Shi Xiangyun’s character traits
From the above description of behavioral scenes with great aesthetic value, we can easily get the following character traits: outspoken, enthusiastic, optimistic, quick-thinking, heroic, Treat others as equals and be straightforward.
Outspoken: This can be seen from her several quarrels with Lin and Jia, and from her words on various occasions.
Enthusiasm: This can be reflected from her "talking loudly and laughing", from her teaching Xiang Ling to write poetry, and from the impression she gave people on various occasions: "There are too few people in this club." What’s the point of him!”
Lotte: Although Shi Xiangyun was born in an unfortunate way (orphan), he was also in a harsh environment where he was less free than other sisters. But I never see her feeling sad in the book. She is always happy, full of interest and full of interest in life. "A Dream of Red Mansions" was originally a tragedy that returned tears. The positive and optimistic impression Shi Xiangyun left on readers is a hint of warmth and hope.
Quick thinking: This is reflected in his impromptu Begonia poems and two couplets. In terms of poetic talent, Xiang's agility can be compared with Chai's grandeur and Dai's sentimentality.
Heroic: This can be seen in her responses to several injustices, and is reflected in her poetry, words and actions.
Treat others equally: This can be seen from the attitude towards the servants when eating crabs, and it can also be seen from the gifts she gives to Xiren and other older girls. Of course, this must be viewed in the context of the hierarchical concepts of the time.
Frankness: This can be said to be Shi Xiangyun’s most outstanding feature. Frank, frank, one is one, two is two, no scheming, few selfish thoughts. Be straight, don't make any detours, keep your heart and your mouth consistent, and do whatever comes to your mind. Being outspoken is reflected in her words, her enthusiasm is experienced in her attitude towards life, her quick thinking is reflected in her talent, and her heroic spirit is reflected in the euphemism and implicitness of traditional women.
In one word, Shi Xiangyun is a straightforward woman. Frankness, straightforwardness, sincerity, childlike innocence, and treating others equally are typical examples.
3． ?The core of Shi Xiangyun’s character—a child with an innocent heart
Finally, we summarized the core of Shi Xiangyun’s character as a child with an innocent heart. Here, innocence and child essentially mean the same thing, but they are said so from the perspective of understanding. Let’s talk about children first.
Children are the life mentors of adults. This is not a metaphor, but a wise saying in life. People who like to watch children play understand it well. We always miss the beauty of childhood, why? A child's life is closest to the true state of life. Children are optimistic and never waste today for the unknown tomorrow. The child is enthusiastic and can always find fun. Everything is so vibrant in his eyes. Children are outspoken. They eat when they are hungry, sleep when they are tired, have fun when they have energy, and do whatever they want. In this way, there will be less selfishness and less narrow-mindedness. Once people have selfish motives, they will think about the past and the future, and life will be tiring. Children treat others equally. It is said that everyone has a heart of compassion, a heart of right and wrong, and a heart of good and evil. The child's rational heart has not yet matured, but the child's heart is still there. It is most fair to treat people and things equally. Treating others equally is a manifestation of this kind of fairness.
As for the innocent heart. Children have an innocent heart, and those who have an innocent heart are children. The purpose of using the same repetition here is to eliminate the "uninformed, arrogant, and self-centered" contained in the word "child" in people's evaluation of "you are just a child."
What is "innocent heart"? In fact, this is exactly the realm of life that Confucianism strives for. Confucians firmly believe that the human heart is the real master of the soul, and other things such as consciousness, reason, emotion, and desire are all means by which the human heart dominates. The main brain of the human heart is conscience, which is what most people call "conscience." A wise man knows without learning, he is a wise man. As long as we can persist in using the conscience we are born with to guide our lives, we will be able to achieve the highest good. This is the true meaning of what Mencius said: "Human nature is inherently good." The heart of a person who can do this is a pure heart. The Tao of Confucianism is the knowledge that teaches us how to carefully guard our own selfish desires and maintain the dominance of conscience.
In this way, the Shi Xiangyun portrayed in "A Dream of Red Mansions" is rather a typical life than a typical character. But the human heart and life are essentially one. The human heart is the grasp of the static state of life from the perspective of the individualization of life, and human life is the grasp of the dynamics of life from the perspective of the endless life of life.
4． Shi Xiangyun's fate and "A Dream of Red Mansions" as a tragedy
Everyone says that Xue Baochai is the perfect embodiment of the traditional Confucian spirit. This is certainly true. As a science of life, Confucianism solves both life issues of how individuals should live and political issues of how society should be constructed. As the product of these two things, one is the way of self-cultivation, and the other is the sophistication of human nature. Xue Baochai is well versed in the principles of human relationships, but the innocent heart that is the foundation of emotions has dimmed. He cannot escape the criticism of Confucius' so-called "thieves of benevolence". This is the embodiment of the decline of the true spirit of Confucianism in the last days, so it always gives people a sense of depression. . But Shi Xiangyun's innocent heart is still there. Although the skills of emotion and reason and the way of life still need to be tempered, after all, the original heart is still there. From this point of view, what Xue Baochai got was only the surface of the true Confucian spirit, while what Shi Xiangyun got was the inner bones. It's just that the former is fine skin, while the latter is just thick bones.
As for Shi Xiangyun’s final fate, here we don’t want to argue about the merits of the sequel. We just want to analyze what kind of fate is the most reasonable based on Shi Xiangyun’s character traits. The human heart is inseparable from life. In other words, a person's character traits and life destiny are inseparable. Character does determine one's destiny to a certain extent, and destiny always guides one's character. This is just like what Confucius said: a gentleman knows his fate. Confucianism tirelessly teaches a life in which conscience guides life, because they firmly believe that only in this way can we obtain "the joy of life." It is precisely because of this that Confucianism can surpass the Buddhist belief that "life is suffering." Xue Baochai, who was deeply inspired by the external spirit of Confucianism, was generous and easy-going. Shi Xiangyun, who deeply understood the inner spirit of Confucianism, lived in a humble house and never changed his happiness. She was the daughter of a wealthy family, and because her father had both died, she was still enjoying herself even though she had moved from the favored Jia Mu's house to the Shi family where she had no freedom and was treated like a maid. It is not difficult to infer from this that although as the verdict said, "He is worthy of a talented and beautiful man... In the end, the clouds dispersed in Gaotang and the water dried up in the Xiangjiang River." There is no reason to think that Shi Xiangyun would show a pessimistic attitude towards everything but others. Judging from the hints in the previous eighty chapters, the content about Shi Xiangyun in the following chapters will not be as little as in the sequel. But no matter what changes in the world he will experience, we have no reason to think that Shi Xiangyun's happy life will change as a result.
But the problem is that "A Dream of Red Mansions" is a tragedy, and the fate of its protagonists is tragic. Shi Xiangyun's optimism seems inconsistent with the atmosphere of tragedy. Is it really inconsistent?
Tragedy does involve tragic fate, but it is not necessarily pessimistic. In fact, the tragedy of tragedy does not lie in pessimism. Pessimism will only make people despair and numb. The sadness of tragedy is the unyielding sadness of positive human nature under the heavy and unchangeable blows of fate again and again. If the happy ending comedy gives people the moral teaching of "what goes around comes around", then the tragic ending of the tragedy gives people the greatness of human nature after suffering unfortunate blows, and the brilliance of human nature that emerges from the darkness. It is the hope of life that emerges from despair.
Shi Xiangyun’s Lotte is exactly the greatness of the true Confucian spirit. Shi Xiangyun’s Lotte gives people the hope of endless life in despair. The great tragic poet Cao Xueqin seems to have faintly expressed the brilliance of human nature diffused in the tragedies of ancient Greece. Let's look at the verdict of "A Dream of Red Mansions" again: This is exactly how things should rise and fall in the world, so why be pessimistic in vain. It seems that what we hear is not Lin Daiyu’s sadness, but still Shi Xiangyun’s heroic optimism, a kind of true optimism that knows fate.