Sima Qian

Sima Qian (ca. 145–90 BC) (also spelled Sou-ma Ch'ien), was a Prefect of the Grand Scribes of the Han Dynasty. He is regarded as the father of Chinese historiography because of his highly praised work, Shiji (Records of the Grand Historian), an overview of the history of China covering more than two thousand years. His definitive work laid the foundation for later Chinese historiography.

Sima Qian was born, grew up and raised in a family of historiographers. His father served as the Prefect of the Grand Scribes. His main responsibilities were managing the imperial library and calendar. Under the influence of his father Sima Qian was well versed in old writings. He was the student of the famous Confucians. At the age of twenty, with the support of his father, Sima Qian started a journey throughout the country, collecting useful first-hand historical records. The purpose of his journey was to verify the ancient rumors and legends and to visit ancient monuments, including the renowned graves of the ancient sage kings Yu and Shun.

After his travels, he was chosen to be the Palace Attendant in the government whose duties were to inspect different parts of the country. In 110 BC Sima Qian was sent westward on a military expedition against some "barbarian" tribes. That year, his father fell ill. Suspecting his time was running out, he summoned his son back to complete the historical work he had begun. Sima Tan wanted to follow the Annals of Spring and Autumn - the first chronicle in the history of Chinese literature. Fuelled by his father's inspiration, Sima Qian started to compile Shiji in 109 BC. In 105 BC, Sima was among the scholars chosen to reform the calendar. As a senior imperial official, Sima was also in the position to offer counsel to the emperor on general affairs of state.

Although the style and form of Chinese historical writings varied through the ages, Shiji has defined the quality and style from then onwards. Before Sima, histories were written as dynastic history; his idea of a general history affected later historiographers. Historians regard Sima’s work as their model, which stands as the "official format" of the history of China.

In writing Shiji, Sima initiated a new writing style by presenting history in a series of biographies. His work extends over 130 chapters — not in historical sequence, but was divided into particular subjects, including annals, chronicles, treatises — on music, ceremonies, calendars, religion, economics, and extended biographies. Sima's influence on the writing style of histories in other places is also evident in, for example The History of Korea.

Sima's Shiji is respected as a model of biographical literature with high literary value, and still stands as a "textbook" for the study of classical Chinese worldwide. Sima’s writings were influential to Chinese writing, and become a role model for various types of prose within the neo-classical ("renaissance") movement. The great use of characterization and plotting also influenced fictional writing, including the classical short stories of the middle and late medieval period, as well as the vernacular novel of the late imperial period.

The influence is derived from the following key elements of his writing:

Skillful depiction

Sima portrayed many distinguished subjects based on true historical information. He would illustrate the response of the subject by placing him in a sharp contrast or juxtaposition, and then letting his words and deeds speak for him. The use of conversations in his writing also makes the descriptions more vibrant and realistic.

Innovative approach

Sima's new approach in writing involved language which was informal, humorous and full of variations. This was an innovative way of writing at that time and thus it has always been esteemed as the highest achievement of classical Chinese writing; Shiji wasregarded as "the first and last great work by historians, poems without rhyme."

Concise language

The style was simple, concise, fluent, and easy-to-read. Sima made his own comments while recounting the historical events. In writing the biographies he avoided making general descriptions, and instead tried to catch the essence of the events. He would portray the subjects concretely, giving the readers vivid images with strong artistic appeal.

Other literary works

Apart from Shiji, Sima had written eight rhapsodies, which are compiled in Hanshu, in which he expressed his suffering and his perseverance in writing Shiji.

Sima and his father were both court astrologers (taishi). At that time, the astrologer had an important role, responsible for interpreting and predicting the course of government according to the influence of the Sun, Moon, and stars, as well as other phenomena like solar eclipses, earthquakes, etc.

Before compiling Shiji, in 104 BC, Sima Qian created Taichuli (which can be translated as 'The first calendar'). Taichuli was one of the most advanced calendars of the time. The creation of Taichuli was regarded as a revolution in the Chinese calendar tradition, as it stated that there were 365.25 days in a year and 29.53 days in a month.

Sima adopted a new method in sorting out the historical data and a new approach to writing historical records to establish the relationship between heavenly law and men. He intended to find out the patterns and principles of the development of human history.

Sima emphasized the role of men in affecting the historical development of China. It is the first time in Chinese history that men were put under the spotlight in the analysis of historical development. He also denounced Emperor, who was superstitious, and prayed to gods extravagantly. In addition, he also proposed his historical perception that a country cannot escape from the fate of the boom-bust cycle. With these in-depth analyses and insight, Sima set an example for writing journalistic articles in later generations.

Unlike Hanshu, which was written under the supervision of the Imperial Dynasty, Shiji was a privately written historiography. Sima refused to write Shiji as an official historiography covering only those of high rank. The work also covers people of the lower classes and is therefore considered a "veritable record" of the darker side of the dynasty.