the eight-legged essay format was invented in the song dynasty, by reformer and poet wang anshi (1021–1086), in the eleventh century. during the song dynasty, due to the invention of the printing press and the emperors' wish to recruit more men of talent, there was a huge boost in education and a consequent increase in the number of people taking the civil service exam. additionally, there was a shift from a pluralistic ideology characteristic of the tang dynasty to a neo-confucian ideology based on cheng yi and zhu xi's philosophy. the eight-legged essay came into existence under this background, coinciding with the shift in ideology and embodying the new orthodoxy.