| Gong'an fiction | |||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | 公案小說 | ||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 公案小说 | ||||||
| Literal meaning | court-case fiction | ||||||
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Gong'an orcrime-case fiction (Chinese:公案小说) is a subgenre ofChinese crime fiction involving governmentmagistrates who solve criminal cases. Gong'an fiction first appeared in the colloquial stories of theSong dynasty. Gong'an fiction developed into one of the most popular genres of theMing andQing dynasties. TheJudge Dee andJudge Bao stories are the best known examples of the genre.
There are no surviving works ofSonggong'an, a genre of Song dynasty (10th–13th centuries AD)puppetry andoral performances. Judge Bao stories based on the career ofBao Zheng, a common protagonist ofgong'an fiction, first appeared during theYuan dynasty (13th–14th centuries).[1] Bao was a historical figure who worked forEmperor Renzong of Song as a magistrate. Accounts of his life were recorded in historical documents that later inspired the mythological Judge Bao ofgong'an fiction.[2]
TheCircle of Chalk (Chinese:灰闌記) is a Yuanzaju play that recounts a Judge Bao criminal case. The popularity of Judge Bao performances contributed to the success of writtengong'an novels published in the 16th and 17th centuries.[3] The oldest collection of Judge Bao stories is theBao Longtu Baijia Gong'an, theHundred Cases of Judge Bao, also included in theMing dynastyBao Gong An (Chinese:包公案).[3]
The popularity ofgong'an novels diminished in the early years of theQing dynasty.[4] It was not until the latter years of the dynasty that the genre experienced a resurgence. During this period of time, Gong'an novels were politicized as a tool of shaping public opinions towards the government. “Wuxia” heroes, also known as martial heroes, rather than acting according to their own code of justice, would often swear loyalty and work in assistance to a government official figure- the initiative of justice derives from the government's actions, not the heroes'. Thematically, thegong'an works of the Qing dynasty mixed elements of traditionalgong'an fiction with thewuxia martial arts genre.[5] Qing Judge Bao stories were widespread in every medium, from operas to folk performances and novels.[2] Other magistrates like Judge Peng and Judge Li were also the subject ofgong'an works.Shi Gong'an,Judge Shi's Cases, was published in 1798.[2]
In the 1940s,Di Gong An (Chinese:狄公案), an 18th-century collection ofgong'an stories, was discovered at asecond-hand book store inTokyo,Japan and translated into English as theCelebrated Cases of Judge Dee by Dutch sinologistRobert Van Gulik in 1949.[6] Van Gulik choseDi Gong An to translate because it was in his view closer to the Western tradition of detective fiction and more likely to appeal to non-Chinese readers. He used the style and characters to write a long running series ofJudge Dee books that introduced thegong'an genre to Western audiences as the "Sherlock Holmes of China".[7] The hybridgong'an andwuxia stories of the Qing dynasty remain popular in contemporary China.Wuxia writerJin Yong's novels portray more elaborate martial arts and weapons than that of earliergong'an works.[8]
The termgong'an originally referred to the table, desk, or bench of a Chinese magistrate.[citation needed] It was later used as a name for unusual legal cases.[9]Gong'an as a genre of fiction has been translated into English as "court-case" fiction[10] or "crime-case" fiction.[11] The above etymological development is similar to that of "case" in English - a word which originally described the physical depository where documents of a particular criminal investigation were kept, and later came to refer to the investigation itself.
The protagonist ofgong'an novels is typically a traditional judge or similar official based on historical characters such as Judge Bao (Bao Qingtian) or Judge Dee (Di Renjie). Although the historical characters may have lived in an earlier period (such as theSong orTang dynasty) most stories are written in the latterMing orQing period.
Gong'an novels are characterized by a number of distinct plot elements from other subgenres. The "detective" is the local magistrate who is usually involved in several unrelated cases simultaneously, while the criminal is introduced at the very start of the story and his crime and reasons are carefully explained, thus constituting aninverted detective story rather than a "puzzle".Gong'an stories often have a supernatural element with ghosts contacting the living or even accusing the criminal. The plot can digress into philosophy or a series of official documents. The story may feature a large cast of characters, typically in the hundreds.
The Gong'an fiction is a collection of seemingly unrelated short stories, however, they are connected based on their common tropes or crime-related conventions.[12] These stories are usually represented by iconic figures, clothing, and characters.[13] For example: officials,yamen underling, and commoners all wear unique clothing. The depiction of these stories are typically presented to an audience,[12] yet, if the stories are written down, illustrations are used.[14] The stories are generally told by the workingmagistrate, and involve a number of interrelated crimes occurring early in the story. Although, the stories have a common theme of social justice through punishment; the crimes are generally not didactic. In other words, they are crimes committed against other individuals (murder and rape are common examples) rather than society. The crimes are specific breaches in the law, and punishments are generally also pre-prescribed by law. Although the magistrate may have some supernatural knowledge aiding him in solving the case, he must always establish the facts of the case and prove the criminal guilty.[15]
Gong'an fiction is very frequently accompanied by illustrations,[16] such as Van Gulik's personal illustration to hisJudge Dee novels.[17] A re-occurring theme is the imitation of pictures. This repetition ensures readers have a common understanding of what each illustration represents.
This convention holds for pre-Ming full-page illustrations as well as shangtu xiawen illustrations. Thus many early sutras feature theBuddha seated on a lotus flower, facing three-quarters left, expounding doctrine or, more likely, the text of the accompanying sutra, while his disciples sit facing him, often with their backs to the reader. Likewise, if the illustration depicts action (many of them have a strong narrative element), the action tends to move from right to left. This is clearly seen in one ofZheng Zhenduo's illustrations, wherein the act of butchering animals is dramatically shown to lead straight to the gates of hell at left by means of a cloud-like cartouche.[18]
Gong'an fiction is part of a broader category of crime-themed fiction, which includes a variety of true crime stories, like those found in the late Ming dynasty story collectionThe Book of Swindles[19] or in the type of legal case narratives anthologized in Robert E. Hegel'sTrue Crimes in Eighteenth-Century China (2009).
There are multiple differences between Chinese gong'an fiction and westerndetective fiction. While western detective fiction focuses very much on realism, Chinese gong'an fiction stories may involve supernatural elements such as ghosts or spirits narrating their death, accusing the criminal, or aiding in the delivery of justice.[20] The criminal being introduced at the beginning of the story is characteristic of gong'an fiction. His crime and reasoning are then explained in detail, therefore constituting an inverted detective story. Furthermore, the stories are filled with periodic breaks from the crime story and divert into philosophical lessons and moral practices that are emphasized in more complexed books.[20] These stories contain a large number of characters which are introduced in terms of their relations to the main characters. Moreover, the main characters are often modelled after popular characters from western stories.[6] For example,Di Gong An is chosen byRobert van Gulik for its similarities to Western Detective fiction with the consideration that the western readers will have an easier time to comprehend the stories.[7]
Based on traditional gong'an fiction works such asDi Gong An andJustice Bao, many television dramas has been derived to portray the stories with a modern touch. Some notable examples are:
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