Recent-style Shi poetry : pentasyllabic regulated verse (Wuyan Lushi)
Document Type
Book chapter
Source Publication
How to read Chinese poetry: A guided anthology
Publication Date
1-1-2008
First Page
161
Last Page
180
Publisher
Columbia University Press
Abstract
The introduction of mandatory sets of rules radically changed the dynamix of poetry writing. The challenge faced by a lushi poet was not just to express himself, but to do so with self-imposed, severe constraints in practically all formal aspects. Inferior lushi poets could easily become prisoners of all these formal rules and turn their works into a trivial language game. But in the hands of great poets, lushi could become a most effective means of achieving the time-honored Chinese poetic ideal--to convey what lies beyond language. My close reading of four poems by Du Fu, Li Bai (701-762), and Wang Wei (701-761) will show how these three greatest Tang poets exploited various formal rules to the best advantage and created enchanting Confucian, Daoist, and Buddhist visions of the universe and the self, with little use of abstract philosophical concepts.
Publisher Statement
Copyright © 2008 Columbia University Press
Additional Information
ISBN of the source publication: 9780231139410
Full-text Version
Publisher’s Version
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Cai, Z.-q. (2008). Recent-style Shi poetry: Pentasyllabic regulated verse (Wuyan Lushi). In Z.-q. Cai (Ed.), How to read Chinese poetry: A guided anthology (pp.161-180). New York, NY: Columbia University Press.