Abstract:

National compiling books activities control in Ancient China includes organizational control and content control. Organizational control mainly includes institutions, process, staff and administrative supervision guarantee. Institutions guarantee shows that national archives were established to compile books organizationally. Process guarantee shows that the process of compiling books is strictly controlled. Staff guarantee shows that compiling books is supervised by prime ministers and editing staffs get incentives. Administrative supervision guarantee shows that people are punished due to the dereliction of duty such as disobeying. Content control mainly includes direction, style, structure and argumentative philosophical control. Direction control shows that the political direction of compiling books is strictly controlled. Style control shows that the content sequence is ordered according to the Confucian classics, history, philosophy and literature. Structure control shows that the structures are arranged according to the theory that man is an integral part of nature. Argumentative philosophical control shows that history is written by glorifying virtue and censuring vice. Chinese ancient national compiling books activities control has performance of both “good control” and “bad control”，which have a significant reference taking history as a mirror for the Documentation control activities in the modern society.

Keywords: National compiling books activities, Organizational control, Content control, Documentation control, Ancient China