Biography

Wang Shizhen was the son of Wang Jun, the governor-general of Datong. He showed extraordinary intelligence from a young age, able to remember what he read at first glance. In 1543 (the 22nd year of the Jiajing era), he passed the provincial examination in Nanking as the 58th candidate. In 1547, he passed the metropolitan examination and was appointed as a Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Justice. He later became an Assistant Secretary and then a Director. As an official, he was upright and did not associate with powerful figures. When Yang Jisheng was unjustly imprisoned by Yan Song, Wang Shizhen provided all the help he could, which greatly angered Yan Song. Twice, the Ministry of Personnel proposed him for promotion to a provincial examiner, but both times he was rejected. He served as the Vice Governor and Military Commissioner in Qingzhou, Shandong.

His father, Wang Jun, while serving in office, was imprisoned due to the breach of the Luan River by Yan Song. Wang Shizhen and his brother Wang Shimao would daily stand outside Yan Song's residence to beg for mercy, but no one in the court dared to speak on behalf of Wang Jun. Eventually, Wang Jun was executed at Xishi.

In 1567 (the first year of the Longqing era), Wang Shizhen presented his case for his father's innocence before the emperor and received support from Grand Secretary Xu Jie. His father was exonerated, and his official rank was restored. In 1568 (the second year of Longqing), Wang Shizhen resumed his position as Deputy Inspector in Henan Province and Military Commissioner for Daming. In 1569, he was promoted to the Left Censor of Zhejiang Province, responsible for Hangzhou, Jiaxing, and Huzhou. In 1570 (the fourth year of Longqing), he became the Censor in Shanxi Province but resigned due to his mother's death.

In 1573 (the first year of the Wanli era), he was reinstated as the Censor in Huguang Province. In September, he was transferred to be the Right Secretary of Guangxi Province but did not take office. In December, he was promoted to Minister of the Imperial Stud. In 1574, he became the Right Inspector General and Governor of Yunyang under the supervision of the Censorate. In 1576, he was appointed as the Minister of Justice in Nanjing but did not assume office. In September, due to a "reckless recommendation," he was investigated by the Ministry of Personnel and his salary was suspended; in October, the Chief Clerk of the Criminal Department in Nanjing, Yang Jie, impeached him for "lack of integrity," and he was ordered to return home and await further assignment.

In 1587 (the fifteenth year of Wanli), he resumed his position as Right Minister of Justice in Nanjing. In 1589, after a three-year evaluation, he was promoted to Secretary of the Ministry of Justice in 1590. He retired that same year and died on November 27, 1590, receiving the posthumous title of Grand Guardian.

The History of Ming has a biography of him.

Literary Achievements

In his early years, Wang Shizhen was one of the leaders of the "Post Seven Masters" alongside Li Panlong. After Li's death, he dominated the literary scene for twenty years. Scholars, literati, monks, and Taoists all flocked to his door. His praise could significantly enhance one's reputation. He was skilled in poetry, especially in regulated verse and absolute poems. He advocated the literary复古movement with the slogan "Literature must be from the Qin and Han dynasties, and poetry must be from the Tang Dynasty." His garden had a library called "Xiao You Pavilion," which housed over 30,000 volumes of books. The Four Treasuries Catalogue states: "Wang Shizhen was highly talented and well-versed; he believed he could achieve greatness in every aspect." However, some critics noted that his works were often imitative and overly ornate. In his later years, his literary philosophy changed to value "simplicity and naturalness," as Wang Xijie described it as "natural," while Jiao Hong said he was "self-revealing," and Qian Qianyi proposed the idea of "self-regret." Sun Kuang wrote in his book, "Mr. Sun Yuefeng's Complete Works" (卷九《与李于田论文书》): "Fengzhou's style originally derived from Zizhan, with a slight mix of the Six Dynasties, later embellished with Zhuangzi and Laozi as well as Sima Qian. His vigorous expressions are somewhat similar, but they never fully resemble." In his preface to "Selected Poems of the Song Dynasty," he said: "The reason I suppress the Song poets is to cherish their style; however, no era can be without its people, no person without their works, and no work without its lines. This is more than just a matter of style."

Works

His historical works include: "National Annals" (十卷), "Compilation of Heavenly Words" (十卷), "Yanshan Hall Separate Collection" (一百卷), "Minor Records" (十卷), "Biographies of Chief Cabinet Ministers Since the Jiajing Era," "Reading Notes," "Records of Famous Officials' Achievements," "Ming Dynasty Wild Histories" (一百卷), "Four Parts Manuscripts of Yanzhou Shanren" (一百七十四卷), and "Continued Four Parts Manuscripts of Yanzhou Shanner" (二百一十八卷). Additionally, he wrote "Artistic Garden Trivial Words" (十二卷) on the sources and critiques of northern and southern operas, "The Phoenix's Cry" (a play criticizing Yan Song, as his father was unjustly killed by Yan Song), and "Examination of Historical Errors."

Many scholars believe that the true identity of Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng, the author of "The Golden Lotus," is Wang Shizhen.

Family

His great-grandfather was Wang Lu; his grandfather was Wang Zhuo, a Deputy Minister of War; his father was Wang Jun, a Censor; and his mother, Mrs. Yu, received the title of Lady and posthumously that of Madam. His brother was Wang Shimao, Deputy Minister of the Temple of Heaven.

His sons were Wang Shiqi; Wang Shidu; and Wang Shijun. His son-in-law was Hua Shuyang.

Notes

References

• Zhang Tingyu, et al. "The History of Ming."

• Song Qifeng. "Bai Shuo."

• Qian Zhongshu. "Talks on Literature and Art."

• Oki Yasuyuki: "Yan Song, Wang Shizhen, and 'The Golden Lotus'."

References

• 王世貞 (Chinese)

生平

王世貞為大同總督王忬之子，生有異稟，讀書過目不忘。嘉靖二十二年癸卯科應天府鄉試第五十八名舉人，二十六年（1547年）中丁未科二甲進士，初任刑部主事，遷員外郎、郎中，為官正直，不附權貴。楊繼盛受嚴嵩陷害下獄，王世貞盡力相助，嚴嵩對此十分憤恨。吏部兩度擬定提學皆不用，任山東青州兵備副使。其父王忬在職守上，因灤河決堤事而被嚴嵩下獄。王世貞與其弟王世懋每天在嚴嵩門外自罰，請求寬免，然而朝中無人敢為王忬說清。王忬最終在西市處決。

隆慶元年（1567年）八月，王世貞伏闕為父辯冤，又得大學士徐階相助，王忬平反，追復官職。隆慶二年（1568年），王世貞起補河南按察司副使，兵備大名，隆慶三年（1569年）擢浙江布政使司左參政，分守杭嘉湖。隆慶四年（1570年）履山西按察使，十月底丁母憂。

萬曆元年（1573年）起復，除湖廣按察使，九月改廣西右布政使，未到任，十二月擢太僕寺卿。萬曆二年（1574年）以督察院右僉都御史督撫鄖陽，萬曆四年（1576年）擢南京大理寺卿，未到任，九月因以「薦舉涉濫」被吏部糾察而奪俸；十月，南京刑科都給事中楊節彈劾他「大節已虧」，令回籍聽候別用。萬曆十五年（1587年）起補南京刑部右侍郎，萬曆十七年（1589年）三品考滿，升南京刑部尚書，萬曆十八年（1590年）告休回里，十一月廿七日卒，贈太子少保。《明史》有傳。

文學成就

世貞早年與李攀龍同為「後七子」領袖。攀龍死後，他獨主詩壇二十年。「一時士大夫及山人、詞客、衲子、羽流，莫不奔走門下。片言褒賞，聲價驟起」。善詩，尤擅律，絕，倡導文學復古運動，有「文必秦漢，詩必盛唐」的主張。園後建有「小酉館」，貯書達3萬餘卷。《四庫總目》說：「世貞才大學博，自謂靡所不少，方成大家」，亦有人指出其作品多模擬仿古，但往往失于藻飾。晚年文學思想轉變，以「恬淡自然為宗」，王錫爵稱其「自然」，焦竑說他「自讖」，錢謙益則提出「自悔」說。孫鑛《孫月峰先生全集》卷九《與李于田論文書》論王世貞曰：「鳳洲氣脈本出子瞻，稍雜以六朝，後乃稍飾以莊左及子長。俊發處亦仿佛近之，然終不純似。自謂出《國策》，正是子瞻所祖耳。」其《宋詩選序》稱：「余所以抑宋者，為惜格也，然而代不能廢人，人不能廢篇，篇不能廢句，蓋不止前數公而已，此語于格之外者也。」

著作

傳世的史學著作有，《國朝紀要》十卷、《天言匯錄》十卷、《弇山堂別集》一百卷、《識小錄》十卷、《嘉靖以來內閣首輔傳》、《讀書後》、《名卿紀績》、《明野史匯》一百卷、《弇州山人四部稿》一百七十四卷、《弇州山人續稿》二百一十八卷等。此外，有《藝苑卮言》十二卷（南北曲源流與評論）、《鳴鳳記》（劇本，以批嚴嵩為題材。王世貞之父被嚴嵩陷害死，作品大斥嚴氏罪行。）、《史乘考誤》傳世。

不少學者認為《金瓶梅》作者蘭陵笑笑生的真實身分便是王世貞。

家族

曾祖王輅；祖父王倬，兵部侍郎；父王忬，監察御史；母鬱氏，封孺人贈夫人。弟王世懋，太常寺少卿。

子王士騏；王士驌；王士駿。女婿華叔陽。

注釋

參考書籍

• 張廷玉 等.《明史》.

• 宋起鳳.《稗說》.

• 錢鍾書.《談藝錄》.

• 大木康：〈嚴嵩·王世貞·《金瓶梅》〉。

參考資料

• 王世贞 (維基百科)