On 26 October 2021, the 11th talk of XMUM Humanities Forum - a lecture series held by Department of Chinese Studies, Xiamen University Malaysia - was held online.

The Japanese historian Prof. Tatsuhiko Seo gave a public talk themed "The Birth of Examination and Love", transporting the hundreds of audience to the Tang Dynasty to see the collision of two social systems in the 9th century Chang'an City.

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In the 120-minute lecture, Prof. Tatsuhiko Seo discussed the historical significance of the birth of “civil examination = romantic love” system, a term coined by the speaker himself.

Born in the 9th century Chang’an, when the common man culture started to replace elite culture, this social system closely linked examinations with love for the first time in human history. The Chinese imperial examination gave rise to a new kind of interpersonal relationship between male intellectuals and prostitutes in brothels, which produced the 'gifted and beauty' literature (“才子佳人小说”) and 'martial arts' literature（“武侠小说”）

Prof. Tatsuhiko Seo reckons that the civil examination-romantic love system has so far taken wide roots in society. He also referred to gender history to explain the social meaning of the system in the present time.

During the Q&A session, the participants asked questions regarding the concept of China and Japan's classical literature, the ancient Changan's social background and so forth.

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About Prof. Tatsuhiko Seo

Tatsuhiko Seo (妹尾 達彦, Seo Tatsuhiko) is a Japanese historian and professor who has written a number of books about Japan and China. As of 2008, he has been working as a Professor of Chuo University's Faculty of Literature. With a PhD degree from Osaka University, he has served at Hokkaido University of Education and University of Tsukuba (for history and anthropology) before joining the current institution.