• CONTENTSFiguresAbbreviationsDynasties of Early ChinaIntroduction1. Genre Networks as a Political Institution2. Reading the Heavenly Mandate3. Regulating the Inner Court4. Weighing the Ways of Government5. Defending Imperial Integrity6. Praising and Criticizing as EntertainmentConclusion: Limits of the Genre NetworkNotesAppendix: Genres Discussed in the BookWorks Cited

“Adding ‘genre networks’ as a newly defined methodology in comparative rhetoric, this book fills a void in the study of Chinese rhetoric—imperial documents in the Han Dynasty. You articulates the meaning of his study and raises meaningful questions to advance comparative rhetoric, in general, and Chinese rhetoric, in particular.”—Hui Wu, translator of“Guiguzi,” China's First Treatise on Rhetoric: A Critical Translation and Commentary“You’s book covers a range of official literary genres that are informed by different schools of thought and intertwined in the political discourse and argumentative practices of the Han dynasty in ancient China. His analyses of the selected texts are nuanced and eye-opening, shedding light on the studies of non-Western rhetoric.”—Xing Lu, author ofRhetoric in Ancient China, Fifth to Third Century B.C.E: A Comparison with Classical Greek Rhetoric

• CONTENTSFiguresAbbreviationsDynasties of Early ChinaIntroduction1. Genre Networks as a Political Institution2. Reading the Heavenly Mandate3. Regulating the Inner Court4. Weighing the Ways of Government5. Defending Imperial Integrity6. Praising and Criticizing as EntertainmentConclusion: Limits of the Genre NetworkNotesAppendix: Genres Discussed in the BookWorks Cited

“Adding ‘genre networks’ as a newly defined methodology in comparative rhetoric, this book fills a void in the study of Chinese rhetoric—imperial documents in the Han Dynasty. You articulates the meaning of his study and raises meaningful questions to advance comparative rhetoric, in general, and Chinese rhetoric, in particular.”—Hui Wu, translator of“Guiguzi,” China's First Treatise on Rhetoric: A Critical Translation and Commentary“You’s book covers a range of official literary genres that are informed by different schools of thought and intertwined in the political discourse and argumentative practices of the Han dynasty in ancient China. His analyses of the selected texts are nuanced and eye-opening, shedding light on the studies of non-Western rhetoric.”—Xing Lu, author ofRhetoric in Ancient China, Fifth to Third Century B.C.E: A Comparison with Classical Greek Rhetoric

• CONTENTSFiguresAbbreviationsDynasties of Early ChinaIntroduction1. Genre Networks as a Political Institution2. Reading the Heavenly Mandate3. Regulating the Inner Court4. Weighing the Ways of Government5. Defending Imperial Integrity6. Praising and Criticizing as EntertainmentConclusion: Limits of the Genre NetworkNotesAppendix: Genres Discussed in the BookWorks Cited

“Adding ‘genre networks’ as a newly defined methodology in comparative rhetoric, this book fills a void in the study of Chinese rhetoric—imperial documents in the Han Dynasty. You articulates the meaning of his study and raises meaningful questions to advance comparative rhetoric, in general, and Chinese rhetoric, in particular.”—Hui Wu, translator of“Guiguzi,” China's First Treatise on Rhetoric: A Critical Translation and Commentary“You’s book covers a range of official literary genres that are informed by different schools of thought and intertwined in the political discourse and argumentative practices of the Han dynasty in ancient China. His analyses of the selected texts are nuanced and eye-opening, shedding light on the studies of non-Western rhetoric.”—Xing Lu, author ofRhetoric in Ancient China, Fifth to Third Century B.C.E: A Comparison with Classical Greek Rhetoric