Water Margin

The 108 outlaws of Liangshan Marsh: China's bandit-herofication of rebellion against a corrupt court.

Specifications & Metrics

author

Attributed to Shi Nai'an

type

Classical adventure novel

era

Yuan–Ming China (14th century)

language

Classical Chinese

setting

The Liangshan Marsh, Song China

parts

120 chapters

Relative Scale in Novels

Core Principles & Analysis

• Its 108 stars gather in the marsh as outlaws with a code of honor.
• Set in the Song dynasty, it grew from Yuan-era storytelling cycles.
• It opened the Four Great Classical Novels' tradition of vernacular fiction.

Sources

• Wikipedia: Water Margin