Wuzazu 五雜俎

Wuzazu 五雜俎 "Assorted platter" is a "brush-notes"-style work (biji 筆記) compiled during the Ming period 明 (1368-1644) by Xie Zhaozhi 謝肇淛 (1567-1624), courtesy name Zaihang 在杭. In addition to the Wuzazu, Xie Zhaozhi wrote the geographical works Dianlüe 滇略, Beihe jilüe 北河紀略 and Fang guang yan zhi 方廣嚴志, as well as the collections Changxi suoyu 長溪瑣語 and Wenhai pisha 文海披紗. His collected writings are known as You'an ji 游宴集 and Xiaocaozhai gao 小草齋稿.

The expression wuzazu 五雜俎 derives from a certain type of regular poem (shi 詩) called "assorted-platter type" (wuzazu ti 五雜俎體), which was based on the initial words of an old poem.

The Wuzazu, spanning 16 juan, is a miscellany with a wide-ranging scope, divided into five sections: the Heaven section (Tianbu 天部), the Earth section (Dibu 地部), the Human section (Renbu 人部), the Objects section (Wubu 物部), and the Events section (Shibu 事部), comprising 16 volumes. It primarily records aspects of Ming dynasty politics, economy, society, and culture, as well as information on plants, trees, birds, animals, insects, fish, and medicinal herbs. Among its contents, accounts of historical events from the Ming period are the most valuable. It also provides useful references on customs, notable objects, and anecdotes. Discussions of drama and theatre are concentrated in the Events section.

In the Wuzazu, Xie Zhaozhi challenges the traditional Confucian view that music and ritual form the foundation of politics. He argues that music—especially lyrics and drama—is primarily for aesthetic enjoyment and entertainment, not for political control. While orthodox court music serves solemn ritual purposes, lyrical and theatrical music is ornate, pleasurable, and unsuitable for state ceremonies, and its popularity does not cause a state's fall. Xie emphasises that flourishing entertainment, including drama and brothels, reflects social prosperity rather than political decline. He cites historical examples and literature to show that the rise of popular music and performance in both ancient times and the Ming era indicates peace and cultural vibrancy rather than national crisis.

Xie emphasises that drama and theatrical writing should balance reality and fiction, but he prioritises the fictional or imaginative element. He argues that plays, unlike historical records, need not strictly adhere to historical fact, as their purpose is entertainment and artistic expression. While he agrees with Hu Yinglin 胡應麟 (1551-1602) that the stories in dramas can be exaggerated or invented, Xie goes further in distinguishing truly original works, noting that some plays, such as "Romance of the Western Chamber" (Xixiangji 西廂記), are grounded in sources, whereas others, such as The Story of the Lute, are largely imaginative.

Xie's strong emphasis on fiction leads him to underappreciate how drama can convey deeper truths about life; he compares theatre to dreams, treating emotions, social status, and events on stage as not real. This perspective limits his understanding of drama, ignoring how playwrights deliberately use imaginative scenarios to reflect real human experiences. In short, Xie values theatrical creativity and entertainment over the representation of life’s truths, resulting in a somewhat narrow view of drama’s nature and function.

The theory of "reality and fiction" proposed in the Wuzazu is highly representative of Ming-period theories of novels and drama. For example, Wang Jide 王驥德 (d. 1623) in his Qülü 曲律 advocated that "in the way of theatre, what is produced should value reality, but its use should value fiction", while Lü Tiancheng 呂天成 (1580-1618), author of the Qupin 曲品, argued that "one may deliberately employ fiction without needing to conform to actual events". Xie Zhaozhi's theory, however, more clearly reflects the late Ming intellectual trend of critically challenging traditional ideas. Later theorists of novels and drama, such as Yuan Yuling 袁于令 (1592-1674), Jin Shengtan 金聖嘆 (1608-1661), and Li Yu 李漁 (1611-1680), were all directly or indirectly influenced by the Wuzazu.

The book was printed during the late 16th century by Huang Xingsu 黄行素. It is included in the series Guoxue zhenben wenku 國學珍本文庫 from 1935. A modern edition was published in 1958 by the Zhonghua Shuju 中華書局.