The Orphan of Zhao
Introduction
Dramaturgy as a full-fledged literary genre is originated in China relatively late - thousands of years later than poetry and prose, and later than the epoch of the heyday of theater and dramatic art in other ancient centers of civilization - Greece and India. The first surviving Chinese plays are dated XIII century. The famous Chinese classical historical drama - "The Orphan of Zhao" by Ji Junxiang is the first Chinese drama, translated in the XVIII century in Europe and reworked by Voltaire into classical tragedy called "Chinese Orphan." (Huang A., 2003, p.63) The theme of the play, that is, the chanting of selfless devotion to duty and a noble desire to take revenge on the tyrant - was to impress the European public. From the 8th century BC to the 5th century BC. In China, there was the Chunqiu period (Spring and Autumn period). At that time, there were several kingdoms, among which was the kingdom of Jing. In the Jing state, two dignitaries lived - civilian named Zhao Dun, who was very devoted to, and deceitful General Tu’an Gu, who was at odds with the Zhao Dun and intended to kill him. The noble villain Tu’an Gu in the ancient kingdom of Jin destroyed the whole race of honest dignitary Zhao Dun. There remained only a baby, his grandson. At first, the mother, then the two courtiers sacrifice themselves to save the child, the future avenger, and the palace doctor condemns death his son by giving him for "the orphan of Zhao." A true orphan grows in the house the offender, taking advantage of his trust and location. (Owen L., 2012) However, there comes a proper hour, an orphan learns about his background, and just retribution is accomplished. (Huang A., 2003, p.66) Evil, how all-powerful it may seem, cannot go unpunished - this is the moral leitmotif of the play, which with its harsh flavor reminiscent Japanese tales of true samurai duty. Analyzing the play, it is possible to conclude that that the basic idea of the drama is the human sacrifice and a coveted sense of revenge, for which people have to go through many difficulties in terms of morality Imperial China.
Body
The play describes a story, against which the drama is played out, the main themes of which are revenge, justice and self-sacrifice. Tu’an Gu kept thinking about how to hunt and slander honest Zhao Dun. The ruler of Jing believed the slander of Tu. He declared Zhao Dun a traitor and ordered to kill all the members of his family, including servants, more than 300 people. The only daughter of Zhao Dun, was still alive because she was the daughter of the ruler. She was detained in the imperial palace because she was already heavily pregnant. Chuang Tzu gave birth to the child, who was named "Orphan of Zhao." The mother had pinned all hopes on his son, so he would grow up and be able to avenge his kin Zhao. For this woman, he became a symbol of justice, a hero who would restore family's honor and avenge the villain. Learning that a daughter of the ruler had a baby, Tu’an Gu told to guard the gates of the Imperial Palace strictly, to kill the child and, thus, avoid future punishment for his deeds. It must be said that Zhao had a friend Dun Cheng Ying, who was a healer. In order to save the heir of Zhao Dun, he, taking with him a bag of drugs, went to the house where the daughter of the prince was concluded, under the pretext of her immediate treatment. After the tragedy unfolded, a positive hero, who changes the course of events, appears. He hid the baby in a bag with medicines and tried to bring him out of the palace gradually. However, General Han Jue saw him at the gate. Fortunately, Han was on the side of the family of Zhao and let Cheng Ying and the fatherless. He committed suicide by plunging a sharp sword into the heart. Thus, he became a turning point in the tragedy, and gave hope for justice at the expense of his own life.
When he learned that the orphan of a kind of Zhao was taken away from the palace, Tu’an Gu gave a terrible order that if the child was found, he would kill all children under one year in the realm of Jing. Then Chen Ying, who stole the child, found another friend of the family Zhao, Gongsun Chujiu. They decided that the child should be substituted and submitted to General Tu’an Gu. Then the orphan of Zhao and all the other children in the realm of Jing would be intact. Wu Cheng En’s son was just the right age. Then he, with a heavy heart, gave his child to Gongsun Chujiu and, forward the denunciations, said General Tu’an Gu that Gongsun Chujiu hid an orphan of Zhao. So, Gongsun Chujiu and native son Cheng Ying were executed. This great sacrifice was for the honor of his master, for the sake of his heir and retribution. The line of the theme of justice runs through the entire drama, leaving victims in the name of justice. As regards the conduct Gongsun Chujiu, it is reminiscent the saying attributed to Confucius, which corresponds to the Confucian virtues of absolute loyalty and duty: if you are someone’s patrial and you may be beheaded instead of thy Lord - let it be so. Gongsun Chujiu, in fact, decided that the orphan of Zhao is no longer alive. He had no son, and then he fathered a child of Cheng Ying (a true orphan of Zhao kin), announced him as his adopted son and taught him martial arts. The inhabitants of Jing state thought that an orphan of Zhao died because of Cheng Ying, all condemned him for what he forgot about the good of Zhao family and despised his duty. Then, events begin to occur, which become the long-awaited denouement of this cruel history.
Twenty years have passed. The famous general, whose name was named Jiang Wei returned from the campaign. (Huang A., 2003, p.59) Discover all that had happened, he was very angry and severely beat Cheng Ying. Cheng Ying silently endured beatings, the stronger Wei Jiang beat him, the calmer became the soul of Cheng Ying. This is the another example of endurance, dedication and self-sacrifice. When he learned that General Wei Jiang - an honest man, Cheng Ying told him the whole truth about the orphan of Zhao kind. Wei Jiang was very touched and promised to help get revenge. After returning home, Chen Ying told the child the truth. Hearing his story, an orphan of Zhao decided that to take revenge was necessarily. After discovering the truth, the orphan Zhao Tu’an Gu kills and avenges his family. (Huang A., 2003, p.66) An orphan becomes known to all as Cheng Bo and gets the title and ownership of its kind. Following his debt to his father by blood, the orphan kills his adoptive father. This dramatic technique is very similar to the story of Hamlet. (Owen L., 2012) The vengeance, which many waited and that was destined to the fate of an orphan since his birth, is happened. In order to this revenge happened twenty years later, many had risked or even sacrificed themselves, showing loyalty and respect for their ruler.
As a literary and artistic work, the Chinese drama, like the play “The Orphan of Zhao”, is in the genetic relationship with all national genres from "high" belles-lettres, to narrative prose. In Chinese drama, such scheme is implemented as follows: the first act is an exposition, which planes relationships and actions of the characters gives an impetus to the development of intrigue; the second act is a complication of action and the introduction of what is happening in the new faces. Then, the third act is the escalation of the conflict and the emergence of an unexpected situation, and the fourth act is the resolution of all mysteries and misunderstanding, right justification and exposing the perpetrators, the meeting separated, etc. The third act is separated from the fourth according to the scenario with a significant period of time. Fifth act is the end of the story, revenge is accomplished and the enemy is defeated. The good name of the orphan is restored and he finally came into his legal rights of the heir. In the historical dramatic play entitled "The Orphan of Zhao" moral values and cruelty, which is shown during the retaliation, infused. A doctor sacrifices his child for the orphan of the clan Zhao, in order to save his life and, thus, to allow him to be able to avenge his family. It is a big sacrifice, which people bring, following the sense of duty, putting it higher, than their own lives and their own good, for the sake of the great noble goal. The play is imbued with political subjects, describing the feudal conditions, and showing that the lower classes do not have their own choice. Their point of honor is to sacrifice themselves for the sake of aristocratic strata of society. The drama impregnated cruelty, which is inevitable when it comes to sacrifice and revenge.
Conclusion
Zaju finally cemented in itself the synthesis of music, singing, dancing and playing the actual element, which is rightly considered one of the main specific features of the entire Chinese theater. However, the specifics of the Chinese drama against the backdrop of world theater traditions did not prevent her from getting a worldwide fame. The drama was the first literary genre in China, who crossed the border of China and reached Europe. The orphan Zhao committed his violence decisively, arguing his point of view with his steadfast principles, based on a sense of duty and desire to avenge his family. The action of the play takes place in ancient feudal culture, where there is an oppression, clan competition, personal ambition and cruelty, but the power of human emotion, strength in fulfilling its moral obligation shows that in the history of China appreciated the honor and dignity of the people followed their moral principles, even if they harmed themselves. The members of hierarchical societies do not call into question the fundamental values of Imperial China, each fulfills its social role, protecting the family of his ruler and fulfilling their moral obligation to the state, as did the doctor or to the family, as was the case with the orphan. Dedication, self-sacrifice and the desire of justice are themes that permeate the entire Chinese play "The Orphan of Zhao".
Works Cited
Huang, A. The Tragic and the Chinese Subject. Stanford Journal of East Asian Asian Affairs, Vol.3. 2003. Web. 15 March 2016
Owen, L. The Chinese Hamlet: the Orphan of Zhao. The World of Chinese. 2012. Web. 15 March 2016
