It is a history of existence, a history of resisting the dark and chaotic mainstream society, and describes with legendary brushstrokes the constant struggle, success and failure of a group of people on the edge of society at that time for dignified survival. It praises the rebels who dare to resist evil bureaucrats, safeguard their own interests, and do not bow to the powerful, and pointedly points out the social contradiction of "officials forcing the people to rebel".
As a novel written in the vernacular in the history of China, Water Margin has a great influence on later generations. The Water Margin has been adapted into various folk arts. Now it has been made into a TV series.
Between the lines of the book, there are various moral concepts, such as disregarding life and death, valuing righteousness over profit, daring to act, robbing the rich and helping the poor, upholding justice for heaven and even "being loyal to the monarch and fighting corruption", which have greatly influenced the public's criteria for judging right and wrong, good and evil. ?
There is also a saying in modern folks: "Young people don't read the outlaws of the Marsh, while old people don't read the Three Kingdoms", which means that young people don't read the outlaws of the Marsh, otherwise they will easily yearn for a life of fighting and killing, and blindly advocate force and loyalty in rivers and lakes.
From a historical point of view, the focus of the debate in Water Margin is the thought of "loyal to the monarch and serving the country" shown by the main character Song Jiang. The opposite view generally holds that Song Jiang's thought has its limitations. After the Liangshan hero was wooed, he conquered the mountain thief for the court, which had a tragic ending and was a historical tragedy.
The works glorify and beautify Song Jiang, but only oppose corrupt officials, not the emperor, and emphasize "loyalty", showing serious ideological limitations. Generally speaking, the positive view is that compared with other rough heroes, Song Jiang's ideological progress can play a positive role in the society at that time.
Baidu Encyclopedia-Water Margin