Sima Qian · Civilisations

Weightier Than Mount Tai

The terrible choice at the heart of Sima Qian’s life - to suffer castration and disgrace rather than die, so that he might live to complete his history.

What you'll be able to recall

You learned that Sima Qian chose castration over death to complete the Shiji . Reconstruct the choice he faced and his reasoning about how to use a life and a death, in your own words.

Leads to Viktor Frankl.

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