Ruan Yuan, 1764-1849: The Life and Work of a Major Scholar-Official in Nineteenth-Century China before the Opium War

Title Page, Copyright Page

Ruan Yuan, 1764–1849 In loving memory, this book is dedicated to my parents Hsioh-ren Wei (1899–1987) Yingbao Liu Wei (1904–91) and to my pal ‘Der Alte Fritz’, Frederick Wade Mote (1922–2005) Ruan Yuan, 1764–1849 The Life and Work of a Major Scholar-Official in Nineteenth-Century China before the Opium War Betty Peh-T’i Wei Hong Kong University Press 14/F Hing Wai Centre 7 Tin Wan Praya Road Aberdeen Hong Kong© Hong Kong University Press 2006 ISBN-13: 978-962-209-785-8 ISBN-10: 962-209-785-5 All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Printed and bound by Condor Production Ltd. in Hong Kong, China Secure On-line Ordering http://www.hkupress.org British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Hong Kong University Press is honoured that Xu Bing, whose art explores the complex themes of language across cultures, has written the Press’s name in his Square Word Calligraphy. This signals our commitment to cross-cultural thinking and the distinctive nature of our English-language books published in China. “At first glance, Square Word Calligraphy appears to be nothing more unusual than Chinese characters, but in fact it is a new way of rendering English words in the format of a square so they resemble Chinese characters. Chinese viewers expect to be able to read Square Word Calligraphy but cannot. Western viewers, however are surprised to find they can read it. Delight erupts when meaning is unexpectedly revealed.” — Britta Erickson, The Art of Xu Bing ...