Su Shi and the Study of Confucian Classics

The scholars in the Northern Song Dynasty prefered to probe into the significance of the Confucian classics. Su Shi, one of the scholars, paid much more attention to the original meaning of Confucian classics and stressed his own understanding while explaining them. He was lost in admiration by many scholars for being good at discussion, using simple words to express clear meanings, his quick - wit and convincing arguments and his using metaphors and connecting with the times. His thoughts about Confucian classics has the character of democratic thought, so it was not appreciated by the feudal rulers. As a result, the academic value of his study of Confucian Classics was overlooked after the Neo - Confucianism become the dominative thoughts in China. Now, we can easily find the brilliance of Su Shi' s thoughts on Confucian Classics when we look closely at the culture meaning of the scholars' works in the Northern Song Dynasty again.