1. The Peak of Chinese Literary Achievement
Tang Dynasty
Poetry
The Peak of Chinese Literary Achievement

2. In the Tang Dynasty, the composition of poetry came to be used in the examination by which intellectuals entered government service. Because of this, poetry became an integral part of social life, a medium of basic social exchange. Perhaps nowhere else in the world has lyric poetry ever occupied such a central position.
All of the surviving Tang poetry is the product of the literati or scholar-bureaucrats.

3. Two Primary Purposes
Tang poetry addressed important social and ethical issues. This is what the poets considered to be the primary function of poetry.
Tang poetry spoke of personal matters—for some it was almost like a diary
As you know, Confucius emphasized the didactic function of poetry. Tang poetry was serious poetry—a return to what they believed was its original function—however, poetry was also very personal for some.

4. Three Main Subjects Nature Philosophy Occasions Nature Philosophy
Occasions— Individual and historical moments Scenes of Daily life Scenes of daily life, meetings with friends,etc Communication with friends

5. Three Major Poets
Wang Wei—
Li Po—
Tu Fu—

6. Wang Wei 699-761 The Austere Artist
A painter as well as a poet, Wang Wei is best known for his short poems which are noted for their simplicity and which celebrate nature and reflect the Buddhist notion of “emptiness.”
His poetry is noted for its austerity and simplicity; he was one of the founders of Chinese landscape painting and most see in his poetry something of the artist’s eye.
In his later life he became a Buddhist and took vows as a Buddhist layman, and his poetry as well as painting often reflect the Buddhist notion of “emptiness” His works often take a Buddhist perspective, combining an attention to the beauties of nature with an awareness of sensory illusion. A painter as well as a poet, he is known above all for his miniaturist celebrations of nature. (20 poems).

7. Deer Fence/Enclosure Two Translations
Translation One
I see no one in the deserted hills
Hear only the echo of men’s speech.
Sunlight cast back comes deep in the woods
And shines once again upon the green moss
Translated by Stephen Owen
Translation Two
On the empty mountain, seeing no one,
Only hearing the echoes of someone’s voice;
Returning light enters the deep forest,
Again shining upon the green moss.
Translated by Richard W. Bodman and Victor H. Mair
The poem is divided into two parts. The first alludes to the solitude of the forest, and aural rather than visual sensations predominate (no one is seen, only voices are heard). The second refers to the apparition of light in a forest clearing and is composed of silently visual sensations: the light breaks through the branches, falls on the moss and, in a manner of speaking, rises again
The third line, according to Fran篩s Cheng, means literally: returning shadow -- to penetrate -- deep -- forest. Cheng points out that returning shadow alludes to the western sun. James J. Y. Liu translates in similar terms but, with greater propriety, says reflected light in place of returning shadow. In his literary version Liu writes: The reflected sunlight pierces the deep forest. Cheng has Ombres retournent dans la for괠profonde. The reader, through a note at the foot of the page, learns that ombres retournent -- a rather forced trope -- means the rays of the setting sun. And why shadows and not light or brightness or something similar? I wavered a great deal about translating this line. First I wrote: Cruza el follaje el sol poniente. (The western sun crosses the foliage.) But the poet does not speak of foliage but rather of the forest. I then tried: Traspasa el bosque el sol poniente. (The western sun crosses through the forest.) Somewhat better, but perhaps too energetic, too active. Next I decided to omit the verb, as Spanish allowed the ellipsis. The two syntactical blocks (bosque profundo/luz poniente; deep forest/western light) preserved the impersonality of the original and at the same time alluded to the silent ray of light crossing through the overgrowth.
According to Cheng the last line means: still -- to shine -- on -- green -- moss. Liu says: again -- shine -- green -- moss -- upon. That is: the reflection is green. In his literal version Weinberger includes all the possibilities: to return/again -- to shine/to reflect -- green/blue/black -- moss/lichen -- above/on(top of)/top. In two places my version departs from the others. First: the western light illuminates the moss -- in place of reflecting it or shining on it -- because the verb illuminate contains both the physical aspect of the phenomenon (shining, light, clarity, brightness) and the spiritual (to illuminate understanding). Second: I say that the green reflection ascends or rises because I want to accentuate the spiritual character of the scene. The light of the western sun refers to the point of the horizon ruled by the Amida buddha. Without trying to pin down the floating game of analogies, one might say that the western sun is the spiritual light of the paradise of the West, the cardinal point of the Amida Buddha; the solitude of the mountain and the forest is this world in which there is nobody really, though we hear the echoes of voices; and the clearing in the forest illuminated by the silent ray of light is the one who meditates and contemplates.
to Yefei's Poetry Page

8. Li Po 701-762 The Romantic Eccentric
Called the “banished Immortal” by his
contemporaries, Li Po wrote poems that are
known for their unrestrained emotion, deep
appreciation of people, and love of nature.
His poetry reflects Taoist tendencies.
Li Bai ( ), the Immortal Poet, living during the peak of the Tang period, wrote as many as nine hundred poems. He was probably the greatest of the ancient Chinese poets. It is generally agreed that between them, Li Bai and Du Fu elevated the poetic form to a level of power and expression that remains unsurpassed by poets of subsequent generations. His work is characterized by its imaginative and unrestrained expression of feeling. Rated as a romantic poet, his writings are endowed with a deep appreciation of people and their lives. The magnificent scenery he saw and enjoyed as well as the profound expression of his own desires and sorrows are subjects of his work.
His capacity to see the world with fresh eyes and a touch of fantasy led his contemporaries to call him the Banished Immortal—an immortal who is banished from heaven for some indiscrestion.

9. DRINKING ALONE WITH THE MOON
From a pot of wine among the flowers I drank alone. There was no one with me -- Till, raising my cup, I asked the bright moon To bring me my shadow and make us three. Alas, the moon was unable to drink And my shadow tagged me vacantly; But still for a while I had these friends To cheer me through the end of spring.... I sang. The moon encouraged me. I danced. My shadow tumbled after. As long as I knew, we were boon companions. And then I was drunk, and we lost one another. ...Shall goodwill ever be secure? I watch the long road of the River of Stars.
Translated by Witter Brynner

10. Drinking Alone by Moonlight
Here among flowers a single jug of wine,
No close friends here, I pour alone
And lift cup to bright moon, ask it to join me,
Then face my shadow and we become three,
The moon never has known how to drink,
All my shadow does is follow my body,
But with moon and shadow as companions a while,
This joy I find must catch spring while it’s here.
I sing, the moon just lingers on,
I dance, and my shadow scatters wildly.
When still sober we share friendship and pleasure,
Then entirely drunk each goes his own way—
Let us join in travels beyond human feelings
And plan to meet far in the river of stars.
Translation by Stephen Owen

11. Dialogue in the Mountains
To Send to Tu Fu as a Joke
I ran into Tu Fu by a Rice Grain Mountain,
In a bamboo hat with the sun at high noon
Hasn’t he got awfully thin since our parting?
It must be the struggle of writing his poems.
Translated by Elling Eide
Dialogue in the Mountains
You ask me why I lodge in these emerald hills;
I laugh, don’t answer—my heart is at peace.
Peach blossoms and flowing waters
go off to mysterious dark,
And there is another world
not of mortal men.
Translated by Stephen Owen

12. Tu Fu 712-770 the Confucian Moralist
Often called China’s greatest poet, Tu Fu
wrote poems reflecting his political
commitment, his social concerns, and his love of
family.
), the Sage of Poets, lived in a period of change when the prosperity of the Tang began to decline. Having suffered obstacles in his official career, he began to travel around the country and to write poetry. Living as a refugee during the Rebellion of An and Shi gave him a personal empathy with the sufferings of the poor. His work shows a great depth of feeling for the plight of the common people. In 759, Du Fu went to live in Chengdu and it is here that his former residence the Thatched Cottage is open for viewing by visitors. Recording as they do both the military and political situations pertaining at this time, Du Fu's poems are referred to as "the mirror of his time". He is regarded as providing a typical representation

13. Spending the Night in a Tower by the River
A visible darkness grows up mountain paths,
I lodge by river gate high in a study,
Frail cloud on cliff edge passing the night,
The lonely moon topples amid the waves.
Steady, one after another, a line of cranes in flight;
Howling over the kill, wild dogs and wolves.
No sleep for me. I worry over battles.
I have no strength to right the universe
Translated by Stephen Owen

14. This spring the city is deep in weeds and brush.
Spring View
The nation is ruined, but mountains and rivers remain.
This spring the city is deep in weeds and brush.
Touched by the times even flowers weep tears.
Fearing leaving the birds tangled hearts.
Watch-tower fires have been burning for three months
To get a note from home would cost ten thousand gold.
Scratching my white hair thinner
Seething hopes all in a trembling hairpin.
Translated by Gary Snyder

15. Moonlit Night
Tonight my wife must watch alone     the full moon over Fu-zhou; I think sadly of my sons and daughters far away, too young to understand this separation or remember our life in Chang'an. In fragrant mist, her flowing hair is damp; In clear moonlight, her jade-white arms are cold. When will we lean at the open casement together while the moonlight dries our shining tears? Translated by David Lunde

16. The Tang poets Employ [ed] poetry to record their deepest and most intimate feelings, crying out for the alleviation of social ills, noting with wry candor the waning of their physical powers, longing for absent friends, or dreaming of the last journey home. And because they dealt with the basic impulses of the human being, their works easily survive the transition into another language and milieu.
Burton Watson, “Tang Poetry: A Return to the Basics”

17. Some Good Web Sites http://www.chinese-poems.com/index.html
Good to study translations
Columbia web site
Beautiful pictures with poems
Fun with Tang Poetry
pictures and explanations
University of Virginia Web site—300 Tang Poems
Thatched cottage of Tu Fu