wénrén: 文人 - Scholar, Literati, Man of Letters

Keywords: wenren, wénrén, 文人, Chinese scholar, literati, man of letters, scholar-official, Chinese intellectual, Chinese artist, Confucian scholar, scholar-gentry

Summary: The Chinese term 文人 (wénrén) refers to the traditional “scholar” or “literati,” a cultural ideal far deeper than a mere academic. A 文人 was an educated individual, typically skilled in the “Four Arts” (calligraphy, painting, the zither, and the game of Go), who