Abstract
The Reform Movement of 1898 was a reform movement to abolish the old system and learn from the West. Talent is the core of this reform. In view of the fact that Chinese traditional talent view can’t compete with the modern scientific and technological civilization of eastern and western powers, the reformers in the 1898 movement pointed out that the imperial examination system, the talent selection system in the Qing dynasty, could not select useful talents. As the most important examination style of this system, the eight-legged essay became the target of public criticism. However, the reformers’ descriptions of the selection system in Qing dynasty are often overcorrected and exaggerated.These unrealistic descriptions lead to a series of misunderstandings about the imperial examinations and the eight-legged essay in Ming and Qing dynasties. We should see that the three-game system of selecting scholars has experienced a process of change before and after. Emperor Qianlong’s intervention in making papers and selecting scholars directly led to substantial changes in the eight-part writing style. We should adopt the historical attitude of seeking truth from facts, and make a proper assessment of the historical value and modern destiny of the eight-part writing style.
Keywords
Prohibit to use the books after Zhou Dynasty, Fan-Xia(refer to the following), talent selection only based on regular script
First Page
52
Last Page
61
Recommended Citation
Chen, Weizhao. 2022. "The Reform Movement of 1898 and the Modern Fate of Eight-Legged Essay." Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art 42, (4): pp.52-61. https://tsla.researchcommons.org/journal/vol42/iss4/6
