Dream of the Red Chamber

Introduction to Dream of the Red Chamber

Dream of the Red Chamber is a chapter-based novel written by Cao Xueqin during the Qing Dynasty and is considered one of China’s Four Great Classical Novels. It is also known as The Story of the Stone and A Tale of Gold and Jade. The novel exists in two major textual systems: the 120-chapter "Cheng version" and the 80-chapter "Zhi version." Modern editions typically combine the first 80 chapters based on the Zhi version with the latter 40 chapters from the Cheng version, credited as "authored by Cao Xueqin, continued by an anonymous writer, and edited by Cheng Weiyuan and Gao E."

Dream of the Red Chamber is an encyclopedic masterpiece. Centering on the tragic love story of Baoyu and Daiyu against the backdrop of the rise and fall of four aristocratic families, it intricately portrays 18th-century feudal Chinese society and the burgeoning democratic ideals under autocratic rule. With its grand structure, nuanced plot, exquisite details, and vividly rendered characters, the novel stands as a pinnacle of classical Chinese literature.

The annotated edition published by the People’s Literature Publishing House, edited by the Dream of the Red Chamber Research Institute, uses the 1760 Zhiyanzhai Commentary version as its primary text, supplemented by cross-references from other editions such as the 1754 Jiaxu version, 1759 Jimao version, Mongol Prince’s edition, Qi Liaosheng’s prefaces, Shu Yuanwei’s prefaces, Zheng Zhenduo’s collection, manuscript drafts, the Russian-held St. Petersburg edition, and the Cheng A and Cheng B versions. This edition, incorporating diverse scholarly insights, is highly accessible to general readers. Significant textual revisions are documented in annotations, allowing readers to explore the novel’s variant editions.

Dream of the Red Chamber Wikipedia

Dream of the Red Chamber Plot Summary

The novel begins with a mythological prologue: a stone left unused by the goddess Nüwa during the mending of the heavens is abandoned on Greensickness Peak in the Land of Absurdity and Great Folly. The Buddhist monk Impervioso and the Taoist priest Mysterioso pass by, imbuing the stone with spirituality and carrying it into the mortal world. Eons later, the Taoist Vanitas discovers the stone inscribed with a tale and transcribes it at the stone’s request. The manuscript eventually reaches Cao Xueqin, who revises it over a decade.

Lin Daiyu went out

The story opens with Zhen Shiyin. During the Lantern Festival, his daughter Yinglian is kidnapped. Soon after, a fire destroys his home, forcing him to seek refuge with his unscrupulous father-in-law. Impoverished and ill, Zhen encounters a lame Taoist who recites the Song of Good Fortune. Moved by its verses, Zhen composes a commentary and, enlightened, follows the Taoist into asceticism.

Jia Yucun tutors Lin Daiyu, the daughter of Salt Commissioner Lin Ruhai. After Daiyu’s mother dies, her grandmother, Lady Jia, summons her to the Rongguo Mansion. There, Daiyu meets her aunts Lady Xing (wife of Jia She) and Lady Wang (wife of Jia Zheng), the young and shrewd household manager Wang Xifeng (wife of Jia Lian), and her cousins Yingchun, Tanchun, Xichun, and the jade-born Jia Baoyu. Baoyu and Daiyu feel an instant connection, but when Baoyu realizes his cousin lacks a jade like his own, he smashes his "Magical Jade," sparking discord.

While presiding over a case in Yingtian Prefecture, Jia Yucun discovers Yinglian’s abduction. Xue Pan moves into the Rongguo Mansion with his mother and sister, Baochai. Later, the plum blossoms in the Ningguo Mansion prompt Lady You (Jia Zhen’s wife) to invite Lady Jia and others to a viewing.

Dream of the Red Chamber Critical Appreciation

Dream of the Red Chamber profoundly captures the decline of feudal society at its zenith. Unlike conventional tales of marital bliss and scholarly triumph, it focuses on the romantic and marital tragedies of the aristocratic youths Baoyu, Daiyu, and Baochai. The novel’s significance lies not only in its portrayal of these personal tragedies but also in its expansive critique of the four great families—Jia, Wang, Shi, and Xue—whose downfall mirrors the corruption and inherent contradictions of feudal rule. Through this lens, the work foreshadows the inevitable collapse of the feudal order while celebrating rebellious ideals.

Shi Lao Tai Jun Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu are chatting together

The novel’s depth is exemplified by the Song of Good Fortune and the twelve Dream of the Red Chamber Songs, which foreshadow Baoyu’s triple tragedies. Set in the poetic yet realistic world of the Grand View Garden, the story traces the destruction of youth and beauty. Its brilliance lies in attributing tragedy not merely to villainy but to the suffocating norms of feudal ethics—"common morality, common sentiment, and common circumstance"—rooted in millennia of orthodox culture.

Spanning imperial courts to rural villages, the narrative exposes the complex conflicts of late feudal society, unmasking the absurdity of rituals and hierarchies that veil familial strife. By stripping away the "gentle veil" of feudal decorum, the novel reveals the fierce struggles beneath.

Dream of the Red Chamber Artistic Achievements

The novel’s artistry lies in its "rich, complex, and organic" depiction of life. Major events and subtle details alike are rendered with authenticity, unraveling life’s mysteries. Its characterizations—whether protagonists, antagonists, or secondary figures—are uniquely vivid, many becoming timeless archetypes in global literature.

Mr. Shi and the others are at the door

Breaking from the linear plots of earlier classics like Water Margin or Journey to the West, the novel interweaves characters and events into a cohesive, sprawling structure. The Garden’s lyrical settings, described with poetic versatility, immerse readers in its fading grandeur.

The language of Dream of the Red Chamber is concise yet evocative, precise yet richly layered. Scenic descriptions are so vivid that readers feel transported, cementing the novel’s status as a masterpiece of both ideological and technical innovation.

Dream of the Red Chamber Evaluations

Cai Yuanpei (Modern Educator):
"The Story of the Stone is a political novel of the Qing Kangxi era. The author fervently upholds nationalism, mourning the fall of the Ming and exposing Qing flaws, particularly lamenting Han scholars who served the Manchu regime."

Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu are chatting together

Lu Xun (Modern Writer):
"Many in China know of Dream of the Red Chamber, if only by name. Regardless of authorship, its themes shift with the reader’s perspective: Confucian scholars see the I Ching, moralists see debauchery, romantics see passion, revolutionaries see anti-Qing sentiment, gossipers see palace secrets... Its value lies in breaking from tradition—portraying characters as true humans, neither wholly good nor evil. With Dream of the Red Chamber, conventional storytelling was shattered."

Hu Shi (Modern Scholar):
"As Cao Xueqin’s veiled autobiography, the novel unflinchingly details his family’s decline from opulence. The Cao clan’s bankruptcy stemmed not from corruption but extravagance—collecting rare books, hosting emperors, and living beyond their means. Dream of the Red Chamber is a naturalist masterpiece, chronicling the inevitable ‘consumption of reserves’ and ‘scattering of monkeys when the tree falls.’"

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