Abstract
The aim of this dissertation is to provide a rediscovery of the study of the Yuan Northern Drama through the subtle analysis of the Yuankan zaju sanshizhong (Thirty zaju printed in the Yuan Dynasty). The Introduction proposes three submerged problems from the study of Yuan zaju, of which most important is to correct the flaw of treating Yuanqu xuan editions of late-Ming period as the research texts of the Northern Drama. For a comparably historical truth, our study should rely mostly on the Yuan editions. Chapter One focuses on the study of editions and printing culture, beginning with categorizing thirty plays by their editorial features, solving the puzzle of the printing location, and ending with deducing the probable readers and publishing purpose. Chapter Two reexamines the format of Yuan zaju by using these thirty Yuan editions as examples, including its textual structure, the characters the actors had played, and the End Titles. I found the format of Yuan zaju full of diversity and flexibility, not as the general idea of the simplified and standardized style which actually was “unified” by the late-Ming literati. Chapter Three is not just a discussion of the theater art of Yuan zaju. Through the observation on actors’ performance, playwrights and their possible writing motives, theatrical occasions and the audience, I try to present the dynamic and continuous relations and influences of the above factors, which also show the way of dissemination and reception of the Yuan drama, learning more or less how the theater as a social context. The final brief conclusion also provides a short case study of Yuan xiwen, revealing the impact of Yuan zaju on the contemporary xiwen, which can develop as a potential research perspective and as a complementary point of this dissertation.