Tang Poetry

The Tang Dynasty witnessed a peak in Chinese culture. Especially for ancient poetry. It had its flowering in the Tang Dynasty. In more that 300 years of history of the Tang Dynasty, some 48900 poems were handed down and remain widely known today.So many works also made more than 2300 poets famous in history.

Li Bai

As far as the writing technique is concerned, the Tang poetry combined realism and romanticism. In form, poetry of the Tang Dynasty contained four-line and eight-line verse with five or seven characters in each line. Moreover, “modern style” poetry, which is regular and polished, also appeared in the Tang Dynasty.

 

The best-known poets of the Tang Dynasty were Li Bai and Du Fu, who are very prestigious in the whole world. Therefore, people of later generations have praised both of them as ” Li Du” collaboratively.

Being widely praised as the “Immortal of Poems”, Li Bai was a poet who abounded with passion and talent. With lofty sentiments and a powerful imagination, he created many poems in praise of magnificent mountains and mighty rivers of the motherland. Over 900 poems of Li Bai have been preserved, of which the most famous are Invitation to Wine, The sichuan Road, and Watching the waterfall at Lushan, and Thought in the Silent Night, intonated by people for generations.

Thoughts in the Silent Night

Li Bai

Beside my bed a pool of light,

Is it hoarfrost on the ground?

I lift my eyes and see the moon,

I bend my head and think of home.

Du Fu is revered as “Sage of the Poems” by the posterity. When he was young, Du Fu visited many scenic spots and places of historical interest. But his later life was full of frustrations, which enabled him to gradually have a clear idea of the people’s sufferings. In his poems, Du Fu boldly exposed the corruption of the feudal society and profoundly portrayed people’s miserable lives. More than 1400 of his poems have been preserved till today, and the best-known ones are Spring Outlook, Ballad of the Army Carts, The Conscripting Officer at Shihao, The Conscriping Officer at Tongguan, The Conscripting Officer at Xin’an, Farewell to My Husband, Farewell to My Old Wife and Farewell of a Lonely Soul.

Du Fu

A 4-line Poem with 7 Characters in Each Line

Du Fu

From vivid green willows comes the call of two orioles;

A file of white water birds rises into the clear blue heavens;

As it held in the mouth of my window are the mountains ranges with their snows of many autumns;

Anchored by our gate are the long distance boats of Wu.

The noted poets in the Tang dynasty also include Wang Wei, Bai Juyi, Li He, Li Shangyin an Du Mu, etc. Even today, Chinese people are still very fond of the Tang poetry, many of which can be recited even by children, for example, Thoughts in the Silent Night written by Li Bai, Welcome Rain One Spring Night written by Du Fu. Famous verses like ” We widen our view three hundred miles by ascending one flight of stairs”, ” Do you not see the Yellow River come from the sky” are often quoted by most people. The book Three Hundred Tang Poems is a bestseller at home and abroad. Currently in China, the tag ” If you have recited 300 poems of the Tang dynasty, you will be able to intonate them even though you can not produce them” has been popular. Thus, it can be seen how Chinese people are fond of the Tang poetry.

 

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