courtier or slave. What matters is the form of the encounter: infe-
rior comes out ahead (in the eyes of posterity at least) because of his
or her cultural competence. Over the course of the narratives
in Topical Tales, control over cultural competence appears to slip the grasp of the Traditionalists who helped constitute it, and the
form of cultural competence assumes content that is decidedly non-Traditional.
The practice of quoting poetic lines rhetorically in Topical Tales is not restricted to the Poems alone. It extends to the body of secular poetry that had emerged since the Han dynasty. In one passage,
Huan Xuan 桓玄 (369–404), who seeks to overthrow the Eastern
Jin, hears that the Prince of Liang, Sima Zhenzhi 司馬梁王珍之
(d. ca. 420), has fled. Standing in his ship, Huan chants the following
lines from a Ruan Ji 阮籍 (219–263) poem at the top of his voice:
The sounds of flutes and pipes still linger,
But the King of Liang, where could he be? (13.13)
簫管有遺音
梁王安在哉
The original context of these lines (cited from one of Ruan Ji’s
“Poems of My Heart” 詠懷詩) makes it clear that the “King of
Liang” refers to King Hui of Liang 梁惠王 (r. 370–319 b.c.e.), who
appears in the first chapter of Mencius. Huan’s rather forced application of these lines—based on a coincidence in name only—is
typical of the “breaking off a stanza to seize a meaning” usage pre-
viously confined to the Poems. The cryptic nature of Ruan Ji’s
poems makes them a natural vehicle for this sort of usage because
they are able to support multiple interpretations.
Secular
poems
in
Topical Tales are also performed in their entirety
as an expression of one’s intent, just as the Poems are offered in the Zuo Tradition. In the following passage, Wang Dun harbors a motive in choosing a particular drinking song, a yuefu by Cao Cao 曹操
(155–220) called “I May Be Old” 龜雖壽:
This content downloaded from 130.111.46.54 on Sat, 03 Aug 2019 08:35:15 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
134
Playing the Game
Every time Wang Dun had a few drinks, he would always chant,
The old charger lies in his stable,
but his will still runs the long course.
The fierce warrior is late in years,
but his valiant heart will never fade.
He would keep time by striking the spittoon with his backscratcher until the rim of the spittoon was completely smashed. (13.4)
王處仲每酒後輒詠。
老驥伏櫪
志在千里
烈士暮年
壯心不已
以如意打唾壺。壺口盡缺。
Mather points out that the context for this passage, given in the Jin History 晉書, “implies that the song and the accompanying spittoon-smashing were expressions of Wang’s resentment at not get-
ting a post at court in 320.” 36 In choosing “I May Be Old” as his performance piece, Wang Dun is “cashing in” on the legacy of Cao
Cao—who was posthumously known as “The Martial Emperor”
武帝—casting himself as the cultivated warrior, a man with a heroic
heart and literary sensibilities who still longs to serve even though
he is past his prime. This poetic intervention thus has a pedigree that
serves to elevate and ennoble what might be construed as a selfish
concern for position and power.
The preceding two examples of poetic competence are manifested
as citation from the Poems and secular poetry; the performances serve to comment on events without seeking to affect their outcome.
Any prestige garnered from such a performance results from the
aptness of the citation. When poetic competence is demonstrated
through the composition of poetry—as in the case of Cao Zhi’s
“Seven Steps Poem”—it is usually in response to a challenge. The
resulting prestige is derived from the finesse with which one meets
that challenge. Cao Zhi’s very life was at stake during his per-
formance, but many other performances depicted in Topical Tales
—————
36. Mather, Tales of the World, p. 302.
This content downloaded from 130.111.46.54 on Sat, 03 Aug 2019 08:35:15 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
Playing the Game
135
lack such drastic stakes, and feature a strong element of play in po-
etic composition. 37 General Huan Wen 桓溫 (312–373) challenges his attendants to describe some walls he had rebuilt. When the
painter-poet Gu Kaizhi 顧凱之 (345?–406) captures their beauty in a
poetic couplet, Huan Wen rewards him with two female slaves,
converting Gu’s symbolic capital into economic capital in human
form (2.85). Elsewhere, two friends compete by boasting about their
respective homelands, reflecting the quality of the landscape in their
style of poetry (2.24). A monk captures in words a picture of a
snowy journey for the benefit of his fellow monks (2.93). A courtier
rebuffs a jealous rival with a pointed poem alluding to the Poems
(2.94). All of these instances occur in the second chapter of Topical Tales, entitled “Speech and Conversation” 言語, and exemplify the
crucial role poetic competence plays in constituting a form of cul-
tural competence known as the “art of conversation.” Being a re-
spected member of elite society meant having a sense of sprezzatura, an ability to demonstrate verbal facility and erudition under the
temporal constraints of improvisation. The prestige derived from
impromptu composition is derived just as much from its extempo-
raneous quality as it is from the content of the composition itself.
When fine language and nimble performance can be wedded, it is an
undeniable mark of innate skill and good breeding.
It should thus come as no surprise that a society prizing aptitude
in rapid poetic composition would come up with a way to test and
hone that skill. There are two examples in Topical Tales of a popular game, known as “word chain” ( yuci 語次), in which the host offers a line of poetry using a certain rhyme scheme and topic and each
participant must improvise a line of poetry to match the host’s
choice. The game can accommodate any number of players, who
must continue improvising suitable lines—often taking their cue
from other players—in order to stay in the game. The first example
—————
37. There is an element of play to be found even in Cao Zhi’s “Seven Steps”
performance. Although Cao Pi, in placing his brother’s life at stake, converts what is meant to be a lighthearted occasion into something with grave consequences, Cao Zhi, in the language of his poem and in his performance, still manages to maintain a playful, nonchalant air, thereby augmenting the prestige he receives from meeting the challenge with such finesse.
This content downloaded from 130.111.46.54 on Sat, 03 Aug 2019 08:35:15 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
136
Playing the Game
of the game is also found in the second chapter on “Speech and
Conversation”:
Grand Mentor Xie An was gathered with his family indoors on a cold,
snowy day. He was expounding on the meaning of literary texts to
the
boys and girls when there was a sudden blast of snow. Master Xie was de-
lighted by this and said,
“The white snow in wild flurries, how does it appear?”
His nephew, Xie Lang, said,
“Scatter some salt in the air and you’re almost there.”
His niece said,
“That can’t compare to willow catkins rising on air.”
Master Xie laughed out loud with glee.
His niece was the daughter of his eldest brother, Xie Yi, and the wife of General-of-the-Left Wang Ningzhi. (2.71)
謝太傅寒雪日內集。與兒女講論文義。俄而雪驟。公欣然曰。
白雪紛紛何所似
兄子胡兒曰。
撒鹽空中差可擬
兄女曰。
未若柳絮因風起
公大笑樂。即公大兄無奕女。左將軍王凝之妻也。
This anecdote opens with a domestic scene of Xie An 謝安 (320–385),
a prominent figure in an influential noble family, gathering the
younger members of his family indoors on a wintry day to discuss
literature, or more precisely, “the meaning of literary texts” 文義.
This is a brief glimpse into the site of inculcation of hermeneutic
skills in juvenile members of the elite class. Being able to recognize
what constitutes a literary work in the first place and then being able
to interpret and understand it are key skills for developing cultural
competence. Not only are these skills valued in and of them-
selves, but they are prerequisites to developing the aesthetic sense
and knowledge base required for competence in citation and com-
position. This is why Xie An is “delighted” when a sudden snow
flurry interrupts their deliberate explications of literature. It pro-
This content downloaded from 130.111.46.54 on Sat, 03 Aug 2019 08:35:15 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
Playing the Game
137
vides the perfect opportunity to test his young charges’ skill at im-
promptu composition. Xie An demonstrates his own poetic com-
petence by asking them to describe the snow with the very sort of
line they are meant to emulate—a seven-character line ending with a
(* -í ) rhyme. He even isolates the particular quality of snow—“wild flurries”—that they are meant to describe through an explicit simile.
His nephew comes back with the image of salt scattered in the air,
which might capture the visual quality of the snow as specks of
white, but fails to convey its sense of fluid motion when it is blown
into flurries. His niece comes up with a more fitting image—willow
catkins caught on the wind—and even squeezes in a jab at the
nephew by saying his image “can’t compare” to her own in captur-
ing the quality of the snow. Xie An is so delighted with his niece’s
line that he laughs out loud, giving the senior literary arbiter’s stamp of approval to her contribution. Xie seems particularly delighted
that in this case it is a girl, traditionally among the least educated
members of elite society, who has bested a boy. 38 The narrative immediately indicates the girl’s pedigree—daughter of Xie An’s eldest brother and wife of Wang Ningzhi 王凝之 (d. 399)—providing a
familial and conjugal context for the poetic competence that she has
just demonstrated. She already belongs to elite society by virtue of
her lineage and marriage; she has just proved that she is well on her
way to developing the skills necessary to excel in that society. 39
The anecdote about Xie An’s niece and nephew is yet another
example of the playful attitude toward literary production that
permeates the pages of Topical Tales. The ancient form of poetic competence—demonstrating skill in citation or performance for the
approval of others—endures, but becomes more lighthearted in the
domestic context. Play has its own set of ground rules, and, as long
—————
38. This is yet another example of the fascination shown by the compilers of Topical Tales for salient examples of cultural competence found among juveniles and females. Skills considered de rigueur among educated adult males become remarkable when demonstrated by women and children.
39. The Liu Jun commentary to Topical Tales cites a source named The Women’s Collection 婦人集, which identifies the niece as Daoyun 道蘊 and says that she had
“literary talent” 文才 and that her “poems, poetic expositions, eulogies, and odes were passed down to later ages.”
This content downloaded from 130.111.46.54 on Sat, 03 Aug 2019 08:35:15 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
138
Playing the Game
as these are adhered to, one might get away with saying things that
would not be appropriate in other circumstances. Even in the
company of friends, however, the bounds of propriety can be
crossed. Chapter 25 of Topical Tales, “Taunting and Teasing” 排調, includes an anecdote about Huan Xuan, Yin Zhongkan 殷仲堪, and
Gu Kaizhi gathered together to play a few rounds of “word chain”
(25.61). They set the word “peril” 危 ( *ngjwie) as the topic and rhyme for one of the rounds. The three men each come up with a
fanciful image of a precarious situation, then Yin Zhongkan’s aide
dares to intervene with a couplet: “A blind man riding a purblind
horse / in the dead of night nears a deep pool” 池 ( *d’ie). This provokes Yin to shout, “Look here! That’s a bit pointed!” for he himself
is partially blind in one eye from a mishap suffered in preparing
medicine for his ailing father. The aide’s line is not particularly
insulting—just a bit overdone, perhaps, with its image of a blind
man on a blind horse at night—but it does seem to be spoken out of
turn and among men who are above his station. Yin could have just
as easily ignored the line, as it does not refer explicitly to him. His
choice to interpret it as pointed reflects genuine pique less than it
does his desire to verbally “slap down” the presumptuous aide. The
whole exchange is made in good humor, but the lines of social di-
vision are drawn nonetheless.
The tables are turned in another anecdote from the “Taunting
and Teasing” chapter, when it is a social superior who is making fun
of his inferior’s appearance and poetry is used as a form of self-
defense.
Kang Sengyuan had deep-set eyes and a tall nose. Counselor-in-Chief Wang Dao was always teasing him about it. Once Sengyuan said,
The nose is a mountain on the face,
The eyes are pools in the face.
A mountain that is not tall lacks majesty,
A pool that is not deep lacks clarity. (25.21)
康僧淵目深而鼻高。王丞相每調之。僧淵曰。
鼻者面之山
目者面之淵
山不高則不靈
淵不深則不清
This content downloaded from 130.111.46.54 on Sat, 03 Aug 2019 08:35:15 UTC
All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms
Playing the Game
139
Kang, a renowned Buddhist monk, was probably of Sogdian descent
and bore the appearance of a foreigner. Wang Dao, who was a major
figure at the Eastern Jin court, held a number of prominent posts,
including prime minister, governor, and president of the I
mperial
Secretariat. The encounter between these two men is an intersection
between the epitomes of the “religious man” and the “man of poli-
tics.” Although this anecdote is found in a chapter called “Taunting
and Teasing,” the narrative does not transcribe the actual taunts
used by Wang to tease the monk, and one might assume they were
rather pedestrian; it is Kang’s response that bears recording. The
poem’s first line is derived from a physiognomic principle based on
the Changes, which holds that the nose on the face is akin to a mountain in the middle of the heavens. The second line contains a
reference to pools ( yuan 淵)—a pun on the second character in
Kang’s monastic name, Sengyuan 僧淵 (literally, “Monk’s Pool”).
After Kang uses his first couplet to recast the features of his face in a philosophical and religious context, he uses his second couplet to
imply that the prominence of his features indicates his vigor and
clarity of mind. The poem deftly converts a perceived physical de-
ficiency into an intellectual asset and puts Wang Dao, the would-be
mocker, in a bad light. For not only do Wang Dao’s flat nose and
shallow-set eyes suggest a comparative lack of profundity, his failure
to “read” Kang’s features properly indicates a lack of perspicacity.
Wang Dao’s temporal power is derived from his political position
and attendant economic capital, but it does him no good when he
attempts to match wits in the verbal arena with a monk possessed of
poetic competence.
The display of poetic talent in these cases is largely bound
up with improvisation. The ability to instantly produce an apt
poetic utterance allows one to take control of a situation: to win
an argument, receive a reward, deflect an insult, avoid a severe
punishment, or simply to get through a turn in a game. In many of
these anecdotes, the last person to speak in the narrative is the one
who has just uttered a poem, literally giving him or her the “last
word” in a story of poetic competence. Such stories depict people
who excel in what Bourdieu calls “the ‘art’ of the necessary im-
provisation which defines excellence”—or, more colloquially, “a feel This content downloaded from 130.111.46.54 on Sat, 03 Aug 2019 08:35:15 UTC
Words Well Put Page 21