Record of Knowledge Gained Day by Day
Gu Yanwu, scholar of the late Ming and early Qing, held insightful criticism toward the imperial examinations, arguing that there were only one or two hundred possible questions that could be taken from one of the classics; therefore, if an exam candidate was fortunate enough, they could pass the exams through memorization without having to thoroughly comprehend them. His work states: “the eight-legged essay flourishes while the six classics wane, and the eighteen rooms rise as the twenty-one histories are abandoned.” Here the so-called “eighteen rooms” had originally referred to the quarters occupied by the eighteen examination officials as they graded the exam papers, but later became synonymous with collections of exemplary essays as the officials began compiling and producing such works themselves.
Gu Yanwu censured the shortcomings of the imperial examination system, remarking: “Shengyuan Wu Ming and others of Linqing county are willing to contribute eight hundred dan of rice to beg their way into studying as jiansheng. Shandong and other places are currently short of grain reserves, so it is deemed appropriate to allow the request.” Despite alleviating the difficulties faced by the state, contributions such as these also opened a backdoor and were thus criticized as an underlying factor in the undermining of the system.
Jiansheng of the Qing Imperial Academy were qualified to both attend the prestigious institution and serve as officials, and in contrast to those of the general public who had to first pass the apprentice exam, were immediately positioned to take the provincial exam. Moreover, the provincial exam system maintained quotas for successful candidates specifically from the Imperial Academy, thereby greatly increasing the chances of success of jiansheng. Many scholars of the time thus used the purchase system as a rung from which to ascend to the provincial exam, forgoing the lower steps.
Gu Yanwu censured the shortcomings of the imperial examination system, remarking: “Shengyuan Wu Ming and others of Linqing county are willing to contribute eight hundred dan of rice to beg their way into studying as jiansheng. Shandong and other places are currently short of grain reserves, so it is deemed appropriate to allow the request.” Despite alleviating the difficulties faced by the state, contributions such as these also opened a backdoor and were thus criticized as an underlying factor in the undermining of the system.
Jiansheng of the Qing Imperial Academy were qualified to both attend the prestigious institution and serve as officials, and in contrast to those of the general public who had to first pass the apprentice exam, were immediately positioned to take the provincial exam. Moreover, the provincial exam system maintained quotas for successful candidates specifically from the Imperial Academy, thereby greatly increasing the chances of success of jiansheng. Many scholars of the time thus used the purchase system as a rung from which to ascend to the provincial exam, forgoing the lower steps.
- Item No.
- 153663、153664
- Notes
- Written by Gu Yanwu (1613–1682), Ming dynasty
Produced in 1695
