Many of the works in Liaozhai Zhiyi involve the theme of"son-in-law contradiction",among which Changting is the most typical.By comparing Changting with Qingfeng,Chen Xijiu,Gong Mengbi and other works,we can see that the author has rewritten the story of Zuo Zhuan,which describes the dilemma between husband and father.He emphasized Changting's identity of"mother",thus expressing the ethical dilemma of women under the oppression of the triple identity of"daughter","wife"and"mother".In addition,Pu Songling believes that"rites and justice"is the key to understanding the problem of the conflict of son-in-law.In the author's narrative,the love development of the hero and heroine,the generation and outcome of the conflict have a great rela-tionship with whether their behavior conforms to the code of rites and justice.But"rites"and"righteousness"in Pu Songling's writing is a fluid concept,and the same character may have the dual characteristics of"keeping rites and righ-teousness"and"rudeness and injustice".The similarities and differences in the nature of the characters'behavior determine whether the tone of the story is comedy or tragedy.From this point of view,the ending of Changting is not"happy reunion".Pu Songling's works on the theme of son-in-law conflict are either unsolved problems or lack of solution strategies.This not only shows the ideal side of Pu Songling,but also highlights the cruelty of reality.
Liaozhai Zhiyi·ChangtingPu Songlingfather-in-law and son-in-lawdilemmaproprietydifficulty