Alternative (Advanced) Approaches to Ravages

 It’s been said many times in different ways that The Ravages of Time is a complex and intricate work, but such appraisals would ring hollow if its readers aren’t taking the advice to heart by broadening their horizons and deepening their engagement with what the series has to offer (beyond the casual gimmicks and the heroic tales). This little post will take a look at two instances in Ravages that could amply illustrate what it means to re-read and re-view the text in other colorful ways, and hopefully others may find the following suggestions somewhat helpful.

The Scripture Puzzle as Allegory/Analogy (chapters 17-18): Many may remember this episode for the introduction of a convoluted riddle (with exaggerated hidden messages) ostentatiously ‘decoded’ by Sima Yi and Zhuge Liang, only for the next few chapters to reveal that the solution is part of an elaborate trap. Now consider seeing that scripture puzzle (and the many attempts to make better sense of it) as something of a microcosm to Ravages (and more generally, any text as a tapestry of meanings). One could get by and hang on with relatively plain readings that focus on individual characters (the words on the script, the profiles of the cast), but that only scratches the surface. With the aid of various tools and techniques (applying the acid of theoretical findings, folding the paper to tease out more imaginative connections, reading against the grain by highlighting traces at the margins) one can notice more treasures (or stumble upon interpretive traps and decoys) and thus better appreciate the text and its connections. Taking things one step further, just as the scripture puzzle inherits meanings from a robust tradition, so too can Ravages be explored (with extra research) as one section of (or as a distinct site in) a larger constellation.

The Fuzzy Formation as Metaphor/Method (chapters 322-323): As a demonstration of what enhanced (mis)readings can bring to the table, consider for instance the battlefield confrontation between Yuan Fang and Guo Jia. On the face of it, the episode is about one showing off his superiority in warfare over a peer/rival, by commanding a battered troop using esoteric rules to confuse and wear down numerically superior enemy forces before the arrival of allied reinforcements. While many celebrate it mainly as an epic showdown of geniuses (while grumbling about unclear depictions and the lack of reader-friendly diagrams), a shift in emphasis and perspective could highlight other details and insights. For one thing, the overall setup resembles asymmetric conflict pitting rag-tag insurgents (or motley crowds of rioters) against neatly organized security units. Also noteworthy are the ways in which the chosen citations from ancient texts can be plausibly construed to echo innovative guerrilla and protest maneuvers that could momentarily keep low-intensity crackdown teams at bay. In addition, by combining fragments from a long-lost manual and snippets from a mostly-speculative (and mystical) treatise and repurposing them as improvised maxims to counter orthodox military doctrines, Ravages demonstrates and engages in audacious acts of intellectual insurgency (while obliquely suggesting scenes of mass struggle).

Interested readers may try to closely study the following recommended training grounds: chapters 7 and 131 for individual episodes, volumes 6 (chapters 42-50) and 22 (chapters 175-182) for standalone mini-arcs.

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