On Inscriptions of Song Dynasty and the Construction of Cai Xiang's Calligraphic History Image
There are two opposite and complementary imagery metaphorical systems in Cai Xiang's calligraphic history image,the formation of which is closely related to the calligraphic discourse expressed in the Song inscriptions.Ouyang Xiu's inscriptions and Cai Xiang's calligraphy formed a two-way interac-tion,initially establishing Cai Xiang's status in the calligraphic history.Su Shi's evaluation of Cai Xiang's works as"the first in Song Dynasty"provoked controversy,yet his imagery metaphorical model had signifi-cant repercussions during the Southern Song period.Unlike Huang Tingjian and Mi Fu who described Cai Xiang's calligraphic style as a boudoir girl,the Neo-Confucian scholars represented by Zhang Shi and Zhu Xi in the Southern Song Dynasty highlighted the Confucian image in Cai Xiang's calligraphy in their in-scriptions.Through the writing of inscriptions,Song scholars were able to intervene deeply in the field of calligraphy criticism,expound important calligraphic views.The inscriptions,as"paratexts",are highly re-lated to the original works,providing a rich historical scene for a work and effectively contributing to the construction,interpretation and dissemination of the meaning of the original works.
Song DynastyinscriptionsCai Xiangcalligraphic history imageparatexts