Abstract
Through the careful examination of excerpts from two texts, both related to the civil service examinations, this article will explore the shift in Ye Shi's (1150-1223) view on the Confucian Classics and the significance of that shift within Southern Song intellectual history. The excerpts studied are taken from Ye's Presented Volume (Jinjuan進卷) and his Noting the Headings from the Records of Practice and Learning (Xixue jiyan xumu習學記言序目). The article is divided into five sections: first, the questions and goals of the paper; second, Ye's early views on the Confucian Classics as expressed in his Presented Volume; third, Ye's advocacy of ”essential texts” or zhengwen (正文), which redefined the importance of the Confucian Classics as well as other works; fourth, Ye's later views on the Confucian Classics as they developed in the Noting the Headings from the Records of Practice and Learning; and lastly, conclusions based on the shift in Ye's viewpoint. In his late years, rather than arguing that all the Classics originated from the faultless governance of ancient sages, Ye Shi places greater emphasis on the cultural unity of the Confucian textual tradition, without making too strong a link between this tradition and political achievement. In order to illustrate his point, he employs the concept of a Confucian ”cultural framework” or tongji(統紀) In addition, this article considers other relevant issues, namely the significance of the Classics to Southern Song literati, the relationship between the examination system and Confucian thought, and the competition between the Yongjia school and the Daoxue (道學 learning of the way) school.