Literary Accomplishments in the Works of the Sages

The Book of Changes says, "When things have been correctly distinguished and the language expressing them has been made accurate, then decisive judgments are complete." And the Book of History says, "In the choice of language one should emphasize the essential and should not indulge in the extraordinary." So we know that the way to establish significant distinctions is by using language accurately; and the way to perfect writing is to emphasize the essential. If the writing is thus perfect, there will be no danger of succumbing to the love of the extraordinary; and if significant distinctions are thus established, the beauty of decisive judgments will emerge. Profound ideas may be obscure, but they will not harm linguistic accuracy; and the subtle language may be only suggestive, but this does not do injustice to the essential: the essential substance and the subtle expression will be achieved together; and accurate language and profound ideas will coexist. We may observe these literary accomplishments in the works of the sages.
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—Liu Hsieh, The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons, Chapter 2 (translated by Vincent Yu-chung Shih)