10th century, bibliography, canon, China, Chinese, East Asia, historical figure, primary source, quotes, stories, Tang dynasty
Ouyang Xiu’s 歐陽脩 (1007-72) ‘Lingguan zhuan’ 伶官傳 (Biographies of Jesters) in the New History of the Five Dynasties is a key primary source for Chinese accounts of jesters at the court of Tang Zhuangzong 後唐莊宗 (r. 923-26), with particular emphasis on...
10th century, China, Chinese, East Asia, historical figure, primary source, quotes, stories, Tang dynasty
An early example of reductio ad absurdum approach to changing the ruler’s mind. Rather than having a head-on confrontation with unreasonable behaviour, the jester instead agrees wholeheartedly, taking the whole thing to such a logical but extreme degree that...
10th century, China, Chinese, East Asia, historical figure, primary source, quotes, stories
Following the accession of Emperor Taizu of the Later Liang 後梁太祖 (r. 907-912), a jester used an indirect way to criticize an unfair tax using the reductio ad absurdum technique; this involves taking a policy or idea to a logical extreme to demonstate its absurdity, a...
10th century, China, Chinese, East Asia, historical figure, primary source, quotes, stories, Tang dynasty
Generally speaking, jesters enjoyed a widely recognised licence which included the latitude to be irreverent. However, they were dealing with very powerful individuals and sometimes their barbs or mockery would hit home too hard and they would find themselves...
10th century, China, Chinese, East Asia, historical figure, primary source, quotes, stories, Tang dynasty
Jesters, like other entertainers or courtiers, could enjoy the generosity of the ruler, and there are many such examples in anecdotes or, in the European case, in court account records. In China, a few specifically mention rolls of silk being doled out, but this...
