Xia Ji

Xia Ji (Chinese: 夏姬; pinyin: Xià Jī; born c. 630 BC)[lower-alpha 1] was a Chinese noblewoman of the Spring and Autumn period known for her exceptional beauty, and who reportedly had multiple marriages in her lifetime. Her biography provided the basis for the late Ming dynasty erotic novel Zhulin yeshi.

Biography

Xia was the daughter of Lord Mu of Zheng (鄭穆公),[2] the younger sister of Duke Ling of Zheng (鄭靈公), and the wife of civil servant Xia Yushu (夏禦叔).[3] According to the Zuo zhuan, Xia rose to prominence in the year 600 BC, following her husband's death, when she became involved in simultaneous illicit sexual relationships with Lord Ling of Chen (陳靈公) and his two associates Kong Ning (孔寧) and Yi Xingfu (儀行父); the source further alleges that all three men "wore her underwear in order to make a joke at court",[2] and jointly condemned another minister to death after he criticised them for their licentiousness.[2] Lord Ling was murdered by Xia's son, Xia Zhengshu (夏征舒),[lower-alpha 2] after joking about his paternity in front of him; Xia Zhengshu was subsequently executed by King Zhuang of Chu after the latter invaded Chen.[4]

In around 589, Xia married Xiang Lao (襄老), a minor official under King Zhuang; following Xiang Lao's death, Xia entered into a romantic relationship with his son Heiyao (黑要). At around this time, Xia fled Chu together with King Zhuang's Wu Chen (巫臣), who had previously advised the king not to marry her.[5] In her lifetime, she was recorded to have married at least four times;[6] the Lienü zhuan by Liu Xiang claims that she married seven times.[7]

Legacy

According to the critic Kong Yingda (孔穎達) in Mao Shi zhengyi (毛詩正義),[8] the song "Zhulin" (株林) collected in the Book of Songs was written to rebuke Lord Ling of Chen (陳靈公) for his illicit sexual relationship with Xia.[8] The erotic novel Zhulin yeshi, written during the late Ming dynasty, is based on the life of Xia Ji.[9]

Olivia Milburn describes Xia Ji as a femme fatale whose "destructive beauty ... nearly caused the collapse of the state of Chen"[8] and "who was traditionally numbered among the most wicked women of Chinese antiquity."[10] In contrast, Michael Nylan argues that she "was a victim of powerful men and her fate was determined by her beauty and their greed."[6]

Notes

  1. ↑ Also known as Shao Kong (少孔) according to the Xinian (繫年).[1]
  2. ↑ According to the Xinian, Xia Zhengshu was Xia's husband.[1]

References

Citations

  1. 1 2 van Els & Queens 2018, p. 294.
  2. 1 2 3 Milburn 2017, p. 3.
  3. ↑ Beecroft 2010, p. 183.
  4. ↑ Milburn 2017, p. 4.
  5. ↑ Milburn 2017, p. 5.
  6. 1 2 Milburn 2017, p. 6.
  7. ↑ Liu 2014, p. 146.
  8. 1 2 3 Milburn 2017, p. 8.
  9. ↑ Milburn 2017, p. 2.
  10. ↑ Milburn 2017, p. 1.

Bibliography

  • Beecroft, Alexander (2010). Authorship and Cultural Identity in Early Greece and China: Patterns of Literary Circulation. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781139484244.
  • van Els, Paul; Queens, Sarah A. (2018). Between History and Philosophy: Anecdotes in Early China. Suny Press. ISBN 9781438466125.
  • Liu, Xiang (2014) [First published c. 18 BC]. Exemplary Women of Early China: The Lienü zhuan of Liu Xiang. Translated by Kinney, Anne Behnke. Columbia University Press.
  • Milburn, Olivia (2017). "The Legend of Lady Xia Ji: Two Late Ming Dynasty Portrayals of an Ancient Chinese "Femme Fatale"". Chinese Literature: Essays, Articles, Reviews. 39: 1–25. JSTOR 45014208.
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