One     1     of classic literature is that it often reflects an author’s own experiences and can therefore help us understand     2     of his or her time. This is one reason why the best works of literature still     3     readers long after they were written. Cao Xueqin’s A Dream of Red Mansions, one of the most     4     in Chinese literature, is a good example of this. Its storyline follows the fall of a large wealthy family much like the author’s own. No doubt     5     his own experiences, Cao Xueqin gives     6     of what life was like at that time. The novel contains     7     of details such as what the upper class wore and ate. It also describes the social relations in 18th-century China. As a result, readers     8     better understanding the gap between rich and poor, men and women, the learned and the uneducated in the historical context. Cultural and historical elements like these make A Dream of Red Mansions     9    . In summary, we can learn much about     10     in history from classic literature.