“The Family Instructions of Mr. Yan” is the earliest known Chinese work of literature that outlines instructions about family. The instructions were authored by Yan Zhitui during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. The author of “The Family Instructions of Mr. Yan” reiterates on the need for perfect family life probably because he was a person of noble birth. According to the author, it is important to educate children. Zhitui’s instructions are both historically and culturally significant. This paper explores Zhitui’s family instructions and outlines their significance.
“The Family Instructions” are divided into twenty chapters that target consequent generations of readers. The author sought to pass down the wisdom he believed would revitalize family life. Some of the subjects that are covered by the instructions include personality nurturing, learning, self-cultivation, and family management. For instance, section five of Zhitui’s readings contains a passage that says, “When the whip and indignation are dispensed with inside the home, then the faults of the youngsters immediately appear” (Dien 500). This section teaches people about the need to discipline young ones a value that is still upheld in modern society.
Even though most of what the book teaches is borrowed from other teachers and philosophers, the book still contains original thoughts and claims by the author. The book introduces new aspects of Chinese scholarship by forwarding some unique views about ideology, culture, morality, ethics, and customs. Some of these original views later acted as building blocks of the Chinese family unit. For instance, Zhitui was the first scholar to forward the argument that education of children starts with antenatal training. In addition, Mr. Zhitui suggested new and better ways of educating scholar-officials.
Works Cited
Dien, Albert. “The Family Instructions of Mr. Yan”. Custom and Society, Vancouver: University of British Columbia, 2014. 494-510. Print.
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