Qing Dynasty China
This epic novel takes place in Qing Dynasty China. The novel is famous for its lavish descriptions of Qing Dynasty cultural artifacts. The style of the character's attire is described, as well as the architecture and interior design of their homes. Their cultural norms are expressed, as are their political opinions, their rules of politeness, their personal conflicts, et cetera. Even their more mystical religious beliefs are explained for the reader. In some ways, the book is a cultural roman a clef, attempting to be a kind of cultural photograph to preserve the beautiful culture through time.
Extravagance and opulence
Not only is the imagery properly and historically Chinese, it is also an extravagant and opulent depiction of culture. This book shows human nature at full volume. The characters are royal and wealthy, so that their lives are filled with the utmost cultural density. Their homes are densely and ornately decorated, and this lends itself to prosaic descriptions of the times. The homes of the characters are described as the most opulent and architectural significant of their time. The family's, as royalty, are living a peak human experience in terms of opportunity and choice.
Love and desire
The characters experience an imagery that can best be described as a romantic longing for their desires. Many of these desires are for love, for acceptance, and for validation and honor. The romantic desire for marriage and love is coupled by a demand for honor and glory. This imagery, although abstract, constitutes the motivation and drive for the novel's heroic and royal cast. This imagery finds its full expression in Jia Baoyu, who cannot marry, but who is already married to China as a magical witness of his times, a "marriage" that gifts him supernatural insight.
Family and royalty
The society of the novel is explained through an imagery of royal behavior and the intermingling of important families. The families oscillate between competition and cooperation, sometimes being driven to combat and disagreement, sometimes offering their sons and daughters up for marriage. The imagery of family duty and the complex network of royal behavior is a kind of dance imagery which shows a delicate but critical attendance to honor.
