The subject of my thesis is the comparative study of classical Chinese folk songs. Based on Jeffrey Wainwright, George Lansing Raymond, and Liu Xie’s theories, this study was conducted from four perspectives: theme, content, prosody structure and aesthetic features. The purposes of my thesis are to trace the originality of 160 folk songs in Shijing and 47 folk songs in Han yuefu, to illuminate the origin of Chinese folk songs and to demonstrate the secularism reflected in Chinese folk songs. My research makes contribution to the following four areas: it explores the relation between folk songs in Shijing and Han yuefu and compares the similarities and differences between them; it reveals the poetic kinship between Shijing and Han yuefu; it evaluates the significance of the common people’s compositions; and it displays the unique artistic value and cultural influence of Chinese early folk songs.

The subject of my thesis is the comparative study of classical Chinese folk songs. Based on Jeffrey Wainwright, George Lansing Raymond, and Liu Xie’s theories, this study was conducted from four perspectives: theme, content, prosody structure and aesthetic features. The purposes of my thesis are to trace the originality of 160 folk songs in Shijing and 47 folk songs in Han yuefu, to illuminate the origin of Chinese folk songs and to demonstrate the secularism reflected in Chinese folk songs. My research makes contribution to the following four areas: it explores the relation between folk songs in Shijing and Han yuefu and compares the similarities and differences between them; it reveals the poetic kinship between Shijing and Han yuefu; it evaluates the significance of the common people’s compositions; and it displays the unique artistic value and cultural influence of Chinese early folk songs.

Metaphors and their use as a rethorical vehicle are examined. Two texts, one in Chinese and one in Swedish, are compared and analyzed to determine the extent to which the associations they create successfully capture the author's intent. Seecondarily, a shift from the assumptions that rhetorical analyses often assume (read: antiquity and Aristotles) to a more abstract internal human platform is suggested. Neurological and cognitive research is cited in support of this shift. The essay examines the question: How can metaphoric contribute to conveying the communicator's intention? By comparing metaphorics used by an historical Chinese rhetor with those used by a contemporary Swedish rhetor. In the former, Zuozhuan describes how Ji Zha commented on Shijing in 770-430 BCE. In the latter, Johan af Donner defends himself in court in 2010. The study culminates in recommendations for a more poetic approach to metaphor. / Utgångspunkten för föreliggande uppsats är att undersöka metaforik. Syftet med studien är att undersöka användningen av metaforen som ett retoriskt medel, i ett kinesiskt exempel och i ett svenskt exempel, och att jämföra dem, samt att resonera kring vilka associationsfält dessa skapar och om de är framgångsrika eller inte. Sekundärt är det också uppsatsens syfte att föreslå en förflyttning av den plattform retoriska analyser ofta utgår ifrån (läs antiken och Aristoteles) till en mer abstrakt inre mänsklig plattform. Studien tar stöd i neurologisk och kognitiv forskning i detta. Uppsatsens frågeställning är: Hur kan metaforik bidra till förståelse för avsändarens intention? Studien jämför metaforer som används av en retor i en tidig kinesisk situation; Zuozhuan berättar om hur Ji Zha kommenterade Shijing, 770-430 f.v.t. och en retor från en svensk nutida situation; Johan af Donner försvarar sig i tingsrätten 2010. Studien mynnar ut i rekommendationer till ett mer poetiskt förhållningssätt till metaforik.

Since the most ancient of the Shijing songs were accompanying the rites of the ancestral sacrifice, which already by definition represented communication with the past, the notion of history is present in these hymns as well. In the latter half of the Western Zhou period, significant changes occurred in the ritual practice. These changes are evident in the shift of perspective in several Zhou song hymns, too. At the same time, the banquet odes appear for the first time on Zhou court. These odes already explicitly describe the glorious history of the house of Zhou, and so become the means of legitimacy of the weakening royal clan. History here also represents the pattern of the exemplary rule and the source of premonitory precedents. By the end of the Western Zhou dynasty, the notion of remote past becomes fully idealized.