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曲是繼詩(shī)、詞之后興起的一種文學(xué)體式，一般指宋金以來(lái)的北曲（音樂(lè)多用北方曲調(diào)，演唱和念白用北方音）和南曲（音樂(lè)多用南方曲調(diào)，演唱和念白用南方音）。因鼎盛于元代，故又稱(chēng)為元曲。曲與詞的體制相近，但句法比詞靈活，多用口語(yǔ)，用韻也接近口語(yǔ)。曲大致分為兩種類(lèi)型：一種是進(jìn)入雜劇、傳奇的唱詞，屬于戲曲（也稱(chēng)劇曲）；另一種是散曲，和詩(shī)詞一樣，可抒情、寫(xiě)景、敘事，能演唱，但沒(méi)有念白和關(guān)于人物動(dòng)作、表情等的提示語(yǔ)，又稱(chēng)為“清曲”。不過(guò)，總體上說(shuō)，古代戲曲的成就和影響要大大超過(guò)散曲，而元代又是中國(guó)戲曲史上的黃金時(shí)代，當(dāng)時(shí)有姓名記載的戲曲作家就有八十余人。關(guān)漢卿、白樸、馬致遠(yuǎn)、鄭光祖四位戲曲作家，代表了元代不同時(shí)期、不同流派的戲曲創(chuàng)作成就，因此后人稱(chēng)他們?yōu)椤霸拇蠹摇?。元曲在思想?nèi)容和藝術(shù)成就兩方面都體現(xiàn)了獨(dú)有的特色，和唐詩(shī)、宋詞、明清小說(shuō)一樣，成為中國(guó)文學(xué)史上一座重要的里程碑。
Qu (曲) is a literary form that came into being later than poetry and ci (詞). It generally refers to the northern- and southern-style melodies created in the Song and Jin dynasties. Northern melodies were composed mostly with tunes in northern China and performed in northern dialect, while southern melodies had southern tunes and southern dialect. Since qu reached its peak in the Yuan dynasty, it is generally known as Yuan qu or Yuan opera. Qu is similar to ci in form but is more flexible in sentence structure, and colloquial language is used. There are two main types of qu: one is northern zaju (雜劇) opera and southern chuanqi (傳奇) opera; such qu is known as xiqu (戲曲) or juqu (劇曲). The other type is sanqu (散曲) or lyric songs, also known as qingqu (清曲). As with other forms of poetry, sanqu describes a scene, a sentiment or an event and can be sung, but it has no spoken parts or instructions for performers' movements and expressions. Generally speaking, the old-style opera is much more accomplished and influential than sanqu. The Yuan period was a golden age in the development of Chinese opera. There are more than 80 known playwrights from that time. Guan Hanqing, Bai Pu, Ma Zhiyuan, and Zheng Guangzu represent different styles from different stages of the Yuan opera, and they are recognized as the four leading Yuan opera writers. Yuan opera has distinctive plots and artistic appeal. Together with Tang and Song poetry and Ming and Qing fiction, it marks an important milestone in the historical development of Chinese literature.
引例 Citation：
◎世稱(chēng)曲手，必曰關(guān)、鄭、白、馬。（王驥德《曲律·雜論》）
世人稱(chēng)元代戲曲高手，一定推關(guān)漢卿、鄭光祖、白樸、馬致遠(yuǎn)四人。
When it comes to leading opera writers of the Yuan dynasty, Guan Hanqing, Zheng Guangzu, Bai Pu, and Ma Zhiyuan come to mind. (Wang Jide: On the Melody and Writing of Chinese Operas)
推薦：教育部 國(guó)家語(yǔ)委
供稿：北京外國(guó)語(yǔ)大學(xué) 外語(yǔ)教學(xué)與研究出版社
責(zé)任編輯：錢(qián)耐安
