Li Zhi's interpretations of history, religion, literature, and social relations synthesized Confucian, Buddhist, and Daoist ethics and incorporated the Neo-Confucian idealism of such thinkers as Wang Yangming. The result was a series of heretical writings that caught fire among Li Zhi's contemporaries. Translated for the first time into English, Li Zhi's bold challenge to established doctrines will captivate anyone curious about the origins of such subtly transgressive works as the sixteenth-century play The Peony Pavilion or the eighteenth-century novel Dream of the Red Chamber. Fond of vivid sentiment and sharp expression, Li Zhi refused to support sanctioned ideas about morality and wrote stinging critiques. In this sophisticated translation, English-speaking readers encounter the best of this intellectual's contribution to Chinese thought.