Technique and Metaphor:Literature History of the Technical Word Sunmao
Starting from the contradiction between the popular understanding and the dictionary definition of the term"sunmao",and focus on a systematical study on the changes of this term and its predecessor"ruizao"in historical literature. The most important conclusions include:In the literature before the Song Dynasty,it was called"ruizao"(or"zaorui") to indicate the mortise and tenon connection in woodwork,and after the Tang and Song Dynasties,the terms"sun"and"mao"began to be used and gradually replace the former;Among them,"rui"is clearly referring to the tenon,while"zao" is the mortise. "Mao"can express both tenon and mortise,while"sun"is only for tenon in the early stage,but extend to both tenon and mortise in the later period. There are regional differences in the usage of"sun"and"mao"("mao"were used in the early days in the south and"sun"in the early north),and there are also differences in the logic of craftsmen and dictionaries (craftsmen tend to use them mixedly,and dictionaries tend to classify them clearly). In addition,both"ruizao"and"sunmao"have evolved metaphorical meanings from technical meanings. Among them,"ruizao"entered the classics in form of idioms since the pre-Qin Dynasties,and its metaphorical influence is strong along the history,however,this metaphorical meaning is often different with technical facts. The study on the literature history of these two words (word groups) of can help us understand the cultural foundation of Chinese craftsmanship tradition,and reflect on the thinking patterns of traditional craftsmanship through the contradiction between the two.
Architectural TerminologyAnnotationSunmaoZaoruiRuizaoThinking Pattern of Carpentry Tradition
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