Listen to this articleyìduì 议对
Commentary and Proposal
古代文体名称，用于臣下向帝王讨论政事、提出意见或对策。“议”用于臣下与皇帝讨论、分析政事，陈述不同意见和建议；“对”主要指对策，用于回答皇帝所提的问题。《文心雕龙·议对》将二者放在同一篇讨论，实际涵盖了所有的政论文体。南朝刘勰（465？—520）认为政论文写作的关键在于：全面掌握古今典章政制和重要事例，发现和提出有意义的问题，客观、合理分析问题，提出可行观点或对策，不能不顾事实而徒然表现文辞。刘勰以政论文的实际内容和效果为本，首先强调作者的见识、才能、态度，推崇那些既懂行又善辩、能够平息争议解决复杂问题的通才。刘勰的上述见解对于今天的政论文、学术论文及其他议论文写作都具有指导作用。
In ancient times, commentaries and proposals were submitted by officials to emperors to discuss state affairs and offer solutions. The term yi (议commentary) refers to an official discussion and analysis of state affairs with the emperor to air one’s views, often different from that held by the emperor and other officials, and propose solutions. The term dui (对 proposal) refers to the act of proposing strategies and answering the emperor’s questions. These two terms are discussed together in the “Commentary and Proposal” section of The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons. The general term “commentary and proposal” encompasses all types of official writing. According to Liu Xie (465?-520) of the Southern Dynasties, to produce a good piece of official writing, one should have a good knowledge of ancient and current institutions as well as codes of law and major examples, identify problems, objectively and logically analyze them, and propose feasible solutions. Such writing should not be pompous in style or ignore facts. Liu Xie stressed that commentaries and proposals should be based on solid facts and result-oriented and that one who wrote them should have vision and talent. He admired those who were knowledgeable and persuasive and could solve difficult problems. His views on writing official documents are still of value today when it comes to writing government documents, academic papers and commentaries.
引例 Citations：
◎“周爰咨谋”，是谓为议。议之言宜，审事宜也。（刘勰《文心雕龙·议对》）
（《诗经》说“多方咨询商讨”，这就是所谓“议”。“议”的意思是适宜，研究事情怎样做才算合宜。）
It is mentioned in The Book of Songs that “discussions are carried out by many different parties.” Such activities, also known as “commentaries” (yi), should aim to handle matters properly. (Liu Xie: The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons)
◎文以辨洁为能，不以繁缛为巧；事以明核为美，不以深隐为奇：此纲领之大要也。（刘勰《文心雕龙·议对》）
（语言运用以简洁明了为能事，不以繁富华丽为技巧；事理分析以明晰可靠为美妙，不以深奥隐晦为新奇：这就是议论文写作的基本要领了。）
A piece of writing which is concise and clear, not pompous and oblique is to be commended. An analysis of an issue, to be deemed admirable and illuminating, should be made in a clear and reliable way, and it should not be ambiguous and abstruse. This is a key requirement for writing a commentary. (Liu Xie: The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons)
