Hearts Unfold: A Comparative Study of "Qing" in The Decameron and Sanyan Erpai

Comparative literature facilitates literary studies, and comparing Chinese and Western fictions highlights their common developmental traits amid different backgrounds. Western fictions became independent in the Middle Ages, and civic fictions emerged during the Renaissance with a focus on ordinary people. Chinese fictions were once despised by orthodox scholars but developed steadily from Wei-Jin supernatural tales to Ming-Qing novels, boosted by the rising citizen class in the Ming and Qing dynasties. This book compares Italy’s The Decameron (Renaissance) and China’s Sanyan Erpai (Ming Dynasty) to illustrate fictions’ civic attribute. Italy’s Renaissance emancipated minds, and Boccaccio’s The Decameron criticized religious slavery and praised human power. In Ming China, capitalist buds and prosperous commerce promoted the citizen class, leading to Feng Menglong’s Sanyan and Ling Mengchu’s Erpai, which reflected popular desires. The core comparison focuses on “qing” (emotion/desire). Both works take “qing” as a thread but differ due to cultural and social differences: The Decameron, centered on humanism, opposes theocracy and advocates individual freedom. Sanyan Erpai, rooted in Confucian ethics, balances secular desires with moral norms. This book briefly compares true love, carnal desire, religious attitudes and misogyny, emphasizing civic culture’s impact on fictions and the common human pursuit of freedom amid cultural particularities.