For a long time, people mostly had the impression of Cao Cao in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" as insidious, cunning, vicious and cruel, and most of this impression came from Luo Guanzhong, the author of the book.
When Luo Guanzhong wrote "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", he adopted the overall structure of "supporting Liu and opposing Cao", which made people create various descriptions of Cao Cao's badness based on the image of Cao Cao as a traitor in the next few hundred years.
However, in the midst of the accusations, ** has a completely different view of Cao Cao.
Title: The Evolution of Cao Cao's Image Cao Cao's image was not seen as a villain from the beginning. Compared with Luo Guanzhong's "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", Chen Shou regarded Wei as orthodox in his work "Three Kingdoms" in the Western Jin Dynasty, which can be seen from the description of each country in the book: "Book of Wei" has 30 volumes, "Book of Wu" has only 20 volumes, and "Book of Shu" has only 15 volumes, which is less than half of the "Book of Wei".
Cao Cao is described in the book in great esteem, calling him "Emperor Taizu Wu", and praising him as "an extraordinary person, a master of the world", while Liu Bei and Sun Quan are called "Ancestors" and "Wu Lords".
The reason why Chen Shou "respects Cao" has a lot to do with the environment in which he lives. Born and living in the Shu Han and Western Jin dynasties, he was a famous historian who was diligent and studious since he was a child, and studied under the Qian Zhou of the same county.
He was witty and intelligent, proficient in the "Records of the Historians" and the "Book of Han", and was known for his outstanding literary talents. However, at that time, Huang Hao was tyrannical in power, and most of the ** of Shu Han were scolding him, but Chen Shou was disdainful of this, and his integrity and tenacity made him a unique historian.
Chen Shou was regarded as an outlier by some ** because he insisted on justice during his tenure in Shu Han and was not affected by the officialdom. During his father's funeral, he was seriously ill and needed a maidservant to serve and take medicine, but his family misunderstood him as misbehaving, which caused him to be demoted many times, until Zhang Hua, a famous minister in the Western Jin Dynasty, appreciated his talent and reinstated him in the official position.
In the compilation of the "Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms", Chen Shou regarded the Western Jin Dynasty as orthodoxy, which also reflected his insistence on orthodoxy. At the same time, when Tang Taizong Li Shimin was crusading against Goryeo, he personally wrote a "Tribute to Wei Taizu", affirming Cao Cao's ability and merits, which also showed his appreciation and recognition of Cao Cao.
The change of Cao Cao's image is influenced by the historical environment and people's values. Historically, the prosperity and political stability of the country have tended to make people more inclined to see Cao Cao as a positive figure; On the contrary, the decline and failure of the country will make Cao Cao's image more negative.
This change is closely related to people's concern about the fate of the country. For example, during the Northern and Southern Dynasties, Cao Cao was seen as a villain, because the country's ** led to social unrest; During the Northern Song Dynasty, Cao Cao's image was improved, because the stability of the country gave people more positive energy to look at historical figures.
Historical events and figures of the Three Kingdoms period, including Cao Cao, were widely used in folk literature, opera art, and historical research, and these art forms and academic research all had a certain influence on Cao Cao's image.
However, no matter what the background of the times, Cao Cao's image has always been a topic of people's attention and **, and he is also a controversial figure in history.
**, a pioneer of the Chinese Revolution, developed a strong interest in literature from an early age. He went to private school at the age of eight, and at the age of thirteen he began to read "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and "Water Margin", which left a deep imprint on his life.
However, because he watched ** during class, he was kicked out of the private school by the teacher. However, this did not stop him from pursuing knowledge. When he returned home, he became even more obsessed with these two books.
In 1910, he was admitted to Xiangxiang County Dongshan High School, and only brought these two books to the school. In this school, he became the king of stories in the eyes of his classmates, especially the content in these two books, he knew very well.
** During his lifetime, he made a lot of comments on the figures of the Three Kingdoms, especially the evaluation of Cao Cao. He considered Cao Cao to be a great figure in history, whose intellect and bravery were unmatched.
He wrote in the "Lecture Hall Record": "There is no talent in the world, there is a capable man, and there is no opponent." If you say that the opponent is the opponent, then Mengde, Zhongmou, and Zhuge are still already. This is his evaluation of Cao Cao and the embodiment of his outlook on life.
In 1918, for the first time in his life, he and his classmates were stranded in Henan due to flooding. Just when everyone couldn't set off, he, Luo Zhanglong, and Chen Shaoxiu went to Xuchang to pay homage to the old ruins of Weidu and hang Cao Cao.
The three also wrote a poem that showed their admiration for Cao Cao. In general, **'s love for "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and "Water Margin" has benefited him a lot at all stages of his life.
His outlook on life, his talent and wisdom were all formed under the influence of these two works.
In Luo Zhanglong's memory, they once stayed in the ruins of the Wei State for a long time, lamenting the ruins of that era. Years later, Cao Cao's military prowess was mentioned twice in his speech, especially in the battles of Yuan Cao Guandu and the battles of Wu Wei Chibi.
In 1948, Cao Cao was mentioned again in an article written for Xinhua News Agency. After the CCP** entered Beiping, ** temporarily lived in the Shuangqing villa in Xiangshan, and Cao Cao was mentioned again.
At that time, the CCP was studying the battle of crossing the river, and thought of Cao Cao's mistakes in the Battle of Chibi, and made a detailed comment. He pointed out that Cao Cao was defeated in the Battle of Chibi for five reasons: he was not good at water warfare, he was not adapted to the humid weather in the south, which led to the epidemic of "plague", he killed Cai Mao and Zhang Yun, the only ones who knew how to fight in water, he nailed the ships together, and he was killed by the bitter meat trick and was burned by Huang Gai's fire.
In Zhou Shizhao's "Over Xuchang", "Wild history hears Cao Cao, and the autumn wind passes through Xuchang", these two poems make *** have a new view of Cao Cao. ** It is believed that the interpretation of historical figures should be both positive and negative, but also have a comprehensive understanding.
He advocated that a historical figure should not be evaluated solely on the basis of a wild history, but should be comprehensively studied and understood. Therefore, his impression of Cao Cao is no longer a single praise and disapproval, but a deeper understanding and knowledge.
In 1952, ** visited Yinxu in Anyang, Henan, and because this place was very close to the Zhanghe River, he thought of Cao Cao. During the visit, he mentioned that Cao Cao had trained his navy here, and praised Cao Cao as a great figure.
In addition, Cao Cao carried out large-scale expansion and implemented the tuntian system here, so that the people lived a good life and laid the foundation for the later Jin Dynasty to unify the world. In addition to visiting Yinxu, ** will often go to Beidaihe to regulate his body and mind, and sometimes take Li Min and Li Ne on vacation to play together.
In 1954, Li Min and Li Ne went to Beidaihe for a vacation, and Cao Cao was also mentioned in the letters to them. He told the children that Cao Cao had been to Beidaihe, and that he was not only a politician, but also a famous poet, and that his "Jieshi Poems" were very famous.
Later, ** came to Beidaihe in person, and also took a map to verify the location of Jieshi. Once, ** walked on the beach and stared at the sea, reciting poetry in his mouth.
Xu Tao, a health care doctor who was following him, couldn't help but ask, "Chairman, whose poem are you reading?" * smiled, and instead of answering, asked, "How do you sound like that?" ”
Xu Tao felt it carefully: "I feel very courageous. ”
Xu Tao's gaze stayed on the chairman's smile, and the answer he was looking forward to seemed to have appeared at this moment. The chairman explained: "This is Cao Cao's poem, called "Watching the Sea". ”
At that time, people were deeply influenced by the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and saw Cao Cao as a cunning politician, and few people knew that he had ever written poetry. Xu Tao also heard for the first time that Cao Cao could compose poetry, and he couldn't help but ask suspiciously: "Cao Cao can also compose poetry?" ”
He was a little incredulous, and asked again, "Cao Cao?" Which Cao Cao? He would rather believe that there is a person in the world who has the same name as Cao Cao, rather than think of Cao Cao during the Three Kingdoms period.
Hearing this question, the chairman couldn't help laughing, and he said: "Of course it's Cao Cao of the Three Kingdoms, who else can there be?" Xu Tao looked at the chairman, his heart was full of doubts: "He, isn't he a white-faced traitor?" ”
Hearing this, he was emotional, and he resolutely said, "What is this? Isn't it a great achievement that Cao Cao unified the north, founded the Wei state, implemented reforms, developed production, advocated frugality, and made society begin to stabilize?
Saying that Cao Cao is a white-faced traitor is actually a misunderstanding of him. We should correct this erroneous view. After swimming in Beidaihe, that year, ** wrote a majestic poem "Waves and Sands in Beidaihe".
Although he has read "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" since he was a child, he is not bound by Luo Guanzhong's way of thinking, and he pays more attention to Cao Cao's contribution to the people. That's where *** comes in.
He objected to the derogation of Cao Cao, and in 1957, he once said to the person in charge of the people's **: "History says that Cao Cao is a traitor, and those romances are not credible, Cao Cao represented the progressive side at that time, and the Han Dynasty has declined." ”
Under the guidance of ***, people's impression of Cao Cao has changed, which can be seen from the change in Cao Cao's image in the play. In the second half of 1959, it was discovered that Cao Cao on the stage of the drama was no longer an all-white face, but had added a touch of red to the center of his eyebrows.
In the play, different colored faces represent different personalities, with red symbolizing loyalty and heroism, and white faces representing treacherous and insidious. The change in Cao Cao's image is the embodiment of this phenomenon.
Why, then, did the attitude of the world suddenly change? This is related to an article by Guo Moruo. At the beginning of this year, under the call of ***, Guo Moruo fired the first shot of "overturning the case for Cao Cao".
He said in "On Cai Wenji's Eighteen Beats" published in "Guangming **" that Cao Cao is a national hero, and treating him as a bad guy is a major distortion in history.
Jian Bozan and another influential scholar in the academic world published an article in Guangming ** to restore Cao Cao's reputation, triggering a big debate about whether Cao Cao was white or red.
By the middle of the year, ** said at a meeting: "It's time to overturn the case for Cao Cao." This remark helped to change Cao Cao's image. Although *** affirmed Cao Cao's merits and talents, he also pointed out the reasons why Cao Cao failed to unify the Three Kingdoms: one is indecisive, and the other is lenient and strict with others.
In particular, this fatal flaw deprived Cao Cao of the opportunity to unify the Three Kingdoms.
After Liu Bei gained a firm foothold in Shudi, he immediately set his sights on Hanzhong, a treasure of feng shui. Hanzhong is located at the junction of the north and south, with the Qinling Mountains in the north and Bashan in the south.
The capture of Hanzhong is equivalent to mastering the advantageous position of being offensive and defensible, and it is also the starting point for Liu Bei's attack on Cao Cao. However, Cao Cao was also aware of this, so it was Cao Cao's inevitable choice to acquire Hanzhong.
At that time, Hanzhong was occupied by Zhang Lu, who claimed to be a descendant of the Heavenly Master Zhang Daoling and was well aware of the importance of Hanzhong. He discussed coping strategies with his younger brother Zhang Wei. Zhang Wei believed that the terrain in Hanzhong was dangerous, with sufficient soldiers and horses, and abundant food, which was enough to compete with Cao Cao.
However, Zhang Lu was not confident in his own abilities and was ready to surrender directly. Under the persuasion of his younger brother Zhang Wei, Zhang Lu finally decided to fight Cao Jun. At first, Cao Cao believed that his army was strong enough to deal with Hanzhong.
However, because he underestimated the enemy, it took him four months to take Hanzhong into his pocket.
After the fall of Hanzhong, Sima Yi came up with a bold idea. He felt that Liu Bei had just captured Yizhou, and his foundation was not stable, and if Cao's army raided Yizhou at this time, it would definitely put Liu Bei in a predicament, thus taking the opportunity to weaken Liu Bei's strength.
However, Cao Cao, who had just captured Hanzhong, seemed to have lost his ambition and became hesitant. He feared that a rash attack would have serious consequences. Although Sima Yi repeatedly admonished, Cao Cao was not convinced, and Sima Yi could only give up this opportunity and let Liu Bei strengthen his army and stabilize his position in Yizhou.
At the same time, when Liu Bei learned that Cao Cao had occupied Hanzhong, he immediately reached an agreement with Sun Quan to rapidly expand his power and prepare to attack Hanzhong. In the twenty-second year of Jian'an, Liu Bei launched an attack, and after more than two years of fighting, he finally succeeded in capturing Hanzhong, and Cao Cao at this time could not recover the situation.
In the battle with Liu Bei for Hanzhong, Cao Cao hesitated and missed a good opportunity to annex Liu Bei. ** This history was cited at a conference in Hangzhou as a case for modern military research.
This shows that ** not only focuses on Cao Cao's strengths, but also learns from his shortcomings.
Who should be held responsible for the defeat in the Battle of Chibi? It can also be seen that ** is very aware of Cao Cao's shortcomings.
Cao Cao was too arrogant, which led to the death of his son Cao Ang in the Battle of Wancheng. This war immersed him in the joy of victory, completely ignoring Zhang Xiu's emotions and dignity.
He let Dian Wei stand behind him with a giant axe, which made Zhang Xiu frightened and even more dissatisfied. Cao Cao even accepted his sister-in-law as a concubine in front of Zhang Xiu, which was a great insult to Zhang Xiu.
After the banquet, Zhang Xiu planned ** Cao Cao, Cao Ang gave his horse to Cao Cao in order to save his father, and finally sacrificed himself. Cao Cao's arrogance and arrogance led to his defeat, and the sacrifice of his son Cao Ang made him reflect deeply on his actions.
Although Cao Cao managed to escape in the face of Zhang Xiu's pursuit, he paid a huge price and lost his beloved general Dian Wei, his son Cao Ang, and his beloved horse. The defeat in this battle was entirely due to Cao Cao's arrogance and hubris.
This is not only Cao Cao's merits, but also his shortcomings, which require us to use Marxist materialist dialectics to look at the problem in an all-round way.