pointed bottom” in the Yangshao culture site, and “Bottom- pointed cup” in the ancient Shu culture site. In the section, the author uses artifacts in the “origination period” of material culture history of China because such kind of vessel only exist from 5000 to 650 B.C., and then it evolves to various of different forms of artifacts with the original appearances lost. However, by examining those

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ancient vessels, the author could not only go back to the starting point of Chinese people making artifacts, but also find the embodiment in man-made things.

Table 6.1 Different types of “bottom-pointed vessel” in the Neolithic Age

Culture site Name of vessel Typical shape Generic figure

Yangshao small mouth bottle (5000-3000 B.C.) with pointed bottom

Yangshao (5000-3000 B.C.) bottom-pointed jar

Dawenkou (4100-2600 B.C.)

Shu bottom-pointed cup (2800-650 B.C.)

As Clearly shown in the table, design of the three types of “bottom-pointed vessel” shows the resemblance of deep abdomen with a pointed base, while appears variously in details, like bottle necks (thin or open), body curves (straight or curvilinear), and decoration styles. The reason of this variety may rely on the technique levels, the regional disparities, the environmental changes, the era differences, and so on. However, it can be ascertained that “bottom-pointed vessel” acts as a classic shape when Chinese people start to make an object in ancient times, and shows the primal thought how they learn from the nature – to make the vessel like animal’s horn.

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• Psychological analysis of “bottom-pointed vessel”

Norman and Ortony (2003) propose that people’s response to a design is divided into three levels: the “Visceral level,” the “Behavioral level,” and the “Reflective level.”

To start with, the author draws upon the typical appearance of “bottom-pointed vessel,” and generalizes the generic figure of vessels (see Table 6.1). Not only because those ceramic bottles share the same features of design, but also due to their identical period with it and with the emergence of primal Chinese characters (Ning Wang,

2002, p. 1). Thus the “Visceral level” of “bottom-pointed vessel” includes the material of coarse argil, the color of maroon or grey, a straight body with pointed bottom, and straight edges below the neck.

In the next “Behavioral level” which involves the usage of the vessel, several arguments in academic research are listed, such as dip-bucket, admonitory vessel (欹

器, 宥坐之器), sacrificial vessel, irrigation vessel, soul container, and cooking utensil

(L. Wang, 2013, pp. 16-19). Among them is the admonitory vessel (欹器, 宥坐之器) that ancient lords of China usually put on the right-hand side of their thrones.

Because of its pointed bottom, it only can “stand up” when half-filled. Otherwise it must lean when empty, or falls down when it is full (<荀⼦宥坐>: 孔⼦曰：吾聞宥

坐之器者，虛則欹，中則正，滿則覆。) (Table 6.2). Such physical characteristics might be explained by an experiment held by a Chinese scholar Cheng Jun (2008), who designs a special structure of the bottom-pointed vessel that may achieve the status of “standing up (中則正):” There is a hollow space on the right side of the bottle from the bottom to the ½ height. So when it is empty, the weight of the left side is greater than the right, so the bottle would be inclined (Figure 6.5a); when it is half-filled (till the “1/2H”), the weight of the left and the right are balanced, making

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the bottle standing still (Figure 6.5b); while it would fall down on the floor if it is filled full of water (the weight of the right side is greater than the left, Figure 6.5c).

Based on that, both Wang RenXiang (2003) and Su BingQi (1991) consider the

“bottom-pointed vessel” as “ritual vessel,” which is used for expressing the reverence to gods. Hence the function of “bottom-pointed vessel” is given by the disposition:

Warning people (or lords) to be appropriate (half-filled), not to do anything excessive (full), nor nothing (empty).

Table 6.2 The usage of “bottom-pointed vessel” as the admonitory vessel (欹器)

Leaning Standing Falling down Comment

(empty) (half-filled) (full) 欹/inclined

hanging up overturn

putting in sink water

on the ground fall down

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(a) (b) (c) Figure 6.5 Chen Jun’s design of structure of the “bottom-pointed vessel”

On the fundamental of functions, the “Reflective level” of “bottom-pointed vessel” can be finally extracted: If it is as considered as a tool for taking water (dip- bucket), irrigating farmland (irrigation vessel), and making food, the understanding of the jar may rely on the people’s survival necessity and knowing the natural law.

While if it is used as persuading the governors (admonish vessel) and worshipping gods (sacrificial vessel), it fits the meaning of mankind’s self-awareness. For one thing, in the book XunZi YouZuo, Xu Zi suggests the metaphorical meaning of the jar as being the most valuable quality of one is abstinent (<荀⼦宥坐>: 中則正，滿

則覆，虛則欹，孔⼦喟然⽽嘆曰：籲！惡有滿⽽不覆者哉。). An example is given by the “bronze admonitory vessel (欹器)” in the Palace Museum of Beijing. It was made during the ruling time of Guangxu Emperor in the Qing dynasty, in which a bottom-pointed cup is hanged in the center of a metal frame. The intention of putting this vessel in the palace is to warn the king to be moderate43 when he governing the country. For another thing, as a ritual implement, it represents the so- called “sympathetic magic” when people praying for rain in ancient times of China

(Frazer, 1911), that is, priests put some wine (or water) in the jar (to let it standing straight) as an “effect of rain,” and call for the “cause” preparing for it. Not only the

43 In Taoist philosophy, it is believed that one will achieve a natural state, faces a few resistances in life and knows limits by moderating one’s actions, desires, and thoughts.

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“bronze admonitory vessel (欹器)” manifests the usage of “bottom-pointed vessel,” but also embeds the essential doctrine of people behaving on earth morally – the abstinence – in the designed form.

So far, people’s cognition of “bottom-pointed vessel” is given. It could connect to the three layers of Oracle script “horn ( )” and “the tenth earthly branch ( ).”

After the blending process, the cognitive semantics of wine vessel design in China is drawn upon with the demonstration of its origin.

(3) The conceptual blending process

According to Fauconnier and Turner (2002), all conceptual relations between input spaces are called “vital relations,” including change, identity, time, space, and cause- effect. Using the semantic model of Chinese ideographs, one may makes sensorial composition from drawing symbols to complicated meaning. Meanwhile, this connection even occurs when the Chinese ideograph mapping with semantics of designed vessel. Like the former cases, the blending process proceeds following the three phases: the sensorial composition, the behavioral completion, and the intellectual elaboration (Figure 6.6).

Specifically in this research, the blending process is more complicated that engages in two phases. First, the Oracle script “horn ( )” and “the tenth earthly branch ( )” are related, informing the idea of the wine vessel provenance and cultural tradition linguistically. Then, this idea further connects with the psychological study of “bottom-pointed vessel” from external features to connotations. Initially, the CorL of Chinese ideographs links to the “Visceral level” of the jar. From the diagram, similarities are clearly seen in the layouts of open

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mouths and sharp bottoms; as well as in the decoration part: The edges are abstracted into lines when people drawing this representational symbol, which shares the similar line patterns to the Chinese ideographs.

Followed by the sensorial composition, mental elements that matter human behvavior map selectively between input spaces: How people holding the wine vessel blends to the ritual function of “bottom-pointed vessel.” The outcome is deemed as the scenario of worshipping ceremony in ancient times, that is, priests hold half- filled jars with wine in their both hands, and sacrifice it to gods. Such argument stands solid due to the facts of frequent witchcraft activities and physical characteristics of the jar (L. Wang, 2013, p. 18).

Last but not the least, the highest blending takes place between semantics of the

Chinese ideographs and people’s cognition of the vessel. According to the former morphemic analysis, the ConL points to the cultural belief in China, which is normally used in evaluating one’s personality based on one’s behavior after drinking wine. It could match the “Reflective level” of “bottom-pointed vessel” – the moral of abstinence that one should have. Although the exact usage of the jar remains in extensive discussion in the academic domain, either the function of ritual worshipping or admonishing involves the same doctrine of temperateness. Thus, the blended space gets the ideology of wine culture in China.

summarizing all results, wine vessel in China originates from animal’s horn.

Although it is hard to find archaeological evidence of horn-made vessels over thousands of years ago. Throughout the philological analysis and the conceptual blending, a believable inference can be made based on all evidences and demonstrations, that is, the primitive design of wine vessel corresponds to the

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interpretation of Oracle Script “horn ( )” and “the tenth earthly branch ( ),” more importantly, inherits the original form of container that people fill and drink wine – hollow horn. Moreover, the cognitive semantics of wine vessel design reveals after the blending process between the Chinese ideographs and the “bottom-pointed vessel:” People should keep rational and abstinent when they are enjoying alcohol, otherwise it is inappropriate and guilt. One of the best demonstration is given in the book ZhouLi QiuGuan PingShi: An officer called “Pingshi” in the Zhou dynasty charges for preventing citizens drowned in water, also regulating them buying and drinking wine abstemiously (<周禮秋官萍⽒>: 萍⽒掌國之⽔禁。幾酒，謹酒。)

(Huang, 2008).

Particularly, cognitive semantics study of the core ideograph-artifact unit “horn

(角, jiao)” shows the denotative relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts, while it needs more effort to set up the blending. In the next section, the author gives more cases, highlighting the cooperating effect of the denotative and the connotative relationship in studying other units in the “wine vessel” group. Especially with the derivative unit “one Chinese-liter wine cup (爵, jue),” it reveals a complicated situation when matching the Chinese ideograph to the designed artifact. Other derivative units include the “four Chinese-liter wine cup (角, jue),” the “two Chinese-liter wine cup (觚, gu),” the “three Chinese-liter wine cup

(觶, zhi),” and the “seven Chinese-liter wine cup (觥, gong).”

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Figure 6.6 Cognitive semantics of the “horn” unit

6.2 Cognitive Semantics of the Derivative Units

After studying the origin and cognitive semantics of wine vessel in China, academic supports still need, so the author further raises several derivative units in the

“Ideograph-Artifact Group” of “wine vessel,” investigating the cognitive semantics of selected artifacts, and searching for their relations to Chinese ideographs.

In the material culture system of China, designed artifacts are often ruled strictly in sizes, materials, and even decorative motifs. They are called “graded artifacts,” which show the most basic governance of Chinese society in ancient times – the hierarchy of classes, such as in the book LiJi LiQi, it states that when people worshipping ancestors in shrines, noble ones offer wine with the “one Chinese-liter wine cup,” ordinary ones offer wine with the “five Chinese-liter wine cup,” royal ones hold the “three Chinese-liter wine cups,” and lowly ones hold “four Chinese- liter wine cups” (<禮記禮器>: 宗廟之祭，貴者獻以爵，賤者獻以散，尊者舉觶，

卑者舉角。) (Hou, 2008). Here, use of different wine cups is regulated in the sense

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of spiritual values (for rituals) instead of functional values (for measuring wine), which relates more closely on their embodiment.

6.2.1 The “One Chinese-Liter Wine Cup” Unit

The ideograph-artifact unit “one Chinese-liter wine cup (爵, jue)” is so special in the

“wine vessel” group because the modern script of Chinese ideograph “one Chinese- liter wine cup (爵, jue)” does not comprise the core pattern “horn (角, jiao),” while depicts the pictographic shape of corresponding vessel in its Oracle script ( ); then it turns to the associative character (the Seal script “ ”), representing the semantics by assembling morphemic symbols altogether. Thus the study towards “one

Chinese-liter wine cup (爵, jue)” unit starts with the morphemic analysis of the

Chinese ideograph, and the typical layout is given with blending process taking place.

Because the Oracle script of Chinese ideograph “one Chinese-liter wine cup

( )” directly portrays the side view of vessel appearance, so the author uses it as the

CorL of this ideograph. On the following, its Seal script ( ) is brought in for analyzing other two layers in its semantics. Here, the associative unit “sacrificial wine

(the Seal script is , and the modern script is 鬯, chan)” is involved, in which its pattern takes a part in the Seal script ( ). It represents the scenario as “millet made wine is filling in a vessel that can be taken by dagger-like spoon” (<說⽂解字>: 从

，，器也；中象米；匕，所以扱之。). So the denotation refers to a kind of

“sacrificial wine,” in the same time, the connotation of this ideograph is described as

“fragrance of sacrificial wine is served for worshipping deities (<說⽂解字>: 芬芳攸

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服，以降神也。).” In this case, the BehL of Seal script “ ” can be drawn in a scene like “people hold the vessel in their hands.” Furthermore, from the pattern evolution of Chinese ideograph “one Chinese-liter wine cup (爵, jue)” (from the

Oracle script “ ” to the Bronze script “ ,” and the to the Seal script “ ”), the upper pattern is abstracted from the component called “zhu (柱)” on the edge of vessel’s mouth, and accordingly, shares an identical pattern with another Chinese ideograph “sparrow (雀, que),” especially with its Seal script “ ” and “ ” which means “a lovely bird with beautiful tweets” (<說⽂解字注>: 依⼈小鳥也。今俗云麻

雀者是也。其⾊褐。其鳴節節⾜⾜。). Combining semantics of all morphemic symbols (of the Seal script “ ”), the denotation of Chinese ideograph “one Chinese- litter wine cup” refers to “a wine vessel with a bird-like shape.”

In order to fully understand the cognitive semantics, the author chooses the typical layout of vessel as material. First, the “Visceral level” shows a symmetric bronze body mainly with round-pointed bottom, a “zhu,” an extended mouth called

“liu (流),” a handle, and decorative motifs. According to Hou YanYan (2008), this kind of wine vessel is developed from the horn made vessel, and even the bottom- pointed vessel. From the appearance this vessel, the “Behavioral level” is given in the action of “grasping the handle with one hand, and drinking wine from the end of mouth.” At last, the “Reflective level” of “one Chinese-liter wine cup” expresses the spiritual value in two aspects. On the one hand, because it is made for drinking wine, so the semantics has a close relation with the wine culture in China. The best evidence is the “zhu (柱),” which is designed in the abstract portrait of bird or crown

(Lu, 2005). In the book ZiHui, the reason of designing such component is stated as

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“the bird-like ‘zhu’ symbolizes that a bird could fly over the wine surface rather get drowned, metaphorizing the concept of people should not get drunk” (<字彙>: 取其

能⾶⽽不溺於酒，以示儆焉。). On the other hand, This solemn design gives people a feeling of “wizardry,” which let it is normally used as a “ritual vessel” instead of commodity (Wu, 2013), the “one Chinese-liter wine cup” plays an important role in rituals in ancient times of China, and then becomes a symbol of the title of nobility in the Chinese society (<集韻>: 爵位也。).

So far, the blending process proceeds in people’s nervous system between the input spaces (Figure 6.7). To begin with, the CorL of Oracle script “one Chinese- liter wine cup ( )” corresponds to the “Visceral level,” showing the identical similarity of them (which is also similar with the appearance of “bottom-pointed vessel”). Then, the BehL projects to the “behavioral level” of the cup, and further matches with the general action of toasting. It generates the whole picture of the utilitarian value of “one Chinese-liter wine cup:” People grasp the handle of cup in one hand, and hold the body in the other hand, proposing a toast.” Last but not the least, the intellectual elaboration comes, selectively blending the ConL, the

“Reflective level,” and the morality of drinking wine together, suggesting the virtue of “abstinence” in China. That is, when people load the cup with wine, the bird

(“zhu”) standing on the surface of wine may start to tweet, warm them not to drink too much or they would loss the gentle (<埤雅>: ⼀升曰爵。亦取其鳴節，以戒荒

淫。).

From the blending process between the Chinese ideograph “one Chinese-liter wine cup (爵, jue) and the design of wine vessel, the sensorial composition (between the CorL of Oracle script “ ” and the “Visceral level”) shows the denotative

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relationship with the similar outlooks; while the behavioral completion and the intellectual evaluation (between the Seal script “ ” and other two levels) manifests the connotative relationship, which uses the morphemic symbols to metaphorize the values of cup, such as the Chinese ideograph “sacrificial wine (鬯, chan)” and its function, and the Chinese ideograph “sparrow (雀, que)” and the “zhu.” From this viewpoint, the cognitive semantics of some designed artifacts requires researchers and designers to consider both two relationships comprehensively.

Figure 6.7 Cognitive semantics of the “one Chinese-liter wine cup” unit

6.2.2 The “Four Chinese-Liter Wine Cup” Unit

The author has already shown that horn (角, jiao) as the most primitive form of wine vessel in China, while the homograph44 of Chinese ideograph “horn (角, jiao)” represents a particular wine vessel, which pronounces as “jue” in the Chinese

44 A homograph in Chinese language refers to a character that shares the same pattern with another while has a different meaning or pronunciations.

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language. That is, the derivative unit “four Chinese-liter wine cup.” This topic is debatable in the Chinese archaeology research because some unearthed artifacts called “角 (jue)” appear huge differences with the descriptions in classical documents with volumes and decorations (Lu, 2005). On the one hand, it is explained as filling four Chinese liters of wine, while none of those “jue” cups could do that (for about one Chinese liter only). On the other hand, almost all the unearthed “jue” cups show delicate decorations with motifs like taotie (饕餮), cloud and thunder (雲雷紋), and so on, which are unlikely designed for lowly people (<禮記禮器>: …卑者舉角。).

Thus, the author argues that the so-called “four Chinese-liter wine cup” refers to a kind of rough vessel that is made of animal’s horn initially. Examples are given in the

“horn cups” in latter periods, designing in shapes of animal’s horns up set down

(Figure 6.8). Particularly, they can be deemed as indirect evidences of the origin of wine vessel in China.

Figure 6.8 Horn cups in different periods of China

Note: Source from http://sh-junyuyishu.com/2014_0624_190.html, http://ec.artron.net/product/1869601.html, http://bbs.coant.com.cn/showtopic-37658.aspx, and http://zy.takungpao.com/2014/0701/138896.html

6.2.3 Other Derivative Units

Except the study of “one Chinese-liter wine cup” and “four Chinese-liter wine cup,” there are still several units in the “wine vessel” group, including the “two Chinese-

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liter wine cup (觚, gu),” the “three Chinese-liter wine cup (觶, zhi),” and the “seven

Chinese-liter wine cup (觥, gong).” Comparing to former units, they show different situations in semantics though the Chinese ideographs in those units are derived from the core Chinese ideograph “horn (角, jiao)” with other patterns engaging.

They are called “phonograms,” which generally contain “phonetic parts” and

“ideographic parts.” In this case, the “ideographic part” is the core pattern “角 (jiao),” and the “phonetic parts” include “melon (瓜, gua),” “single (單, dan),” and “light (光, guang)” (which are also individual Chinese ideographs with different semantics).

For those Chinese ideographs that “phonetic parts” have no explicit relation with semantics (just mark the pronunciations of Chinese ideographs), and even to the designed vessels: The pattern “melon (瓜, gua)” refers to a kind of vegetable; the pattern “single (單, dan)” refers to a quantifier; and the pattern “light (光, guang)” refers to a natural phenomenon. All of them cannot be used for explaining the wine vessel, more than that, they are unable to set blending processes to the cognitive semantics of designed wine vessels. However, relation between the “ideographic part”

“horn (角, jiao)” and the wine cup designs still exist between them, archaeologist claims the corresponding artifacts are basically developed from a horn made wine vessel, such as the “two Chinese-liter wine cup” is a horn-like vessel with a base; the

“three Chinese-liter wine cup” is also a horn-like vessel which has a base on the bottom without feet; and the “seven Chinese-liter wine cup” directly inherits its shape from a rhinoceros horn (Hou, 2008). Thus, the author draws a table to show these connections (Table 6.3).

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Table 6.3 Derivative Units in the “wine vessel” group

Different Name Description Vessel scripts

<韓詩外傳>: Two Chinese- ⼆升曰觚。 (a) (b) (c) (d) liter wine cup 觚，寡也。飮當寡少。

(e) (f) (g) (h)

<禮禮器><註 Three Chinese- >: 三升曰觶， (i) (j) (k) (l) liter wine cup 觶，適也。飮當自適也。

(m) (n) (o) (p)

（q）所以罰不敬。 Seven Chinese- 觥，廓也。君 liter wine cup ⼦有過，廓然著明也。

（r） (s)

(t)

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Note: Names of “vessels” column (a) bronze “gu” with beast face motifs in the early Shang dynasty, (b) bronze “gu” with beast face motifs in the late Shang dynasty, (c) bronze “gu” in the Shang dynasty, (d) bronze “Futian gu” in the Shang dynasty, (e) ceramic “gu” of Guan kiln in the Song dynasty, (f) ceramic “gu” in the Song dynasty, (g) ceramic “gu” with jasmine petals shape in the Qing dynasty, (h) enamel “gu” with squared shape and beast face motifs, (i) bronze “Fuyi zhi” in the Shang dynasty, (j) bronze “Yachou zhi” in the late Shang dynasty, (k) bronze “Shanfu zhi” in the late Shang dynasty, (l) bronze “zhi” with cicada motifs in the early Zhou dynasty (m) bronze “zhi” in the early Zhou dynasty, (n) bronze “zhi” in the Zhou dynasty, (o) bronze “zhi” in the Western Zhou dynasty, (p) enamel “zhi” with beast face motifs in the Qing dynasty, (q) bronze “gong” with dragon shape in the Shang dynasty, bronze, (r) “Fuyi gong” in the late Shang dynasty, (s) bronze “gong” with beast face motifs, (t) bronze “gong” with curved motifs in the Spring and Autumn Period

6.3 Summary

In this chapter, the author firstly attests the origin of wine vessel design in China, meanwhile, explores the cognitive semantics of core unit “horn (角, jiao),” Then, the study of derivative units are given, including “one Chinese-liter wine cup,” “four

Chinese-liter wine cup,” and other kinds of wine cups. By examining those units, one could see more complicated blending processes in some units (like the core unit

“horn”), and the cooperation of the denotative and the connotative relationship when investigating cognitive semantics of designed artifacts in China (like the derivative unit “one Chinese-liter wine cup”).

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Chapter 7 Conclusion and Design Implications

In the thesis of “A Semantic Study of the Relationship between Morphemic

Symbols and Designed Artifacts in China,” the author focuses on understanding man-made objects from the Chinese written language. That is, this research intends to find a systematic way studying designed artifacts based on Chinese ideographs, and practical approaches to the acculturation in China (the Westernization process), including evaluating existing artifacts and creating new ones. By doing so, cognitive semantics of artifact designing reveals as well.

In order to achieve this goal, the author postulates four hypotheses, and proposes a new method to investigate cognitive semantics of designed artifacts: At first, an analytic model is suggested based on the morphemic feature of Chinese ideographs, focusing on semantics of the Chinese written language (see 3.2 Semantic

Analysis of Chinese ideographs). Then, the author further raises a semantic model for analyzing artifacts by blending the philological model and psychological model together (see 3.3 Semantic Analysis of Artifact Design). By the assistance of the semantic model, the author conducts deep investigations on designed artifacts throughout the material culture history of China, and establishes a systematic database called the “Ideograph-Artifact Library,” including the group “grain utensil,” the derivative unit “meat utensil,” and the group “wine vessel.” On the fundamental of the case studies, two kinds of relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts are drawn upon: the “denotative relationship” and the “connotative relationship.”

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In this chapter, the author is going to make conclusions on how the research contents attesting all the hypotheses – the “Ideograph-Artifact Library” and the relationships between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts. In the following, implications are suggested, aiming to put academic outcomes into practical uses, including the evaluation model and the design approach.

7.1 The “Ideograph-Artifact Library”

After analyzing a number of cases on the basis of the semantic model, the author finds an innovative way for studying designed artifacts (the main carrier of the material culture) in China from Chinese ideographs, and discovers the relationship between them. For systematically examining such kind of relationship, the author establishes a revolutionary library, which is called “Ideograph-Artifact Library.” It shows cognitive semantics of designed artifacts in China, and the coherent relationship between the Chinese written language and man-made artifacts.

Being one of the most major results of this research, the “Ideograph-Artifact

Library” needs to be summarized in detail. Therefore, an overall map of the library is given, which shows the main structure of the library in four groups: the “ritual vessel” group, the “food-container” group, the “cooking utensil” group, and the “wine vessel’ group (Figure 7.1). To fully presenting the library, the author lists the corpus of

Chinese ideographs, and content of the units that correspond to the linguistic corpus.

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Figure 7.1 Overall map of the “Ideograph-Artifact Library”

7.1.1 The Corpus of Chinese Ideographs

To begin with, the author suggests the categorization model of Chinese ideographs.

There are three types: the “core Chinese ideograph,” the “derivative Chinese ideograph,” and the “associative Chinese ideograph.” They manifest both the systematic derivation nature of the Chinese written language, and the systematic corpus of the library in four groups:

(1) The Chinese ideograph group “mouth/ancient ritual vessel” with the “ore

Chinese ideograph “mouth/ancient ritual vessel (⼝, kou).” There are two

derivative Chinese ideographs: the Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)”

(also a derivative Chinese ideograph in the group “food-container”) and

“earthen crock ( ⽸ , fou);” And there are fifteen “associative Chinese

ideographs:” the Chinese ideograph “together (共, gong),” “vessel (器, qi),”

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“meticulous (周, zhou),” “name (名, ming),” “lord (君, jun),” “lucky (吉, ji),”

“wish (祝, zhu),” “ancient (古, gu),” “commodity (品, pin),” “word (⾔, yan),”

“light (光, guang),” “star (星, xing),” “shoot (⼷, yi),” “gift (禮, li),” and

“ceremonial vessel (豋, deng).” Their derivative relations are shown in Table

3.1.

(2) The Chinese ideograph group “food-container” group with the core Chinese

ideograph “utensil (⽫, min).” There are eight derivative Chinese ideographs:

the Chinese ideograph “squared grain utensil (簠, fu),” “round-mouth grain

utensil (簋, gui),” “bowl (盂, yu; 盌, wan),” “plate (盤, pan),” “gourd-shape

ladle (匜, yi),” “pot (盎, ang; 盆, pen),” “ancient wine shaker (盉, he),” “meat

utensil (⾖, dou)” (also is a derivative Chinese ideograph in the group of

“mouth/ancient ritual vessel”). And there are eight “associative Chinese

ideographs:” the Chinese ideograph “wash hands (盥, guan),” “spill (益, yi),”

“fill (盛, cheng),” “oath (盟, meng),” “a status of beginning (甫, fu)” (is also an

“associative Chinese ideograph” in the group of “caldron”) “kernel (皀, yi),”

and “tray (槃, pan).” Their derivative relations are shown in Table 3.2.

(3) The Chinese ideograph group “caldron” group with the core Chinese

ideograph “caldron (⿀, li).” There are five derivative Chinese ideographs: the

Chinese ideograph “bronze caldron ( 鼎 , ding),” “big boiler ( 鬵 , zen),”

“composite steamer (甗, yan),” “cauldron (鬴, fu),” and “caldron with three

legs, a handle and a peak (鬹, gui).” And there are six “associative Chinese

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ideographs:” the Chinese ideograph “half-timber/ancient bed (⽙, pan)” (is also

the core Chinese ideograph), “half-timber (片, pian),” “virtuous (貞, zhen),”

“boiler for steaming rice (甑, zeng),” “boiler (鉹, chi),” and “a status of

beginning (甫, fu)” (is also an “associative Chinese ideograph” in the group

“food-container”). Their derivative relations are shown in Table 3.4.

(4) The Chinese ideograph group of “wine vessel” group with the core Chinese

ideograph “horn (角, jiao).” There are seven derivative Chinese ideographs: the

Chinese ideograph “one Chinese-liter wine cup (爵, jue)”/ “small jade wine cup

(斝, jia)” (is also the “associative Chinese ideograph” in this group), “two

Chinese-liter wine cup (觚, gu),” “three Chinese-liter wine cup (觶, zhi),” “four

Chinese-liter wine cup (角, jue),” “seven Chinese-liter wine cup (觥, gong),”

“bronze wine vessel (彞/尊, yi/zun),” and “bronze wine pot (卣, you).” And

there are six “associative Chinese ideographs” (except for the Chinese

ideograph “one Chinese-liter wine cup”/ “small jade wine cup”): the Chinese

ideograph “the tenth earthly branch (⾣, you),” “aged wine (酋, qiu),” “double-

fermented wine (酎, zhou),” “libation (酹, lei),” “pay respect (奠, dian),” and

“sacrificial wine (鬯, chang).” Their derivative relations are shown in Table 3.3.

7.1.2 The “Ideograph-Artifact Library”

On the fundamental of systematic corpus, the “Ideograph-Artifact Library” is established by adding the corresponding artifacts in. Due to the limitation of content and time, the author only draws upon the categories that close relate to Chinese

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people’s daily life, while it can extend to other topics, like furniture, tool, and even weapon design.

Another innovation is the divers kinds of “unit” which play the primary elements in the formation of the library, including the “core unit,” the “derivative unit,” and the “assistant unit.” Specifically, the “core unit” stands in the central place in each group: On the one hand, the “core Chinese ideograph” represents the basic

CorL, the general BehL, and the common ConL of all derived ideographs. On the other hand, designed artifacts in the core units always are the primitive forms of design. On the following, derivative units derived from the core ones are given, at the same time, share the identical links with each other. After that, the “associative units” are engaged, involving connotative references to the “core units” and the

“derivative units.” As stated, “associative units” do not necessarily have the matching artifact samples but explain other units (the core or the derivative unit). Currently, the “Ideograph-Artifact Library” includes four main groups:

(1) The ideograph-artifact group “ritual vessel” with the core unit “ancient ritual

vessel (⼝, kou).” It includes two derivative units and fifteen associative units

(see Figure 3.20).

(2) The ideograph-artifact group “food-container” with the core unit “utensil (⽫,

min).” It includes eight derivative units and eight associative units (see Figure

3.21).

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(3) The ideograph-artifact group “wine vessel” with the core unit “horn (角, jiao).”

It includes nine derivative units and six associative units (see Figure 3.22).

(4) The ideograph-artifact group “cooking utensil” with the core unit “caldron (⿀,

li).” It includes five derivative units and six associative units (see Figure 3.23).

Admittedly, the “Ideograph-Artifact Library” is still in the preliminary stage, containing limited groups and units. However, the author suggests that the library has a great potential to expand, covering every aspect of man-made objects in China.

In this case, researchers and designers could contribute their effort (academic studies and design works) to it, further developing the library into an evaluation tool (to explain the semantics of existing artifacts), and even to a design approach (to help designers predict possible semantics of developing artifacts). In this thesis, the author spends three chapters to show the detailed study of the “Ideograph-Artifact Library:”

The Chapter 4 focuses on the “food-container” group; the Chapter 5 conducts analysis on a special unit “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” in the “ritual vessel” group; and the

Chapter 6 pays attention to the “wine vessel” group. By doing so, theoretical laws are drawn upon as another significant conclusion of this research.

7.2 Relationships between Chinese ideographs and Designed Artifacts

In this research, the author considers the cultural values – the material value, the utilitarian value, and the spiritual value – as the key factors for understanding the

Chinese material culture (designed artifacts). For achieving this purpose, semantics of Chinese ideographs is brought in, bridging the embodiments (corporeality,

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behavior, and concept) to the psychological responses of people interacting with designed artifacts (appreciating, using, and reflecting).

The author suggests the academic way for studying the cultural values in the sense of Chinese ideographs in three processes: First, the CorL (of Chinese ideographs) composites the “Visceral level” (of designed artifacts), ascertaining the basic correspondence between the two objects; if the first connection is set up, the behavioral completion proceeds, generating the utilitarian value of designed artifacts

(between the BehL and the “Behavioral level”); And the ConL and the “Reflective level” are matched, elaborating the spiritual value of artifacts. After examining typical cases in the “Ideograph-Artifact Library” (by using the semantic model), the author further summarizes two kinds of relationships between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts, which is another major outcome of this research:

(1) The “denotative relationship” refers the semantics of Chinese ideographs in

relation to the corresponding artifacts directly in three processes (see 4.4). For

example, the study of ideograph-artifact group “food-container” – the derivative

units “grain utensil” (see 4.3), the derivative unit “meat utensil” (see 5.2 and

5.3), and the core unit “horn” (see 6.1).

(2) The second one is the “connotative relationship.” Specifically, Chinese

ideographs do not necessarily represent designed artifacts linguistically, but

metaphorize the cognitive semantics of them (see 5.5). Such as the study of

associative unit “star” (see 5.4), and the special unit “one Chinese-liter wine cup”

(see 6.2.1). This kind of relationship perfectly reveals the cultural values of

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China. Correspondingly, the author encourages researchers and designers to pay

more attention to associative units in the “Ideograph-Artifact Library,”

extending the volume and conducting more practices based on the morphemic

analysis linguistically.

All these relationships not only manifest the consistency of Chinese people expressing themselves through language and man-made artifacts, but also offer theoretical supports for developing new approaches. Generally, if researchers intend to evaluate existing artifacts that are designed by Chinese ideographs, all the three processes should be satisfied. And if designers want to make new artifacts based on

Chinese ideographs, they also should start with the conceptual blending.

7.3 Design Implications

Assembling the theoretical study of cognitive semantics, the “Ideograph-Artifact

Library,” and the relationships between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts, the author proposes two implications to the design field: the evaluation model to designed artifacts, and the “Ideographic Design” approach. The former one focuses on how researchers utilize all analysis models to evaluate existing artifacts and design works. And the later one is about a new approach that infuses the essence of Chinese ideographs into artifact designing, in other words, reifying the cultural values of

China in man-made forms.

According to the author, the implications are significant to the creative activity in the contemporary China, especially for the Westernization process. Firstly, they provide guidelines for researchers and designers to uncover cognitive semantics of

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designed artifacts, and to create new ones based on such representation of semantics.

Secondly, results of both academic studies and design practices not only enrich the

“Ideograph-Artifact Library,” but also re-establish the artifact system that acculturate the cultural values of China to the westernized design fashions: When people appreciating, using, and reacting to those artifacts, they may be better accustomed to the modern lifestyle in conventional ways, at the same time, may absorb the ideological essence from either traditions or nowadays.

7.3.1 The Evaluation Model of Designed Artifacts

As an evaluation tool, one could estimate designed artifacts (including existing artifacts, design prototypes, and products) from the perspective of semantics, appraising whether they carry the cultural values of China in man-made forms. To achieve this goal, researchers and designers need to conduct analysis step by step, and to summarize the results from composing sensorial elements (showing the material value) to completing behavioral elements (showing the utilitarian value), then to evaluating intellectual elements (showing the spiritual value). After examining the blending results, levels of the cognitive semantics that designed artifacts reach can be ascertained.

(1) The evaluation process

Like the cognitive semantics study of the units (in the “Ideograph-Artifact Library”), the evaluation process takes places in three phases as well: sensorial composition, behavioral completion, and intellectual evaluation (see 3.3.3). To start with, researchers and designers could pick up corresponding Chinese ideographs in the

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units or in their mind, setting up conceptual blending to designed artifacts, and generating the full picture of their cognitive semantics.

• Sensorial composition

The sensorial composition proceeds between the CorL of Chinese ideographs and the “Visceral level” of designed artifacts. It plays as the preliminary part of whole blending process, guiding the behavioral completion and the intellectual evaluation.

If this stage fails (to composite), the latter phases cannot continue, which means, researchers and designers may need to choose other Chinese ideographs as the blending objects.

• Behavioral completion

Subsequently, researchers and designers could match the BehL of Chinese ideographs to the “Behavioral level” of designed artifacts, revealing the utilitarian value of cognitive semantics.

• Intellectual evaluation

At last, the evaluation process enters the intellectual evaluation phase, mapping the

ConL of Chinese ideographs and the “Reflective level” of designed artifacts. Result of this phase shows the spiritual value, and integrates the cognitive semantics of designed artifacts.

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(2) The cognitive semantics levels

Combining all results of the evaluation process, researchers and designers enable to grade the cognitive semantics of designed artifacts in three levels: the “sensorial level,” the “behavioral level,” and the “intellectual level.” It does not mean that a designed artifact shows the essence of Chinese material culture only if it reaches all the levels, one could say that it embodies the cultural values to a certain extent given by the evaluation results. Moreover, researchers and designers could find a clear clue of where the designed artifact manifesting the cultural values; of where it is missing; and of where it is lacking illustrations.

• The “sensorial level”

When the sensorial composition is completed, one may deem that a designed artifact reaches the “sensorial level” of semantics. Alternatively, if a designed artifact fails to reach the “sensorial level,” it cannot get the other two levels, or even is not suitable for the evaluation model. Example can be given in the Xu ZiJun’s “sexual furniture” design (see 2.3.3), they share the similar character-like shapes with Chinese ideographs, so they may reach the “sensorial level” but fail to acquire other levels due to meaningless strokes and patterns.

• The “behavioral level”

A designed artifact could reach the “behavioral level” as long as its functions and usages successfully match to the BehL of corresponding Chinese ideograph(s), suggesting the utilitarian value of cognitive semantics. Rather than the practicality and the accessibility of a designed artifact, the “behavioral level” concerns more about

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whether a designed artifact carries the habitual acts of the Chinese people, which are shown by the Chinese ideograph(s). Taking the “Moon Reach Ladder” design as an example (see 2.3.2), Mak sets up the completion between the function of a ladder (to climb up) to the connotation of Chinese ideograph “moon (月, yue)” (嫦娥奔月), generating the utilitarian value of the ladder as “reaching the moon by climbing up.”

• The “intellectual level”

If the “Reflective level” of a designed artifact maps to the ConL of Chinese ideograph(s), it shows the spiritual value of cognitive semantics, and reaches the

“intellectual level.” Specifically, this phase involves either or both denotation and the connotation blending: On the one hand, denotation of the ConL may match to the primary design intention, suggesting the basic concept of designed artifact (what is it). On the other hand, the blending may take place between self-expression and connotation, which elucidates the spiritual value in depth (how the designer put personal understanding of native culture in the physical form). For instance, Mak infuses his thought of “farming” into the fruit plate of “Tian” (see 2.3.2), which means, both denotation and connotation of the Chinese ideograph “farmland (田, tian)” match to the “Reflective level” of the plate making, representing the spiritual value as “fruits (in the plate) are growing on the farmland, and users harvest them when they are mature.

(3) An evaluation case of the “yii lamp”

Here, the author is going to give a holistic design example to illustrate the evaluation model – the “yii lamp,” which is designed by a Taiwan designer Wang Hung-Hsiang

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(2015). Inspired by a Taiwan myth, Wang quotes a native fairy story: In ancient times, there was a huge sun in the sky without the moon. The sunshine burned everything, making people suffer from the prolonged drought. A hero in the “Thao tribe” devoted himself to this severe challenge, shooting the sun into two parts. The bigger part of the sun became a milder sun rising in daytime, whereas the smaller one became a feminine moon appearing at night. Thus, the natural environment became much friendlier and more energetic than ever before.

Such heroic deed also reminds Wang about the Chinese ideograph “shoot (the

Seal script is , ⼷, yi),” which metaphorically represents the activity as “hunting.” In the book ShuoWenJieZi, this ideograph is explained as “chopping tree to a sharp stick, and making it into a bow” (<說⽂解字>: 橜也。象折⽊衺銳著形。). The meaning is either shown in its pattern, especially with the Seal script of “ .” It directly depicts the original shape of a bow (as the CorL), and the scenario of people chopping a tree for making weapon (as the BehL). After a bow is made, they may use it hunting beasts for food (meat) and clothes (skin). Hence, the Chinese ideograph “shoot (⼷)” not only refers to a kind of ancient weapon (bow) as the denotation, but also connotes the hunting activity in ancient times (as the ConL). The designer further conducts a series blending, and dispose elements in the lamp design, including the

“head-body-base structure” (as the “Visceral level”), the function of adjusting light

(as the “Behavioral level”), and the “Reflective level” – bringing light (wisdom) to people when they are reading.

To evaluate this “yii lamp” design, researchers need to strictly follow the process in three phases (Figure 7.2). It starts with the sensorial composition, that is, the

CorL of Seal script “shoot ( )” corresponds to the “Visceral level” of the lamp (the

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“head-body-base structure”). And the similarity can be seen between the pattern of the Chinese ideograph and the designed appearance, reaching the “sensorial level” of the cognitive semantics.

Then, the BehL projects to the “Behavioral level” – “shooting (the huge sun)” matches to the usage of “lighting up and adjusting light for reading,” showing the utilitarian value: People could adjust light by drawing the “string-like” switch. So the cognitive semantics of “yii lamp” gets the “behavioral level,” which greatly combines the BehL of Chinese ideograph “shoot (⼷, yi)” with its function.

At last, in the intellectual elaboration, the connotation of Seal script “shooting

( )” maps to the mental needs of people using the lamp (brightened by lighting).

The result of the blending generates the spiritual value of “yii lamp” (the “intellectual level”) – people may feel enlightened by using the bow-shape lamp when they are

“hunting” for knowledge (reading), just like their ancestors hunting for their necessaries in old times.

As a consequence, the “yii lamp” achieves all the three levels of the cognitive semantics, which means, the designer successfully makes an artifact based on the semantics of Chinese ideograph “shoot (⼷, yi),” and embodies the cultural values of

China in the designed form. Accordingly, people may get the perceptual vibration when they turn on the lamp, and seek for knowledge. Meanwhile, design of the “yii lamp” shows the connotative relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts: Wang uses the connotation of Chinese ideograph “shoot (⼷, yi)” to metaphorize the semantics of lamp, so they could combined into an associative unit

“shoot (⼷, yi),” and effectively enrich the “Ideograph-Artifact Library.”

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Figure 7.2 Evaluation process of the “yii lamp”

7.3.2 The “Ideographic Design” Approach

Besides the evaluation model, the author further proposes a new design approach. It is called the “Ideographic Design,” which refers not only to the artifact designing based on the semantics of Chinese ideographs, but also to infuse symbolized meaning in man-made forms in the Chinese contexts. Besides that, the term

“ideographic” here implies the artifact designing as “assembling meaning in substantial forms,” which means, it corresponds to the fundamental principles of semiotics – seeing all elements of designed artifacts (physical appearance, function, and mental satisfaction) as the perceivable signs and the carriers of the cultural values

(the material value, the utilitarian value, and the spiritual value).

As stated, cognitive semantics of designed artifacts can be investigated by using the semantic model that follows the process from the sensorial composition to the behavioral completion, then to the intellectual elaboration (between Chinese

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ideographs and existing artifacts). So when designers make artifacts based on such statements, they may need to follow the similar procedure step by step. From this point of view, the “Ideographic Design” approach emphasizes the design practice as a “cognizing process” (Figure 7.3): Designer takes language (Chinese ideographs) to artifact designing, and embody its cognitive features to the expression of design. By doing so, cognitive semantics can be given by either designer or user through the perception of language (Chinese ideographs). There are three main phases of the

“ideographic design” process: selection of “ideograph-artifact unit(s),” morphemic analysis of Chinese ideograph(s), and conceptual blending (Figure 7.4).

Figure 7.3 Definition of the “Ideographic Design”

Figure 7.4 Main phases of the “Ideographic Design”

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(1) Selection of “Ideograph-Artifact Unit(s)”

When designing artifacts, intentions primarily come to designers’ mind as

“inspirations.” Normally, they may emerge in various ways, such as the stimulations of physiological characteristics (relating to the physical appearances of natural or artificial things – the material values), the solutions of daily problems (relating to the usages of functional disposals – the utilitarian values), the motivations of mental satisfaction (relating to the self-awareness and thoughts – the spiritual values), and so on. All of them inevitably touch upon the expression of meaning (intentions) in the design process. In that case, designers could choose raw materials (units) from the “Ideograph-Artifact Library” at first.

In Chapter 3, the author proposes the “Ideograph-Artifact Library.” The basic element is called a “unit,” which contains different scripts of Chinese ideographs and artifact samples throughout the history of. There are three main types of units in the library: the “core unit,” the “derivative unit,” and the “associative unit.” After carefully examining the internal connections of the units, the author suggests two kinds of relationships between the semantics of Chinese written language and designed artifacts: the “denotative relationship” and the “connotative relationship.”

After selecting the units, designers could consider the relationships as guidelines when they conduct design activities.

• Defined by the author, a core ideograph-artifact unit plays the most initial part

in the library, showing the original expression of the Chinese people making

things, and setting up a certain group. However, it may not easy to find

substantial evidence in some “core units,” like the “horn” unit. So if designers

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pick the core units (as raw materials), they could use either of the relationships

(or both) freely to make new artifacts based on the semantic analysis.

• If designers select the derivative ideograph-artifact units, they may at the same

time follow the “denotative relationship” when design artifacts based on the

Chinese ideographs (in the units), such as the semantic study of “food-

container” group. That is, designers may directly put patterns, structure, and

meaning of the derivative Chinese ideographs into blending processes,

designing artifacts that the Chinese ideographs referring to.

• As to the associative ideograph-artifact unit, which reveals the “connotative

relationship” between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts, designers

may also take the references from it, creating artifacts and expressing their

cognitive semantics by using the metaphorical implications of Chinese

ideographs, like the investigation of the associative ideograph-artifact unit “star”

(including the Chinese ideograph “star” and the fifteen branches lamp of

Zhongshan). Particularly, some associative units may not have artifact samples,

waiting for designers to explore and to add new artifacts in them.

(2) Morphemic analysis of Chinese ideograph(s)

Differed from the evaluation model (blending Chinese ideographs to artifact samples), the “Ideographic Design” approach does not concern about existing artifacts (in units), while focuses more on the semantics of Chinese ideographs.

Thus, designers could isolate the Chinese ideographs of the choosing units in the

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next step, conducting morphemic analysis comprehensively. In the semantic model, there are three layers for investigation: the “Corporeal layer” (CorL), the “Behavioral layer” (BehL), and the “Conceptual layer” (ConL).

• Firstly, designers need to deconstruct the patterns of Chinese ideographs

(CorL) into morphemic symbols, especially with the ancient scripts (the

Oracle script, the Bronze script and the Seal script). They show the pictorial

characteristics of Chinese ideographs, and the physical features (the material

value) of the artifact designing. An interesting example can be given in the

Chinese ideograph “one Chinese-liter wine cup (爵, jue),” the CorL appears

differently with the Oracle script (the pictorial drawing of the artifact shape)

and the Seal script (the bird-like pattern on the top that represents the zhu

design, see 6.2.1).

• Then, the behavioral information is extracted by the spatial arrangement of

morphemic symbols – how Chinese people interact and manipulate with

artifacts (BehL) – that determines function and usage of the artifact designing

(the utilitarian value). There may be various entries in the “Behavioral layer”

(BehL) of a Chinese ideograph, which unfold the possible functional

information (of the artifact) for designers to consider. Such as the analysis of

the Chinese ideograph “horn (角, jiao),” its BehL includes “horn bow,”

“weapon,” “measuring vessel,” “water tank” (see 6.1.2).

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• At last, the analysis moves to denotation and connotation of Chinese

ideographs (ConL). On the one hand, designers usually could learn the

denotation by the scenarios of morphemic symbols combined and dictionaries.

On the other hand, the understanding of connotation relies on descriptions,

historical documents, and even literature writing. Generally, there is more than

one single entry in the “Conceptual layer” (ConL) that for designers selecting

(to design artifacts) based on their intention of semantics (the spiritual value).

Summing all the results, the holistic picture of the Chinese ideographs (in the units) representing semantics can be drawn. With the help of the two relationships, the author is going to state how it is used to complete the design process, coding the cultural values in man-made forms: the conceptual blending process.

(3) Conceptual blending process

Similar with the semantic model of designed artifacts, blending process of the

“Ideographic Design” also comprises three phases: the sensorial composing phase, the behavioral completing phase, and the intellectual evaluating phase. However, instead of matching Chinese ideographs to existing artifacts (the study of cognitive semantics from the decoders’ perspective), this blending process takes place between

Chinese ideographs and artifact designing from designers’ perspective at first – coding the material value by matching the CorL and the “Visceral level” (making appearance); coding the utilitarian value by matching the BehL and the “Behavioral level” (disposing functions); and coding the spiritual value by matching the ConL

265

and the “Reflective level” (fulfilling mental satisfaction) – generating the cognitive semantics (Figure 7.5).

Figure 7.5 Conceptual blending model of the “Ideographic Design”

• Sensorial composing phase

At First, the material value of designing artifacts comes in detail by linking the CorL of Chinese ideographs and the “Visceral level” of artifact. Both the whole and part of

Chinese ideographs can be used as the appearance of the artifact. For instance, designers might take the morphemic symbol “ ” (on the bottom of the derivative

Chinese ideographs in the Chinese ideograph group “utensil”) as the basic shape when they make grain utensils. And they could directly use the CorL of the derivative Chinese ideograph “meat utensil (⾖, dou)” to design lamps.

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• Behavioral completing phase

After ascertaining the ideal expressions of artifacts, the design process enters the phase of behavioral completion. No matter what kind of relationship designers choose for making artifacts, this process shows a consistent way to them, that is, they could selectively map the BehL of Chinese ideographs to the disposition of functions

(the “Behavioral level”), getting the utilitarian value of cognitive semantics.

Particularly, to some “pure pictographs” (especially with the core Chinese ideographs) that only contain the pictorial patterns, this phase normally conducts by engaging the associative Chinese ideographs, like animal’s horn – the original form of the wine vessel design.

• Intellectual elaborating phase

At last, blending between the ConL of Chinese ideographs and the “Reflective level” of artifact designing takes place. Here, both denotation and connotation of Chinese ideographs are involved in this phase, accomplishing the spiritual value. Taking the grain utensil design as an example, the denotation of Chinese ideograph “squared grain utensil (簠, fu)” and “round-mouth grain utensil (簋, gui)” refers to “utensil for holding grain” that points to the basic function of the utensil, while their connotations imply to the sense of “ritual.”

Moreover, designers who use the “denotative relationship” making new artifacts may need relatively less learning of Chinese ideographs. They could successfully complete design works when they get familiar with the derivative Chinese ideographs (in the units), and set up the connection to design intentions. However, the comprehensive understanding of Chinese ideographs may be required if

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designers have the passion in developing new artifacts metaphorically, and even endeavor themselves in reviving the cultural values in substantial forms. Use of the

“connotative relationship” relies on more complicated situations that designers must handle, such as decomposing the associative Chinese ideographs (in the units), matching them to the artifact designing figuratively (instead of the direct uses of morphemic symbols that referring to the artifacts), and evaluating the cognitive semantics metaphorically, like the design of the fifteen branches lamp of Zhongshan.

(4) A practical design case of the “chao public chair”

In this section, the author gives a design case – the “chao public chair.” it not only fully demonstrates the practical value of the new approach in the Chinese context, but also engages the extension of another “ideograph-artifact group” in the library – the “sitting-furniture.” As stated, the design process conducts in three phases: selection of the associative unit “nest (巢, chao),” morphemic analysis of the ideograph “nest (巢, chao),” and conceptual blending process.

• Selection of the associative unit “nest (巢, chao)”

To begin with, the author chooses the associative unit “nest (巢, chao)” in the

“sitting-furniture” group. The corresponding Chinese ideograph does not contain the morphemic symbol “half-timber/ancient bed (⽙, pan)45,” while its meaning implies the sense of “resting.” Thus, this unit is a perfect object to design new artifact

45 The Chinese ideograph “half-timber/ancient bed (⽙, pan)” involves two explanations: On the one hand, it means “a piece of split timber” (as the associative unit of the “cooking utensil” group. <周伯琦正譌>: ⽙，疾⽺切，判⽊也。從半⽊。左半爲⽙，右半爲片。). On the other hand, it refers to the ancient bed in China (<說⽂> <註>: 徐鍇曰：⽙則牀之省。 ).

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based on the morphemic analysis of Chinese ideograph “nest (巢, chao)” and conceptual blending process.

• Semantics of the Chinese ideograph “nest (巢, chao)”

The Chinese ideograph “nest (巢, chao)” can be analyzed by its Seal script – “ ”

(Figure 7.6). At first, the CorL comprises three morphemic symbols: The three broken-strokes “ ” that represent the layout of tree branch made structure; the bird- like morphemic symbol “ ;” and the morphemic symbol “tree ( )” that represents a tree where birds resting on.

In this case, spatial arrangement of the morphemic symbols shows a vivid scenario of “two birds (animals) rest in a wooden structure on a tree” (<說⽂解字>:

鳥在⽊上曰巢，在⽳曰窠。), which represents the BehL of Chinese ideograph

“nest (巢, chao).”

At last, the ConL involves two aspects: For one thing, the denotation refers to

“a structure or place made or chosen by a bird for laying eggs and sheltering its young” (<小爾雅>: 鳥之所乳謂之巢。). For another thing, the explanation even goes further, suggesting the connotation as “a shelter for the ancient Chinese people, which is used to avoid beasts” (<莊⼦盜跖>: 且吾聞之，古者禽獸多⽽⼈民少，

於是⼈皆巢居以避之。).

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Figure 7.6 Semantics of the Chinese ideograph “nest (巢, chao)”

• Conceptual blending process

So far, the conceptual blending process takes place in the author’s mind, matching the semantics of Chinese ideograph “nest (巢, chao)” to the three levels of the artifact designing. And then, the cognitive semantics of “chao public chair” is synthesized, expressing the cultural values in the substantial form (Figure 7.7 and Figure 7.8).

Figure 7.7 Design of the “chao public chair”

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First, the author maps the three broken-strokes (“ ”) to the “Visceral level,” generating the appearance of the public chair. Here, the author puts a single broken- stroke as the basic unit, and users could build up their own “nests” by combining the units in various ways. More than that, the morphemic symbol “tree ( )” suggests the material of making the chair – wood.

Second, the BehL links to the “Behavioral level,” projecting the utilitarian value as “allowing more people (like birds) resting in different combinations of chairs (like their nests),” such as sitting on the chair, lying on the chair, or even leaning on the chair.

Third, the intellectual evaluating phase conducts between the ConL of Chinese ideograph “nest (巢, chao)” (“a shelter for the ancient people which is used to avoid beasts”) and the “Reflective level,” generating the spiritual value of design: People

(who relax on the chair) are rest in peace in the nest, and even recall their memories of “being at home” when they are in public places.

Overall, the “chao public chair” is made based on the “Ideographic Design” approach. Following the design process (from the sensorial composing phase to the behavioral completing phase, then to the intellectual evaluating phase), the author chooses the associative unit “nest (巢, chao),” and analyzes the corresponding

Chinese ideograph in detail. Then, the conceptual blending comes, setting up the connection between the semantics of Chinese ideograph and the three levels of artifact designing. After that, the author draws the full picture of the cognitive semantics of “chao public chair,” infusing the cultural values into the man-made object (the material value, the utilitarian value, and the spiritual value). In the same

271

time, it shows the connotative relationship between Chinese ideographs and designed artifacts, that is, metaphorizes the semantics of “chao public chair” as “nest.”

Figure 7.8 Blending process between the Chinese ideograph “nest (巢, chao)” and the public chair design

7.4 Limitations and Possible Future Work

In this research, the author proposes innovative statements and creative works, which may be valuable for researchers and designers to conduct academic investigations and innovative practices in depth, including the morphemic analysis of

Chinese ideographs, the “Ideograph-Artifact Library,” the evaluation model of designed artifacts, and the “Ideographic Design” approach. However, limitations still exist that need for improvements and comprehensions in the future. Here, the author is going to raise some of them.

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(1) Although the author conducts study toward series of designed artifacts, but all

the samples are limited in the scope of Chinese material culture. Other

designed artifacts based on the foreign culture are excluded from this research.

(2) Today, not all designed artifacts in China are rooted in traditional culture

(which can be explained by Chinese ideographs). Such as the “shanzhai”

artifacts that copy the appearances and usages from foreign designs with minor

changes.

(3) Both the analysis method (the model for investigating cognitive semantics of

designed artifacts) and the innovative approaches (the evaluation model and

the “Ideographic Design” approach) are just one of the ways to understand

Chinese material culture in modern times. More original research is expected

to conduct in the future.

(4) Even if Chinese ideographs are generally accepted as the initial carriers of

Chinese material culture, some artifacts in the cultural material system cannot

be viewed from the perspective of Chinese ideographs. For instance, the

sheep-like candleholder and the oblate bottle in the Wei-Jin period of China

(see Figure 2.5a and b).

(5) Currently, the “Ideograph-Artifact Library” engages only four to five groups

(the “food-container” group, the “ritual vessel” group, the “wine vessel” group,

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the “cooking utensil” group, and the “sitting-furniture” group), which requires

a lot of work to extend, covering more groups and units. It may not only

provide more viewpoints for understanding existing artifacts, and developing

new ones, but also re-establish the artifact system of China that fits the

acculturation (the Westernization process).

(6) To fully attest the “Ideographic Design” approach, more design practices are

required, further completing the applicability and the practicality of the new

approach. Meanwhile, it will enrich the content of library (the “Ideograph-

Artifact Library”), which make it become a valuable database for academic

research and design activity in the Chinese context.

274

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