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The book Zhuangzi was fixed in its shape by Liu Xiang 刘向, an imperial librarian of the Former Han dynasty 前汉 (206 BCE-8 CE). At that time the book Zhuangzi comprised 52 chapters, while the received version, shaped by the Jin period 晋 (265-420) Daoist scholar Guo Xiang 郭象, has only 33 chapters, divided into three parts: 7 "inner chapters" (neipian 内篇), 15 "outer chapters" (waipian 外篇), and 11 "miscellaneous chapters" (zapian 杂篇). The literary language of the Zhuangzi is very excellent and many parts of the book, in thought as well as in language, seem to stem from one single author, at least the Inner Chapters. The Song period 宋 (960-1279) writer and thinker Su Shi 苏轼 was the first who systematically analyzed the probability of Zhuang Zhou’s authorship and came to the conclusion that the chapters Dao Zhi 盗跖, Yufu 渔父, Rangwang 让王 and Yuejian 说剑 were definitely not written by the philosopher Zhuangzi. The Ming period 明 (1368-1644) collector Jiao Hong 焦竑 argued that the Inner Chapters were quite probably written by one person, but the Outer and Miscellaneous Chapters were additions of later times, especially the Han period. The modern scholar Luo Genze 罗根泽 systematically analysed these doubtful parts of the book. He concluded that some parts included anti-Confucian, or probably anarchist or at least libertinist, sentiments of what he calls "leftist Daoists" (zuopai daojia 左派道家), while others were written by "rightist Daoists" (youpai daojia 右派道家) that were accepting the Confucian order of society. These, and the chapters talking of immortals, were creations of the late Warring States or the early Han period, when Confucianism was not yet defined as the official state doctrine. Wang Shumin 王叔岷 (Zhuangzi jiaoshi 庄子校释) says that the division into inner and outer chapters was an arrangement by Guo Xiang, who therewith followed a common use also to be found in other early texts, and therefore challenges the old theory that the Inner Chapters were originals and therefore more trustworthy than the others. Ma Xulun 马叙伦 (Zhuangzi yizheng 庄子义证) also points at the fact that only very few texts include a part of "miscellaneous chapters". The famous historian of philosophy Feng Youlan 冯友兰, followed this argument and doubted whether the Inner Chapters really contained any original thoughts of Zhuangzi.
During the Han period the book Zhuangzi was not yet regarded with high esteem. Only during the Jin period it became one of the "Three Mysterious Books" (sanxuan 三玄), together with the Yijing 易经 and the Laozi. During the Tang period 唐 (618-907) the philosopher Zhuangzi was deified and the book attributed to him was given the official title of Nanhua zhengjing 南华真经 "Perfect classic of the Southern Flower". The most important commentaries are Zhuangzi zhu 庄子注 by Guo Xiang, Zhuangzi shu 庄子疏 by the Tang period author Cheng Xuanying 成玄英, Lu Deming's 陆德明 phonetic commentary Zhuangzi yinyi 庄子音义, Lin Xiyi's 林希逸 commentary Nanhua zhenjing kouyi 南华真经口义 from the Song period, the Ming period scholar Jiao Hong's Zhuangzi yi 庄子翼, and finally the Qing period 清 (1644-1911) commentaries Zhuangzi jishi 庄子集释 by Guo Qingfan 郭庆藩, Wang Xianqian's 王先谦 Zhuangzi jijie 庄子集解, and the modern commentary Zhuangzi buzheng 庄子补正 by Liu Wendian 刘文典. Other early commentaries were written by Sima Biao 司马彪 and Cui Zhuan 崔譔, fragements of which can be found in the collectaneum Jingdian shiwen 经典释文.

The Zhuangzi 庄子 "Master Zhuang" is one of the two basic writings of Daoist philosophy from the Warring States period 战国 (5th cent.-221 BCE). The other is the book Laozi 老子 or Daodejing 道德经.