Wu Jingzi & noted by Guan Xia 
Ministry-Compiled Reading Book Series 
The Scholars

The Scholars is a full-length satirical novel depicting images of a group of intellectuals. The work describes all kinds of absurd and hypocritical behaviors of Confucian scholars deeply infected by the eight-part essays. It belittles and satirizes false Confucian scholars and false scholars with literary reputation, criticizes the corrupt secular atmosphere at that time, and shapes a few images of true Confucian scholars and scholars with literary reputation who kept away from scholarly honor or official rank and pursued freedom, in which the author”s ideal is embodied. As a model of ancient Chinese satirical literature, The Scholars took the lead to directly evaluate the real life with novels. It can be mentioned in the same breath with the works of writers, such as Boccaccio, Cervantes, Balzac and Dickens, has a profound impact on the world”s modern literature, and can be called a masterpiece of world literature.