Second, red chamber and Zhu chamber are synonyms. In ancient times, "Red Mansion" refers to the gorgeous buildings where women of rich and powerful families live. For example, there is a saying in Bai Juyi's "Qin Zhongyin's Proposal" that "a rich girl in a red chamber is embroidered with gold thread". Du Fu is known as "the wine in Zhumen stinks and the road freezes the bones". Literally, the red chamber, that is, Zhumen, is synonymous with wealthy families, and the author borrowed this word from the book.
Third, red chamber and brothel are antonyms. The original meaning of "brothel" is a building decorated with blue paint, usually a gorgeous house. Mainly refers to the residence of the emperor, sometimes as a synonym for wealthy families. However, because gorgeous houses are associated with gorgeous and luxurious life, unconsciously, the meaning of brothels has been biased and it has begun to be associated with prostitutes.
Fourth, alluding to the fate of the feudal dynasty. Although the time when the story happened is never stated in the work, we can infer from the plot that it was written in the late Ming or Qing Dynasty, or the author confused the Ming and Qing Dynasties, but it was definitely not written by other dynasties.
However, as we all know, the capitals of the Ming and Qing Dynasties were the Forbidden City, which is now the Forbidden City. The overall architectural tone of the Forbidden City is red. That is to say, although the author clearly wrote the fate of women in the red chamber, in fact, the author alluded to the historical fate of the feudal dynasty at that time.
In fact, the author uses a lot of argots throughout, just to avoid the words of the times. Judging from the title, the author also used this technique.
In a word, the author only put forward the concept of "Dream of Red Mansions" in the book, but didn't take it as the topic at first, just to "hide people's eyes and ears and borrow the theory of channeling". However, the author's good intentions were finally understood by later generations, and finally the title of A Dream of Red Mansions that the author wanted to use but was useless was generalized. I thought that if the author had knowledge underground, he would be satisfied in the grave.
Extended data:
The creative background of the writing process of A Dream of Red Mansions
A Dream of Red Mansions was born at the end of China feudal society in the18th century. At that time, the Qing government closed its doors to the outside world, and the whole country was immersed in the dream of Kangxi, Kangxi and Qianlong, and went to China. This period seemed peaceful on the surface, but various social contradictions in the bones were intensifying, and the whole dynasty reached a turning point from prosperity to decline.
During the Kang Yong period, Cao Jiazu Sun San worked in Jiangning for 58 years on behalf of four people. In its heyday, the Cao family had done four large-scale pick-up and drop-off of drivers. Cao Xueqin grew up in Nanjing and experienced a rich aristocratic life in his youth. However, the family gradually declined. In the sixth year of Yongzheng (1728), Cao Xueqin returned to Beijing with his family.
After returning to Beijing, he worked as a handyman in charge of literature and ink in a royal school, "Right-wing Religion". His family was poor and his life was difficult. In his later years, he moved to the western suburbs of Beijing, and his life was even poorer. He is "full of wormwood" and "the whole family often eats porridge and wine on credit". A Dream of Red Mansions was written in poverty after Cao Xueqin went bankrupt. The creation time is from the early years of Qianlong to about thirty years of Qianlong.
The first opening paragraph of A Dream of Red Mansions, "The author speaks from the cloud", is the preface of Cao Xueqin. In this preface, Cao Xueqin appears as a real person and tells readers the origin of writing. According to himself, this book was written according to his prosperous old dreams in Nanjing in his early years.
Because I lived in the western suburbs of Beijing at that time, I was mediocre and accomplished nothing. I suddenly recalled all the girls in my family when I was young, and felt that their knowledge and talents far exceeded their own. I couldn't help feeling ashamed and sorry. My ancestors established this family business after a narrow escape. In those days, I was happy, but I didn't do my job well and didn't listen to my parents and teachers. As a result, I grew up with nothing and was down and out for half my life.
Cao Xueqin wrote this experience and confession as a novel, just to tell readers that although their crimes are inevitable, those girls are real people in life, and their deeds must not be lost in obscurity to cover up their crimes. Thinking of this, my heart is full of ripples, and all difficulties are not a problem. What's more, the carefree rural life and pleasant scenery made him think like a spring and write like a god.
Cao Xueqin's modesty made him ignorant of learning, so he wanted to write this novel in vernacular Chinese, aiming to make a biography for the girls, relieve his distress and provide readers with fun and appreciation.
Reference 1: Baidu Encyclopedia: A Dream of Red Mansions
Reference 2: People's Daily Online: Translation from A Dream of Red Mansions