The Three Kingdoms—why is this historical novel a must-read?
The short but succinct introduction in the Graham Brash, Singapore edition (1985) of the 1925 Shanghai translation by CH Brewitt-Taylor explains why.
Compiled by Luo Guan Zhong in the Ming dynasty and revised by Mao Zong Gang and his father in the Qing dynasty, the Romance of the Three Kingdoms is one of China’s greatest classical novels.
Its grand theme is the story of warfare in the turbulent period after the fall of the Han dynasty (260 BC – 220 AD), when the vast Han empire was divided into three smaller kingdoms, constantly warring for supremacy.
This period should not be confused with the much earlier Warring States period (475 BC-221 BC).
Warfare is therefore an important theme in this novel. If it were solely on warfare, it would have been forgotten like other novels on war.
But the Three Kingdoms is more than that. Its enduring fame is because it is fundamentally about people.
Human nature is by far the most important theme of the novel. Among its heroes and villains, we see ourselves. We see our own strengths and weaknesses, our ambition, wisdom, and folly.
The Three Kingdoms is a magnificent exposition on human psychology and the myriad motives behind human ambition, and as such, it has had a tremendous influence on the cultural thinking and behaviour of the emperors, the officials, and the literati in China over the past centuries and continuing even till today and beyond.
For these reasons, there is a Chinese saying: “Do not read the Romance of the Three Kingdoms in your old age.”
LWH, Sunday 10 August 2025, 7 am