The Injustice to Dou E
Encyclopedia
The Injustice to Dou E (竇娥冤 Dou E Yuan), also known as Snow in Midsummer is a Chinese
drama by Guan Hanqing
during the Yuan Dynasty
. This is one of Guan's most popular works, even in modern times.
The story describes the young widow
Dou E from Chouzhou (楚州) whose husband Cai (蔡) died two years after marrying. Dou was wrongfully accused by Zhang Lür (張驢兒, literally "The Mule Zhang") of the murder of his father, when Dou E refused to marry Zhang Lür. Before her execution (scene: 斬竇娥 "Zhai Dou E"), Dou E swore that her innocence would be proven by the upcoming abnormalities:
And all those, including the eerie "Snow in June" (scene: 六月雪 "Liu Yue Xue") did occur. After the ghost
of Dou E revealed the injustice to her father - Dou Tianzhang (竇天章), who eventually became a liangjunliefangshi inspector (兩淮廉訪使) - Inspector Dou put the corrupt officials and Zhang Lür to justice
at the end of the story.
The story has been repeatedly used and modified by later dramatists.
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
drama by Guan Hanqing
Guan Hanqing
Guan Hanqing , sobriquet "the Oldman of the Studio" , was a notable Chinese playwright and poet in the Yuan Dynasty.-Biography:...
during the Yuan Dynasty
Yuan Dynasty
The Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...
. This is one of Guan's most popular works, even in modern times.
The story describes the young widow
Widow
A widow is a woman whose spouse has died, while a widower is a man whose spouse has died. The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed widowhood or occasionally viduity. The adjective form is widowed...
Dou E from Chouzhou (楚州) whose husband Cai (蔡) died two years after marrying. Dou was wrongfully accused by Zhang Lür (張驢兒, literally "The Mule Zhang") of the murder of his father, when Dou E refused to marry Zhang Lür. Before her execution (scene: 斬竇娥 "Zhai Dou E"), Dou E swore that her innocence would be proven by the upcoming abnormalities:
- dripping bloodBloodBlood is a specialized bodily fluid in animals that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells....
that never drops on the ground, - snowSnowSnow is a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by...
in the midst of summer, and - a three-year long droughtDroughtA drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
in Chouzhou
And all those, including the eerie "Snow in June" (scene: 六月雪 "Liu Yue Xue") did occur. After the ghost
Ghost
In traditional belief and fiction, a ghost is the soul or spirit of a deceased person or animal that can appear, in visible form or other manifestation, to the living. Descriptions of the apparition of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to...
of Dou E revealed the injustice to her father - Dou Tianzhang (竇天章), who eventually became a liangjunliefangshi inspector (兩淮廉訪使) - Inspector Dou put the corrupt officials and Zhang Lür to justice
Justice
Justice is a concept of moral rightness based on ethics, rationality, law, natural law, religion, or equity, along with the punishment of the breach of said ethics; justice is the act of being just and/or fair.-Concept of justice:...
at the end of the story.
The story has been repeatedly used and modified by later dramatists.