First-class players, second-class pushers, third-class turtles, fourth-class turtles, five shaved heads, six back rubs, seven prostitutes, eight thieves and nine blows.

A first-rate actor, a second-rate pawn, a third-rate gambler, a fourth-rate handyman, a fifth-rate hairdresser, a sixth-rate waiter in the northern bathhouse, a seventh-rate prostitute, an eighth-rate thief and a ninth-rate hookah vendor.

Second, analysis

In ancient times, social strata were divided into nine grades according to the level of nobility and inferiority. Later, with the complexity of social division of labor, the saying of "upper nine streams, middle nine streams and lower nine streams" was derived. The above sentence summarizes one of the sayings of "extremely poor".

In fact, lowlife refers to not only a certain kind of professional people, but also industries, which basically include the following: touts, servants, scales, matchmakers, pawns, monsters, thieves, high platforms, blowers, circuses, pushers, pools, back rubs, repairs, matches, prostitutes, dogs, selling oil, pedicures, haircuts and so on.

Third, the folk division method:

Method one

Shangjiuliu: Monks, Taoist priests, painters, practitioners, geomancers, fortune tellers, Mr. Xue, pharmacies;

Dirty people: actresses, maids, prostitutes, beggars, villains, hairdressers, pawnbrokers, kitchen chefs, bathhouses, carpenters.

Division method 2

Shangjiuliu: emperors, sages, hermits, children's immortals, literati, warriors, farmers, workers and businessmen.

Zhong Jiuliu: Ju Zi, Doctor, Xiang Ming, Dan Qing (painter), scholar, monk, Tao, Ni.

Dirty people: master, servant, scale (scale), matchmaker, pawn, time demon (kidnapper, witch), thief, thief and prostitute.

Extended data:

The status of ancient actors

In costume dramas, you can usually see people singing, singing operas and playing tricks. These people are collectively referred to as "artists".

In ancient times, the social status of such people was even worse than that of prostitutes. Only when life stops, people will engage in this industry, including some trafficked people.

Therefore, in the eyes of the upper class (that is, the actor's employer), actors are a group of people without dignity. They cannot even create value for society. They try their best to perform just to make a living.

In addition, few people can see them perform, so it is difficult to spread their fame, let alone become the darling of the world.