Statesman, Patriot, and General in Ancient China; Three Shih Chi Biographies of the Ch'in Dynasty (255-206-B.C.), Translated and Discussed by Derk Bodde
New Haven, Connecticut: American Oriental Society, 1940. Presumed First Edition, First printing thus. Hardcover. xi, [1], 75 pages. Ex-Library with the usual library markings. Cover has worn edges. Bookseller sticker inside front cover. This is Volume 17 of the American Oriental Series. Includes Footnotes. Preface; The Biography of Lu Pu-wei, with translation of the text and discussion of the text; The Biography of Ching K'o, with translation of the text, discussion of the text, and an additional note; and The Biography of Meng T'ien, with translation of the text, and discussion of the text. Also contains Conclusion, A Note on Karlgren's Grammatical Method for the Analysis of Early Chinese Texts, and an Index. Some of the text is in Chinese. Ssu-ma Ch'ien and his father, Ssu-ma T'an, remain even today among the world's great historians, and their Shih Chi is one of the most valuable sources for our knowledge of ancient China. Derk Bodde (March 9, 1909 – November 3, 2003) was an American sinologist and historian of China known for his pioneering work on the history of the Chinese legal system. Bodde received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University in 1930. He spent six years (1931-1937) studying in China on a fellowship. He earned a doctorate in Chinese Studies from the University of Leiden March 3, 1938. When the Fulbright scholarship program was initiated in 1948, Bodde was the first American recipient of a one-year fellowship, which he spent studying in Beijing. He spent several decades as Professor of Chinese Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, and was a president of the American Oriental Society (1968–69). Dr. Bodde, who taught at the University of Pennsylvania for 37 years, was known as an expert on the Qin dynasty of the late third century B.C., as the translator of Feng Youlan's huge history of Chinese philosophy, as an analyst of Chinese law of the 18th and early 19th centuries and as a shrewd observer of Chinese politics of the late 1940's During WWII he served with the Office of Strategic Services.
Lü Buwei (291–235 BC) was a Chinese businessman and politician of the Qin state during the Warring States period. Originally an influential merchant from the Wey state, Lü Buwei met and befriended King Zhuangxiang of Qin, who was then a minor prince serving as a hostage in the Zhao state. Through bribes and machinations, Lü Buwei succeeded in helping King Zhuangxiang become the heir apparent to the Qin throne. In 249 BC, after King Zhuangxiang ascended the throne following the death of his father, King Xiaowen, he appointed Lü Buwei as his chancellor and ennobled him as "Marquis Wenxin". After King Zhuangxiang's death in 247 BC, Lü Buwei became the chancellor and regent to King Zhuangxiang's young son, Ying Zheng, who later became Qin Shi Huang (First Emperor of the Qin Dynasty).
Jing Ke (? – 227 BC) was a retainer of Crown Prince Dan of the Yan state and renowned for his failed assassination attempt of King Zheng of the Qin state, who later became Qin Shi Huang, China's first emperor (reign from 221 BC to 210 BC).
Meng Tian (died 210 BC) was a Chinese inventor and military general of the Qin dynasty who distinguished himself in campaigns against the Xiongnu and in the construction of the Great Wall of China. He was the elder brother of Meng Yi. He descended from a great line of military generals and architects. His father, Meng Wu, was also a general who served as a deputy to Wang Jian. Condition: Fair.
Keywords: Ancient China, Lu Pu-wei, Ching K'o; Meng T'ien, Karlgren, Hu-hai, Statesman, Patriot, General, Qin Dynasty, Lu Buwei, Jing Ke
[Book #79343]
Price: $65.00