Listen to this articlezòuqǐ 奏启
Memorial or Statement to Present One’s View to the Emperor
古代文体名称，是臣下向帝王言事、提出意见的文书。“奏”的意思是“进言”，臣下向皇帝论述政事、报告下情并明确提出意见；“启”的意思是“开启、敞开”，向皇帝坦诚提出看法。“奏”讲求明辨通达，文辞质朴；“启”兼有奏、表两种文体的功用，篇幅简短，略有文采。南朝刘勰（465？—520）认为，奏启是为口头进言准备的文本，主要用来向皇帝报告紧急事变、弹劾过失、陈述政事、表达政见等，因此较之章表，要求更加客观严谨，要言不烦，少有主观情绪。这对今天的公文写作仍有指导意义。
This genre of writing was used by officials to report important matters or present personal views to the emperor. Zou (奏) here means “a reminder to the throne,” i.e., a statement of an administrative matter plus a clear-cut view on how to handle it. Qi (启) here means “a candid view on state business.” The former should be prudent, insightful and plain in style, whereas the latter, functioning as both a memorial and a petition, should be brief and unassuming in style. Liu Xie (465?-520) of the Southern Dynasties observed that this kind of writing was prepared for making an oral presentation to the emperor. It reported an urgent situation, exposed wrongdoers, expressed one’s views on governance issues, and proposed ways to handle them. Therefore, unlike a memorial of gratitude or petition, a memorial to present one’s view to the emperor should be objective, discreet and succinct, and unaffected by one’s own mood. This observation still holds true for writing official communications today.
引例 Citations：
◎夫奏之为笔，固以明允笃诚为本，辨析疏通为首。强志足以成务，博见足以穷理；酌古御今，治繁总要：此其体也。（刘勰《文心雕龙·奏启》）
（“奏”这种文体，本就应以明白允实、忠厚诚实为根本，以明辨分析、疏通畅达为首要任务。要以坚定的意志来达成目标，要有广博的见识以穷究事理；借鉴历史经验来解决当下问题，抓住要领来处理繁杂事务。这就是写作奏书的大致要求。）
Zou or memorial to the emperor should be objective, candid and truthful. Its primary purpose is to fully clarify and analyze an issue. One who writes a memorial to the emperor should do so with firm resolve to reach a worthy goal. He should be highly knowledgeable so that he can explore an issue thoroughly, draw on past experience to solve the problem at hand, and identify key factors in addressing a multitude of issues. These are the basic elements that are important for writing a good memorial. (Liu Xie: The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons)
◎自晋来盛启，用兼表奏。陈政言事，既奏之异条；让爵谢恩，亦表之别干。必敛饬入规，促其音节，辨要轻清，文而不侈，亦启之大略也。（刘勰《文心雕龙·奏启》）
（晋代以来，“启”的运用相当普遍，兼有表和奏的功能。就用于陈述政见、讨论国事说，“启”是“奏”的分支；就用于辞让封爵、感谢恩典方面说，“启”是“表”的枝干。“启”一定要行文严谨，合乎法度，音节短促，论辩简要，行文轻快，有文采而不浮夸，写作“启”的要领大致如此。）
The use of qi or memorial to present one’s views has remained quite common since the Jin Dynasty. As far as the articulation of views and the discussion of state affairs are concerned, such memorials are a sub-type of general memorials (zou) submitted to the emperor. Such memorials may also be submitted to decline a title of nobility or express gratitude for an honor conferred by the emperor. In this sense, they are a sub-type of general memorials (biao) submitted to the emperor. In writing a memorial to present a candid view, one should be careful about wording and comply with laws and regulations. The memorial should be short in sense groups, highlight key facts and arguments and be persuasive in style. It should be eloquent but not flamboyant. These are the basic rules for writing a good memorial to present one’s views. (Liu Xie: The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons)
