Records of the Grand Historian: Han Dynasty, Volume 1

Written about one hundred years after the events 2kYs ago, it is less far from the truth than fanciful stories of later times. And much more enciting, exciting, alive. Depressing as well if you like, as you could only change the names and get a rather accurate description of the feuds and cruelties during the crusades or even Saddam Hussein & Co.

Sima Qian has the distinction of being almost an eye-witness to all the events in the life of the greatest emperor of China. Qin united China, had the Terra Cotta army and grounds constructed and started the Great Wall of China. Here's a book that tells you exactly who he was and what happened to this troubled genius.

Sima Qian was appointed grand historian of the Emperor Wu's court in 108 B.C. In his Records of the Grand Historian he describes the events which he witnessed or heard of that occurred during his lifetime, which offers the modern historian a fairly accurate account of a contemporary historian of the Han Dynasty. He composed his records from conversations he had with courtiers. In addition, he also consulted a plethora of documents and files which were stored in the palace as well as having had the ability to interview generals which enabled him to comment on the military institutions of the Han Dynasty. Sima Qian had the ability to accompany the emperor on his visits to the provinces where he was able to record the "barbarian" tribes and lands which were brought under Han rule by Emperor Wu. In Sima Qian's records we also have evidence of the penal system and the conditions in the prison system. Qian wrote very detailed descriptions of these penal conditions for he had an intimate experience with them, having been punished for his "attempting `to deceive the emperor'" (xii). He was accused of using "veiled" words in his description of Emperor Wu, which was Qian's way of criticizing the emperor using language and words that were not outright critical, but inferred disapproval of the emperor and his actions. The purpose of his official history is to record things so that the people who will be reading the history will be able to understand their past. This need to understand where one comes from helps states and individuals determine how and why they got to where they are. He organizes his accounts thematically, he discusses the military, generals, and he offers a geographic and ethnographic account of the peoples in the various "barbarian" provinces as well. He repeats himself often in order to get a certain point across. The second way in which official histories are used is that they teach people important lessons. As Thucydides articulated in his Peloponnesian Wars Book I: It will suffice if my work is judged useful by those who wish to gain a precise understanding of past events because, due to human nature, such events, or ones resembling them, will occur again at some time in the future (Thucydides, 1.22.4)Basically, if you don't understand or study history, and the mistakes that were made in the past, then you are doomed to repeat them. He is very detailed in his descriptions because the more detailed a history is then the more accurate it appears to be by those who read it. In contrast to Tacitus, the Roman historian who wrote about the Roman frontier, Sima Qian's descriptions of the barbarians occupying the Han frontier lands is more accurate, possibly because he was able to actually visit and see "first-hand" these barbarians whom he writes about, whereas, much of Tacitus' description came from second-hand sources, and usually merely stereotypical. As an official history of the Han Dynasty, this book serves its purpose. It allows mode

I agree with everything the previous reviewer said, except that it is in print again as of 1999.This is a five-star translation of a five-star book - China's first major work of history, dating from 90 BC. The Qin portion makes up only fifteen or so of the Shi Ji's 130 chapters, but tells the story central to the moral vision of the whole work. This is the rise and collapse of China's first imperial dynasty - Qin is in fact the name from which we derive "China."The book is a remarkable commentary on human pride, intrigue, strategy and revenge; it also has an eye for detail and anecdote. To cite just one case, a minister is humiliated and driven from his kingdom; and ultimately takes revenge, as prime minister of a neighboring kingdom, by forgiving his persecutor, inviting him to a banquet, and then forcing him eat a meal of hay and water. There is also a detailed description of the tomb of China's First Emperor (the central figure of this book, whose career becomes exemplary of the folly of brutality and suppression of free thought); which has since been made famous by the discovery of the ceramic army of Xian.

While I am no scholar of Chinese history or language, Watson's translation of Sima Qian's Shi Ji is an excellent read. Watson has grasped the nuances of the Chinese language, implementing them well into his work. This volume (along with his other volumes pertaining to the Han dynasty) displays the history of China through the eyes of one of its participants, the grand historian Sima Qian. Watson documents his work well, and the book is an overall pleasure to read. I recommend this to anyone with an interest in Chinese history, both as an indispensible reference as well as a most pleasurable read. It is quite a shame that this particular volume is out of print, but perhaps at another time..