Song poetry
Encyclopedia
Classical Chinese poetry
thumb|right|300px|Attributed to [[Han Gan]], Huiyebai , about 750CE .Classical Chinese poetry is that type of poetry that is the traditional Chinese poetry written in Classical Chinese. It is typified by certain traditional forms, or modes, and certain traditional genres...
of or typical of the Song Dynasty
Song Dynasty
The Song Dynasty was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 and 1279; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money, and the first Chinese government to establish a...
of China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
(960-1279). This dynasty is sometimes referred to as the "Sung Dynasty", especially in older sources). It was established by the Zhao family
Zhao (surname)
Zhao / Chao or Chiu is a common Chinese family name, ranking as the 7th most common surname in Mainland China. Zhao is the first surname in the famous Hundred Family Surnames – the traditional list of all Chinese surnames – because it was the royal surname of the Song Dynasty when the list was...
in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
in 960 and lasted until 1279. Many of the best known and most popular Classical Chinese poems, either in their original or in translation, are from the Song Dynasty poets, such as Su Shi (Dongpo)
Su Shi
Su Shi , was a writer, poet, artist, calligrapher, pharmacologist, gastronome, and statesman of the Song Dynasty, and one of the major poets of the Song era. His courtesy name was Zizhan and his pseudonym was Dongpo Jushi , and he is often referred to as Su Dongpo...
, Ouyang Xiu
Ouyang Xiu
Ouyang Xiu was a Chinese statesman, historian, essayist and poet of the Song Dynasty. He is also known by his courtesy name of Yongshu, and was also self nicknamed The Old Drunkard 醉翁, or Householder of the One of Six 六一居士 in his old age...
, Lu You
Lu You
Lu You , was a Chinese poet of the Southern Song dynasty.-Early life and marriage:Lu You was born on a boat floating in the Wei River early on a rainy morning, October 17, 1125...
and Yang Wanli
Yang Wanli
Yang Wanli was a Chinese poet, born in Jishui, Jiangxi. He was one of the "four masters" of Song Dynasty poetry....
. This was also a time of great achievement in painting and literature, and many artists were accomplished in more than one of these, as well as often being government officials.
Historical background
The Song Dynasty (960 - 1279) was the first time that China was unified into one state since the Tang DynastyTang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
, the two dynasties were separated from each other by the Tang-Song transition period, known as the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms was between 907–960/979 AD and an era of political upheaval in China, between the fall of the Tang Dynasty and the founding of the Song Dynasty. During this period, five dynasties quickly succeeded one another in the north, and more than 12 independent states were...
, a period of disunity. The Song Dynasty was a time of growing population, economical prosperity, and excellence in the fine arts.
The poetic tradition
The poets of the Song Dynasty drew on a long tradition of poetry in China, but particularly the forms which were prevalent in the Tang Dynasty. One of the new developments was a large increase in the popularity of the CiCi (poetry)
Ci is a kind of lyric Classical Chinese poetry using a poetic meter based upon certain patterns of fixed-rhythm formal types. For speakers of English, the word "ci" is pronounced somewhat like "tsuh"...
form of poetry, a form based on the traditional forms and rhythms, ultimately drawn from popular songs, but with new words. Another development was an increasing fusion of painting and poetry, such as in the various Eight Views of the Xiao Xiang
Eight Views of Xiaoxiang
The Eight Views of Xiaoxiang are beautiful scenes of the Xiaoxiang region, in what is now modern Hunan Province, China, as having been written in the poems, depicted in the pictures and known among the people, from the time of the Song Dynasty...
series of matched paintings and poems.
Poetry, painting, and calligraphy
The Song Dynasty is known for its achievements in terms of combining poetry, painting, and calligraphy into a shared art form.The Ci form
The Ci as a poetic form perhaps reached a high point during the Song Dynasty. Many of its prime proponents were female poets, such as Li QingzhaoLi Qingzhao
Li Qingzhao was a Chinese writer and poet of the Song Dynasty, regarded by many as the premier female poet in the Chinese language.-Biography:She was born Li Qingzhao (Traditional Chinese: 李清照; Simplified Chinese: 李清照, pinyin: Lǐ Qīngzhào; Wade-Giles: Li Ch'ing-chao, pseudonym Yi'an Jushi (易安居士...
.
Xiaoxiang: poems of exile
As in Tang times, many of the poems were written by poets who had lost or never received the high paying government positions in the imperial court. Although this type of poetry dates back at least to the Third Century, it developed to new levels of subtle expressions of discontent during the Song Dynasty era.See also
- Classical Chinese poetryClassical Chinese poetrythumb|right|300px|Attributed to [[Han Gan]], Huiyebai , about 750CE .Classical Chinese poetry is that type of poetry that is the traditional Chinese poetry written in Classical Chinese. It is typified by certain traditional forms, or modes, and certain traditional genres...
- Ci (poetry)Ci (poetry)Ci is a kind of lyric Classical Chinese poetry using a poetic meter based upon certain patterns of fixed-rhythm formal types. For speakers of English, the word "ci" is pronounced somewhat like "tsuh"...
- Chinese poetryChinese poetryChinese poetry is poetry written, spoken, or chanted in the Chinese language, which includes various versions of Chinese language, including Classical Chinese, Standard Chinese, Mandarin Chinese, Cantonese, Yue Chinese, as well as many other historical and vernacular varieties of the Chinese language...
- Dongting LakeDongting LakeDongting Lake, or Lake Dongting is a large, shallow lake in northeastern Hunan province, China. It is a flood basin of the Yangtze River . Hence the lake's size depends on the season...
- XiaoxiangXiaoxiangXiaoxiang , also transliterated XiaoXiang. Hsiao Hsiang, and Chiu Chiang, in some older sources, refers to the "lakes and rivers" region in south central China, more-or-less corresponding with Hunan, China, south of the middle-reaches of the Yangzi River. Xiaoxiang is less a precise geographic...
- Eight ViewsEight ViewsThe Eight Views are the most beautiful or otherwise significant scenes of a certain area, a term often used in China, Japan and Korea...
- Eight Views of XiaoxiangEight Views of XiaoxiangThe Eight Views of Xiaoxiang are beautiful scenes of the Xiaoxiang region, in what is now modern Hunan Province, China, as having been written in the poems, depicted in the pictures and known among the people, from the time of the Song Dynasty...
(in ), Hunan Province - GuqinGuqinThe guqin is the modern name for a plucked seven-string Chinese musical instrument of the zither family...
- Song Dynasty poets
- Tang poetryTang poetryTang poetry refers to poetry written in or around the time of and in the characteristic style of China's Tang dynasty, and/or follows a certain style, often considered as the Golden Age of Chinese poetry...