The Journey to the West is a classic of China's ghost novels, reaching the peak of ancient romance novels, and is called the four classical novels of China together with The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, The Water Margin and A Dream of Red Mansions.

2. Water Margin

"Water Margin" mainly describes the story of 108 heroes gathered in Liangshan Park, Shandong Province at the end of the Northern Song Dynasty. Zhang Hui's novels belong to the heroic legend type. The author or editor is generally regarded as Shi Naian, and most of the existing periodicals have one or two people, Shi Naian and Luo Guanzhong.

3. A Dream of Red Mansions

A Dream of Red Mansions is an earthly novel with world influence. It is recognized as the pinnacle of China's classical novels, an encyclopedia of China's feudal society and a master of traditional culture. Based on the rise and fall of Jia, Shi, Wang and Xue, and from the perspective of Jia Baoyu, a rich son, the novel depicts the lives of a group of boudoir beauties whose manners and knowledge are beyond men's needs, showing the true beauty and tragedy of human nature.

4. Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Romance of the Three Kingdoms is the first novel, the first historical novel and the first literati novel in the history of China literature. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms describes the history of nearly a hundred years from the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty to the beginning of the Western Jin Dynasty, mainly describing the war, telling the story of the warlord melee in the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the political and military struggle between Wei, Shu and Wu, and finally Sima Yan unified the three countries and established the Jin Dynasty.

Extended data

These four masterpieces are inseparable in the history of China literature, and they all have high literary level and artistic achievements. The detailed description and profound thoughts contained in it have been praised by readers of all ages, and the stories, scenes and characters in it have deeply influenced the concepts and values of China people. It can be described as four monuments in the history of China literature.

These four novels basically represent four types of China's ancient novels, namely, historical romance novels, heroic legend novels, ghost novels and world love novels; In fact, they are the continuation and development of the four major speaking arts in the Southern Song Dynasty: The Water Margin is the development of Tieqier, the first vernacular novel in China history.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms is the development of historical novels and China's first novel. The Journey to the West means that with the development of novels, it is a romantic masterpiece with high artistic achievements and great influence, and it is the first novel with magical power in China.

Baidu Encyclopedia-Four Classic Novels