Shenyi
The shenyi is a type of robe in traditional Han Chinese clothing characterized by obliquely straight plackets with overlapping collars, fastened by a belt and other accessories such as ribbons and buckles. The garment got its name from its complete enveloping of the wearer's body, hence "wrapping the body deep within the clothes". A garment typically worn by Confucian scholars as academic dresses, shenyi was recorded in the Book of Rites, declined after the Han dynasty, regained popularity in the Song dynasty and remained a formal attire until the fall of the Ming dynasty and the subsequent conquest by the Manchu Qing dynasty.
The is a long one-piece robe, unlike the Ru–''Qun/Ku attire that was more popular among aristocrats and scholar-officials prior to the Qin dynasty, where the upper and lower garments are separate pieces. The, along with its components, existed prior to the Zhou dynasty and appeared at least since the Shang dynasty, but was developed into a complete system of attire during Zhou dynasty, being shaped by the strict Zhou feudal hierarchical system in terms of social levels, gender, age, and situation and was used as a basic form of clothing. It then became the mainstream clothing choice during the Qin and Han dynasties, by the latter of which it had evolved into two styles: the, characterized by helical plackets; and the, characterized by straight plackets. The later gradually declined in popularity around the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern dynasties period. However, its influence persisted among the commoners in the following Sui and Tang dynasties, during which the round collar robes such as yuanlingshan and chest-high skirts were more popular within the high society. The regained popularity as a form of formal wear for educated elites during the Song and Ming dynasties with advocation from famous scholars such as Song dynasty's Zhu Xi in his, and Ming dynasty's Huang Zongxi, as well as Jiang Yong in the Qing dynasty.
The was also introduced to other countries of the Sinosphere, where it exerted influences on the formal attire styles in both Korea and Japan. The is called in Korean with the same hanja characters as in Chinese, and was worn by Korean confucianists during the Goryeo and Joseon period. Áo giao lĩnh, a traditional Vietnamese robe worn commonly before the French colonization during the 19th century, was also heavily influenced by the shenyi''.
Terminology
The term ) is composed of two Chinese characters which can be translated as 'deep' and which literally means 'clothing' in the broad sense. Combined, the term literally means "deep clothing".Construction and designs
The structure of the system is typically composed of upper and lower parts; it also typically comes into two styles: one-piece garment, and two-pieces garments.And as stated by the, the was one long robe as opposed to the combination of a top and a bottom. However, the structure of the is made of two pieces: an upper garment called ) and lower garment called, which are then connected together to form a one-piece robe. Thus, the differ structurally from the, which is a one-piece robe where the lower and upper part is cut in a single fabric. Moreover, a standard was also made up of twelve panel of fabric which were sewn together.
History of early development
The, along with its components, already existed prior to the Zhou dynasty having first appeared at least since the Shang dynasty. However, in the Shang and Western Zhou dynasties, people prominently wore a set of attire called, which consisted of a jacket called and a long skirt called. Out of convenience, the and were sewn together to form a robe; this combination then resulted into the which was developed in the Zhou dynasty. The eventually became the dominant form of robe from the Zhou dynasty to the Han dynasty remaining popular; From the Spring and Autumn period to the Han dynasty, the loose with wide sleeves was fashionable amongst the members of the royal families, the aristocrats, and the elites. The loose which wrapped around the body to back and lacked a front end slit and was designed for the upper classes of society, especially for women, who wanted to avoid exposing their body parts when walking. This design of this wrap-style of was an important necessity in a period where the had yet to become popular amongst the general population. The preoccupation of the elites with layered, loose-fitting clothing also displayed their desire to distance themselves from the labourers, signalling their high status. By the Han dynasty, the had evolved in forms; it then further developed in the Han dynasty where small variations in styles and shapes appeared. Following the Han dynasty, the lost popularity in the succeeding dynasties until it was revived again the Song dynasty.Zhou dynasty period
The Western Zhou dynasty had strict rules and regulations which regulated the daily attire of its citizen based on their social status; these regulations also governed the material, shape, sizes, colours, and decorative patterns of their garments. The was also shaped by the Zhou dynasty's hierarchical system based on social class, gender, age, and the situation. However, despite these complex regulations, the was still a basic form of garment which served the needs for all classes, from nobles to commoners, old to young, men to women; and people would therefore expressed their identities through recognizable objects, decorations, colours, and materials on their outer garments. Nobles would wear a decorated coat over the, while commoners would wear it alone.Spring and Autumn period and Warring States period
In the early Eastern Zhou dynasty period, there were still strict rules and regulations which regulated the clothing of all social classes and were used to maintain social distinction between people of different classes.In the Warring States period, the was a moderately formal style of clothing. The which was representative of the Warring States period, was designed to have the front stretched and wrapped around the body several times. The wrapping-style for men and women can be seen in the Silk painting depicting a man riding a dragon and the Silk painting with female figure, dragon and phoenix patterns respectively Both paintings unearthed from a Chu tomb, Warring States period, 5th century BC, Changsha, Hunan Province.
Materials which were used in this period tended to be linen; however, when the was made into ceremonial garments, then black silk would be used instead. It was worn by both the literati and the warriors as it was both functional and simplistic in style. The was also tied right below the waist level in the front with a silk ribbon, called or, on which a decorative piece was attached to.
Rules and regulations in the
The design features of also match the ancient Chinese culture. In this period, the was also deeply rooted in the traditional Chinese ethics and morals which forbid close contacts between males and females. In this period, the had to conform to the certain rules and regulations which were recorded in the special chapter called in the. According to the, the ancient had to fulfill the following:The same chapter described the as being made of twelve panels of fabric corresponding to the twelve months and all twelve robes are cut into one clothing style. Moreover, the shape of the component of the is also described:
These prescribed rules and regulations did not only defined the as the combination of the and together, but also prescribed the length of the in this period which had to be long enough to prevent the exposure of the skin but short enough to prevent it from trailing on the floor, and the explanation behind the function of these prescribed measurements, and the location of the belt referred as. It also prescribed the rules on the colours and decorations of the trims based on the circumstances of its wearer:
Moreover, in addition to the prescribed rules and regulations present in the chapter, more details can be found in the chapter of the which described the as having a opening, and being a one-piece long robe with broad sleeve openings; with its circumference at the waist be three times that of the sleeve-opening and that of its hem be even larger:
There are two purposes for the loose-cut design: firstly, the body shape is less visible to others; the second reason is to allow the wearer to move the body as freely as possible. The wearer's skin should be appropriately covered to meet the first purpose. The waistband should only accentuate the outline of the waist; the outline of the rest of the body should be well hidden from view. Nonetheless, the second purpose, which engages more freedom of movement for the wearer's body.
Cultural significance and symbolism
In the chapter of the, the making of the is said to match the, the , the, and the. These four tools have normative connotations in : The,, and generally refer to the rules and standards people should follow; the defines the ability to balance all the advantages and disadvantages and result in the best solution.In appearance, rounded cuffs of the to match the compass; squared neckline to match the squareness, the seams at the back part of the drop down to the ankle to match the straightness, and steelyard balance the bottom edge to match evenness. The terms "squareness," "straightness," and "evenness" can be used to describe both the physical properties of objects and the moral qualities of people. These wordplays tie the physical properties of tools to virtues. Every part of has the attributes of an instrument, which gives the text multiple moral meanings.
The also explains how the helps construct its wearer's character through the symbolic relationship between the tools, virtues, and each part of the. The circular shape of the cuffs allows the user to raise his arms while walking, allowing him to maintain correct comportment. The straight seams worn in the rear and the square neckline worn in the front are intended to straighten one's approach to political issues. The bottom edge is meant to seem like a steelyard balance to calm one's thoughts and focus one's aim.
The back seam of the is first linked to the physical characteristics of "straightness" in the and then to the moral trait of "straightness." When attention to political matters, the wearer of the will be straight in the sense of becoming "upright" the design of the square-shaped neckline indicates "making correct" corresponds to the wearer's role performance. The evenness of the bottom edge is supposed to be able to keep the wearer's thoughts "even" in the sense of "balancing," allowing him to focus on a single goal. emphasizes how each part of represents a moral trait, such as selflessness, straightness, and evenness.
Nevertheless, the chapter also emphasizes the body effects on wearers. The body concealing and physical movement freedom are two significant reasons why was made in this design. Body mobility is brought up again in, which says that the cuffs are created round to allow the wearer to cultivate his physical comportments, not because roundness indicates a certain moral quality. In early Confucian ethics, having refined body comportment is regarded ethically significant. The allows the user to cultivate a person's comportment while also cultivating one's character by allowing a broad range of body mobility.
The also implies that the symbolic meanings of the which may be sensed by the wearer's body, in addition to being accessed cognitively and mentally. Both the Chinese verbs "to carry" and "to embrace" employed regarding the straight seams and square-shaped neckline frequently indicate a close bodily relationship between its subject and object. These two words are widely used to describe how the human body moves. The text implies that the wearer's body carries and embraces the straightness and squareness. Therefore, it can be sensed through the tactile sensations when the contacts the wearer's skin. Moreover, the evenness of the bottom border of the may be sensed when the wearer stretches it with his hands or when his thighs naturally meet it while walking. The users of may need to walk smoothly and firmly to keep its bottom edge even.
The design of the also encourages its wearer to use their bodies in a certain way. The fact that the text alternates between explaining the moral characteristics that the represents and discussing how it links to the wearer's body indicates that the design of has considered both the physiological and psychological-cognitive effects it has on its wearer.