This term refers to a playful approach to the composition of prose. Famed Tang Dynasty writer Han Yu (768-824), for example, wrote his “Biography of Mao Ying” and “Bidding Farewell to Poverty,” both dealing with serious themes, in a witty way. Playful writing thus became a style of classic Chinese prose. It stressed the entertaining, game-like function of literature and playfully explored serious themes. Thus, a writer often personified a non-human object or conjured up a situation to satirize human behavior and express personal feelings. This playful approach to writing became highly controversial, as it stood in contrast to the established Confucian notion that literature should be a vehicle of cultivating moral values. Some scholars like Pei Du (765-839) and Zhang Ji (767?-830?) opposed this style of writing, but Liu Zongyuan (773-819) wrote an essay in support of Han Yu, arguing that playful writing had intellectual value and aesthetic significance, and it was in fact not that different from the tradition of regarding literature as a vehicle of cultivating moral values. These two views were mutually complementary, each with its theoretical value. Han Yu and Liu Zongyuan broke new ground with their literary theory and works, enriched the styles of classic Chinese literature with playful writing, and greatly influenced essay writing of later generations.

Once again, you are laughing at me for engaging in random discussions not based on facts. But for me, that is just a playful writing. It is quite different from indulging in alcohol or the pleasures of the flesh. For you, to jeer at me is like laughing at my naked body when we are bathing together. (Han Yu: In Reply to Zhang Ji’s Letter)

I have known Han Yu for a long time… He is no doubt a talented man. These days, however, I have been told he has become complacent and often disregards all established rules in writing. He does not bother to set norms for society in his writing, treating it only as a way to amuse himself. Is that proper? (Pei Du: My Letter to Li Ao)

A poet sees all external objects as materials for playful writing, but such writing requires keen interest. Therefore, wit and solemnity are both indispensable. (Wang Guowei: Poetic Remarks in the Human World [The Deleted Part])