A Study of the Chinese Story of Nail Killing

• Main Authors: Hui-Lan Chang, 張慧蘭
• Other Authors: Chao-Chin Ting
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2011
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/01665017253402386275

碩士 === 世新大學 === 中國文學研究所 === 99 === There are many well-known stories about upright and incorruptible official judge the law case in Chinese legal case literature, “nail killing” is one of them. “Nail killing” means after investigation and examination to prove that the people was killed by nail. The judge of nail killing cases in fiction and drama now is Bao Zheng(包拯). In fact, nail killing cases evolved and accumulated by thousands of years. Since Qin Dynasty, China’s history already had record a law case which is about husband has known killed by his wife because she didn’t cry as she should. In Eastern Han Dynasty, it has become a story of wife didn’t cry as she should when her husband die, Yan Zun (嚴遵) sent his subordinates to guard the dead body and unexpectedly found that wife murdered husband by using iron nail through his head, this is the earliest “nail killing” in China. The similar story has been happened in Tang Dynasty. Until Song Dynasty, the story called “double nails” which is about one who was murdered by an iron nail and found another iron-nail-killer case by accident, but the story lack of real evidences. According to the inscription on tablets and history books, Yao Tianfu (姚天福) has judged a “double nails” case in Yuan Dynasty. As time goes by, “nail killing” has become the popular subject in fiction and drama in Ming and Qing Dynasty. The judge in story often replace by the famous upright and incorruptible officials in history such as Bao Zheng (包拯)、Shi Shilun (施世綸) and Di Renjie (狄仁傑) etc. The story has been added more details and variety. The biggest change is from Shuang Ding Ji (雙釘記) - two cases about wife kill husband change to Diao Jin Guei (釣金龜) which is about a woman killed her brother-in-law for his property. Diao Jin Guei has been popular due to the story praise the filial piety and fraternal duty and condemn the evil wife. Even the similar subject has been created by traditional speaking and singing among the folks, thus it can be seen has big influence. This thesis is to complement previous research and make list of those “nail killing” stories in all the past dynasties according to types of literature and arrange index clearly.