On the Art of Characterization in  Dream of the Red Mansions 41
On the Art of
Characterization in
Dream  of  the Red
Mansions
Angela Jung-Palandri
University of Oregon
Dream of the Red Mansions,  or
Honglou meng  (hereafter referred
to as Dream)  has been generally
acclaimed as one of the world
masterpieces. In his preface to
Wang Jizhen second abridged
English version of the novel, Mark
Van Doren comments:
Much here will strike a western
reader as strange, and naturally
so, since a Chinese household of
the eighteenth century is about
as far away as the imagination
can travel. But quite as much
will not be strange; indeed, since
the story is truly great, its
essential features will b e
recognizable because they are
features of the human mind
and heart, which neither time
nor place ever seems able to
alter. (1)
This "truly great novel" has lent
itself to numerous interpretations
and misinterpretations ever since
its public appearance.  And, in
recent years, with the rediscovery of
several earlier manuscripts, the
book has drawn even greater
attention of literary critics in both
China and abroad and has been
studied from every conceivable
aspect and perspective. In the
People Republic of China, most
prevalent is naturally the Marxist
interpretation, namely, that the
author, Cao Xueqin, a victim of
China feudal society, uses his own
life experiences to illustrate the evil
and corruption of a decadent, ducal
household which symbolizes the
decline and fall of imperial China.
Some Marxist critics also insist that
the novel is essentially a reflection
of "class struggle" or "revolt against
feudal marriages." (2) Whether or
not one can fully accept such
extrinsic reading of the motif of the
Dream,  one must admit that Cao
Xueqin work is indeed a work of
art with many dimensions,
pregnant with meaning, and rich in
implications. No doubt there is
social and political awareness, but
the greatness of the novel does not
hinge upon any single extrinsic
matter. Rather, it is the combina-
tion of many factors which
contributes to the universality and
timelessness of this highly complex
novel that C.T. Hsia believes to be
"the only work of Chinese fiction
that invites valid comparisons with
tragic masterpieces of western
literature." (3)
While not denying the extrinsic
values read into the novel, I would
like to suggest that the crowning
glory of its success lies in the
author profound insight into
human nature and his true-to-life
delineation of the characters that
people the rarefied realm of the
Dream.  Most successful, however,
is his depiction of the female
characters.
women, even Baoyu, the male
protagonist of the novel, appears
4 2 Proceedings
pale and shadowy. To make a
simple analogy, the  Dream may be
structurally compared to a precious
necklace, with Baoyu as the string
linking together the individual
female characters, which are the
pearls that determine its real worth.
I further suggest that this novel,
like Li Ruzhen  Jinghua yuan, is a
feminist work on women, in con-
trast to those male-oriented novels
such as Shuihu zhuan  and Sanguo
yanyi.  The underpinning feminism
I perceive in the  Dream,  however,
is not a new revelation. In the
Qinlong Jiaxu Zhiyanzhai  edition,
its editor, having stated that the
motif of a novel is usually inherent
in its title, mentions The  Twelve
Golden Hairpins  (metonym for
women)  of Jinling as  one of its
alternate titles. (4) That women
were both the motive and rationale
for Cao Xueqin to write the novel is
clearly stated in the author own
words, quoted in the first chapter of
the book. Unfortunately, they are
left out in all translations but one.
The following is my own version of
this passage:
In the humdrum of  life,  I have
achieved nothing worthwhile.
Suddenly, I recalled those
women folk of my youth.
Having scrutinized them one by
one in my mind, I came to the
conclusion that their intellec-
tual capacity and personal
conduct all far surpassed mine.
It is useless for me to regret or
feel ashamed that 1, of the
masculine gender, dignified
with beard and eyebrows, could
not measure up to those of the
gentle sex, wearing skirts and
hairpins. Now I have decided
to write a book to announce to
the world how, having been
brought up in the opulence and
luxury of my ancestral house
and under the auspices of
imperial favor, I had refused
parental guidance and teachers
instructions. As a result, I have
wasted half of my life without
acquiring a single skill.
Although I am guilt-ridden by
my failures, I have had the
honor of knowing excellent
persons among the opposite sex.
Therefore, I must not for the
sake of concealing my own
shortcomings allow them to be
buried under the dust of
oblivion. (5)
The author justification for
writing this novel gives me reason
to concentrate on the female
characters in the  Dream.  I shall
confine my discussion to the three
leading ladies namely, Xue
Baochai, Wang Xifeng, and Lin
Daiyu. I single them out from the
twelve major characters not only
because of their tripodal significance
in the deep structure of the novel,
but also because they could arouse
the strongest emotional reponses in
the reader.
Contemporary critics frequently
intimate that the success of
characterization in fiction is largely
due to the writer comprehension
of Freudian psychology or psycho-
analysis, which greatly enhances the
author technique of characteriza-
tion. However, through his unsur-
passed genius, Cao Xueqin has
On the Art of Characterization in  Dream of the Red Mansions 4 3
breathed life into his characters
without making use of psycho-
logical terminology. His characters
are indeed three dimensional, each
with her own particular physical
features and temperament. They
are so convincingly drawn, that one
is inclined to agree with those critics
who insist the Cao female images
are directly ,
models, the female companions of
his youth. On the other hand, one
may argue that the author of the
Dream,  in creating his female
characters, may have anticipated
those psychological theories and
foreseen the close correlation be-
tween the static components of
human physique and the dynamic
components of temperament expli-
cated and expounded by a group of
famous constitutional psychologists
in their theories.
After years of research and somato-
typing, William H. Sheldon, the
noted Harvard constitutional
psychologist, concluded that
differences in temperament may be
much more closely related to
physical constitution than had been
previously recognized. (6) For the
three primary morphological com-
ponents, Sheldon and his associates
coined the terms endomorphy,
mesomorphy, and ectomorphy. (7)
According to Sheldon:
Endomorphy means relative
predominance of soft roundness
throughout the various regions
of the body. When endomor-
phy is dominant, the digestive
viscera are massive and tend
relatively to dominate the
bodily economy. The digestive
viscera are derived principally
from the endodermal embry-
onic layer.
Mesomorphy means relative
predominance of muscle, bone,
and connective tissue. The
mesomorphic physique is nor-
mally heavy, hard, and rec-
tangular in outline. Bone and
muscle are prominent, and the
skin is made thick by a heavy
underlying connective tissue.
The entire bodily economy is
dominated relatively by tissues
derived from the mesodermal
embryonic layer.
Ectomorphy means relative pre-
dominance of linearity and
fragility. In proportion to his
mass, the ectomorph has the
greatest surface area and hence
relatively the greatest sensory
exposure to the outside world.
Relative to his mass he also has
the largest brain and central
nervous system. In a sense,
therefore, his bodily economy is
relatively dominated by tissues
derived from the ectodermal
embyonic layer." (8)
For the characteristic traits of
temperament, Sheldon identifies
twenty specific traits for each of the
three somatotypes. Briefly, chief
among the characteristic traits for
the endomorphs are: relaxation in
posture and movement; socio-
philia; amiability; greed for affection
and approval; complacency; toler-
ance; evenness of emotional flow.
Characteristics of mesomorphs are:
assertiveness of posture and
movement; love of adventure and
4 4 Proceedings
risk; lust for power and dominating;
callousness and ruthlessness; gen-
eral noisiness. The ectomorphs are
restrained in posture and move-
ment; hypersensitive; overly fast
reacting; anti-social and unpre-
dictable; apprehensive and insecure;
inhibited; restrained and secretive
of feelings; fond of solitude and
privacy; poor in health and sleep
habits and troubled by chronic
fatigue; obsessed with the appre-
hension of death.
Although Sheldon experiments
were conducted mainly among
men, we are told women follow  a
similar pattern with minimal
variations. (9) The same perception
that led Sheldon to his findings is
shared by the author of the  Dream,
who anticipated constitutional
theories in his characterization of
women of eighteenth century
China. Scholars of  Hongxue  (Redo-
logy) cannot  fail  to recognize that
Baochai, Xifeng, and Daiyu are
personifications of the three
somatotypes described by Sheldon.
In appearance, all three are
extraordinarily beautiful, but each is
distinguished from the other by her
peculiar charm. The appearance of
Xifeng is introduced in Chapter 3 by
the newcomer, Daiyu, who takes
note first of her noisy and brash
manner before observing her
features. "Everyone else around
here seems to go  about with bated
breath," thought Daiyu. "Who can
this new arrival be, who is so brash
and unmannerly?" This observa-
tion is followed by a lengthy
description of Xifeng colorful,
glamorous but loud attire, which
bedecked her slender, upright
(possibly angular) body. "Triangu-
lar eyes that slant upward at the tip
like the phoenix give a hint of
harshness even in a smile, but
laughter can be heard before those
crimson lips are parted." Such is
Daiyu impression of Xifeng,
nicknamed "Peppercorn" because of
her pungent temperament and
aggressive behavior, typical of a
mesomorph. (10)
The ethereal beauty and fragile
constitution of Daiyu as seen
through Baoyu eyes are definitely
indicative of the ectomorph
physical appearance and psycho-
logical makeup:
Her mist-wreathed brows at
first seemed to frown, yet not
frowning. Her passionate eyes
at first seemed to smile, yet
were not merry. Habit had
given  a  melancholy cast to her
tender face; Nature had be-
stowed a sickly constitution on
her delicate frame. Often the
eyes swam with glistening
tears; Often the breath came in
gentle gasps.
In stillness she made one think
of a graceful flower reflected in
the water. In motion she called
to mind tender willow shoots
caressed by the wind.
She had more chambers in her
heart than the martyred Bi Gan
and suffered a tithe more pain
in it than the beautiful Xi Shi."
(11)
In contrast to Daiyu, Baochai is
On the Art of Characterization in  Dream of the Red Mansions 4 5
unmistakably an endomorph. Even
though she is not obese, she is
admirably soft and plump as
described in Chapter 28, where
Baoyu insists on seeing the bracelet
of scented red beads she has on her
arm. As she struggles to pull it off
from her chubby, snowy white arm,
Baoyu observes to himself admir-
ingly: "If such an arm belongs to
Daiyu, I might have a chance to
caress it someday. What a pity that
it is hers." (12) Unlike the descrip-
tions of Xifeng and Daiyu, the
imagery used in describing Baochai
falls short of the eloquence of
poetry; instead it resorts to a
traditional stereotype: "Her face is
like a silver disk. Lustrous her
almond-shaped eye, she needs no
penciling for willow  leaf  eyebrows,
no rouge for her cheeks or her
crimson lips." (13)
The physical contrast between
Baochai and Daiyu is further
illustrated by the author in the
couplet which is the heading for
Chapter27.  Hawkes fancifully
rendered it as: "Beauty Perspiring
sports with butterflies by the
Raindrop Pavilion; And Beauty
Suspiring weeps fallen blossoms by
the FlowersGrave." (14) The same
couplet is translated indirectly by
Yang Hsien-Yi as: "Pao chai Chases
a Butterfly to Dripping Emerald
Pavilion; Taiyu Weeps Over Fallen
Blossoms by the Tomb of Flowers."
(15) Neither is faithful to the
original which reads: "Guifei
playfully pursues a butterfly to the
Emerald-Drop Pavilion; Feiyan
mourns fallen blossoms by the
grave of Flowers." Here, instead of
using Baochai and Daiyu names,
the author uses classical allusions to
[Yang] Guifei and [Zhao] Feiyan, the
morphological prototypes of
Baochai and Daiyu, because these
two historical beauties of the past
are noted for their antithetical
physical attributes: Yang Guifei
(which, incidentally, happens to be
Baochai nickname) is acclaimed
for her plump, voluptuous beauty,
whereas Zhao Feiyan is pro-
verbially known  for  her delicate,
ethereal grace.
As expected, all three women are as
different in temperament as they
are in physical appeal.  The
mesomorphic Xifeng, nicknamed
"Peppercorn," sharp in wit as well
as  in . tone, is assertive and
aggressive, swift of motion, and
quick to act. Ambitious, efficient,
cold and cruel,  she  excels in
administrative talents. She is best
described as amoral rather than the
epitome of evil. Since she was
brought up in her childhood like a
boy and married at an early age, she
might very well fit Baoyu claim,
that women can be cruel and
vicious as men, once they get
married and become contaminated.
Xifeng is admired, hated, and
feared, but never truly loved.
Subconsciously, she may recom-
pense her real need for love with
lust for power and greed for gold.
Her dominant position in the
Rongguofu  is partly due to her
administrative ability and partly to
her manipulation of the Matriarch,
and her rise to power begins with
her supervision of the  Ningguofu
during Keqing funeral. During
this period she reveals her ruthless
streak and trafficks in the illegal
4 6 Proceedings
business that leads to her eventual
downfall.
By comparison, Baochai is placid
and even-tempered. She is always
praised for her good sense and
amiability. In the eyes of the elders
she is a paragon of virtue, because
she respects authority and the status
quo, and is eager to win approval.
She is popular among the servants,
as well as with her cousins, because
she is sociable and goes out of her
way to show her generosity and
consideration. But she is compla-
cent and ready to compromise even
to the point of victimizing herself
in the end. Fully aware of the deep
affection Daiyu and Baoyu have for
each other, she nevertheless con-
sents to marry the boy and to lend
herself to the great deception. This
dubious duplicity of behavior does
not deviate from the norm of the
endomorphs; it adds complexity to
her otherwise amiable personality.
C. T. Hsia, however, absolves her as
"the victim of a cruel hoax." (16)
The characteristic traits of the
ectomorph are most evidently
displayed in Daiyu, whose delicate
constitution, poor health, hypersen-
sitivity, and super intelligence are
constantly and repeatedly described.
Apart from the constitutional
factors, her personal misfortune
and precarious circumstances seem
to collude with nature in molding
her peculiar temperament. Having
been orphaned at an early age,
living in the household of her
maternal grandmother necessarily
contributed to her feeling of
insecurity. This sense of insecurity
intensifies upon the arrival of
Baochai, whose opulent family
background and charisma only
accentuate her own antisocial
behavior and alienation. The praise
showered on Baochai and the hint
of her "gold and jade destiny"
increase her fear of losing the only
person she loves. Clinically, she
has all the symptoms of a neurotic.
Her jealousy, suspicion, and unpre-
dictable behavior only bring suffer-
ing to Baoyu and herself and
alienation from the Jia family.
Subconsciously she needs Baoyu
reassurance of love; but, when he
demonstrates it, she loses her
temper, possibly because her own
emotions are too tense and too taut
to be plucked. The restraint to
which she subjects herself causes
her uncontrollable tearfulness,
chronic fatigue, constant insomnia,
and untimely death. Her apprehen-
sion of an early death is projected in
the dirge for the fallen flowers in
Chapter 27, in which she asks:
"Today I bury the flowers and
people laugh at my folly. But who, I
wonder, will bury me, when I am
dead and gone." Daiyu personal
integrity and uncompromising na-
ture are also symbolized by the
flowers in this poem; "In pure es-
sence they came; let them depart in
purity. Not to be sullied in the
murky water of the stagnant ditch."
(17)
Judging by the brief analyses offered
above, one can see that all three
girls, as human beings, are flawed
with psychological hangups and
personal phobias. As artistic crea-
tions, however, they are flawlessly
depicted. Using Sheldon findings
as touchstones, one can recognize in
On the Art of Characterization in  Dream of the Red Mansions 47
these women representations of the
three somatotypes, without labeling
them as such. This novelist of
eighteenth-century China exempli-
fied in his characters the correlation
between human physique and tem-
perament, a correlation which con-
temporary constitutional psycho-
logists have confirmed by somato-
typing and experimentation.
But Cao Xueqin creative acumen
is not confined to his skill in charac-
terization. His novel as a grea t
work of art may be described  as "a
seamless cloak of heaven  (tianyi
wufeng),"  to borrow a Chinese
phrase. To a casual reader, the book
may seem to be structurally
formless; some students have even
criticized it as being amorphous in
structure, containing too many
characters, too many subplots, and
too many unsolved mysteries. Yet,
a closer examination reveals that its
extraordinary merit lies in its very
complexity and ambiguity. The
interplay of reality and illusion, fact
and fantasy, gives it the quality of a
dream, and yet it touches upon a
number of serious social, political,
and religious issues in the guise of
fiction. Its thematic significance
shifts like the dynamic patterns of a
kaleidoscope, subject to the reader
individual perception. Be that as it
may, women remain constant as
the nucleus of those changing
designs, no matter on which plane
the novel is appreciated. Women
are undeniably the underlying
motif of this multi-themed sym-
phony. As such, Cao Xueqin has,
indeed, succeeded in rescuing the
women of his youth from the dust
of oblivion.
NOTES
1. Wang Chi-chen, tr., Dream of
the Red Chamber  (New York:
Double- day, 1958), p. vii.
2. Ho Qifang, "On the  Dream of
the Red Chamber," Chinese
Literature,  No. 1 (January, 1963), 65-
66.
3. C. T. Hsia, "Love and Corn-
pas-sion in  Dream of the Red
Chamber," Criticism,  V (Summer,
1963), 267.
4. See Cao Xueqin,  Qin long
Jiaxu Zhiyanzhai Chongping Shitou
ji   (original manuscript i n
photocopy), 1795 edition.
5. Ibid.  (Hong Kong: Zhong-
hwa Book Company, 1977), Vol. 1,
P. 3.
6. W. H. Sheldon,  The Varie-
ties of Human Physique: An Intro-
duction to Constitututional Psy-
chology (New  York: Harper 
Brothers, 1940), pp. 5-6.
7. Ibid.
8. W. H. Sheldon,  The Varie-
ties of Temperament: A Psychology
of  Constitutional Differences  (New
York: Harper Brothers, 1942), p.
26.
9. W. H. Sheldon, "Constitu-
tional Factors in Personality,"
Personality and the Behavior
Disorders,  ed. Joseph McVicker
Hung (New York: Ronald Press,
1944), Vol. I, pp. 526-45 et passim.
4 8 Proceedings
10. Honglou meng  (Hong Kong:
Guangzhi shuji, n.d.), Vol. I, p. 35.
11. David Hawkes, tr.,  The Story
of the Stone, Vol. I, pp. 102-03.
12. Honglou meng, op. cit.,  p.
434.
13. Ibid.
14. Hawkes. Vol. II.
15. H. Y. Yang and Gladys Yang,
trs., Dream of Red Mansions, Vol. I,
pp. 288.
16. C. T. Hsia, op, cit.
17. Honglou meng, op. cit.,  p.
412.