Hou Hanshu

source:http://paper-republic.org/lucasklein/footnotes/

All in all, I think the Hou Hanshu could be considered as a historical writing. I personally believe historical writings to be close to what Fan Ye gathered in Hou Hanshu writings. Historical writings usually have historical events (wars, raids, peace treaties, rebellions, migrations, …) and their corresponding dates. It would probably include names of important individuals during those events, their responsibilities, personalities and outcome of their roles in each event too. Also, it probably includes excerpts and reports of officials about certain events or the everyday interactions of people in towns, villages, cities. Oh, and personal accounts of those involved in journals or papers of generals, soldiers, travelers and so on. And judging based on the great details Fan ye provides, the events and dates he outlines and excerpts he took from various reports and journals of those involved, its kind of obvious that you could consider Hou Hanshu as a historical piece of writing, or at least I would!!!!

I was really amazed by the extent of details in which Fan Ye described the different kingdoms. It kind of amazing how they used to have so much information about different kingdoms in distant lands. I think the number of households, individuals, those able to bear arms and … all constitute ethnographic descriptions. I understand ethnography to be a descriptive study of social life and culture of a specific group based on what they actually do on everyday basis and how they live their lives. Or at least I think that’s what ethnography is!!! What I got from it all is that I felt Fan Ye was really offering a genuine description of the accounts he had of the different kingdoms and I didn’t sense any bias in his descriptions. I guess except when he was describing the Roman Empire, which I felt, he was really romanticizing them too much. Especially after he described them as honest and tall and like the people of middle kingdom (China). And then he goes on and on about how great they are… their governance…. Their food supply… their prices…. The dresses they were… and… !!!