Difference between revisions of "Bai Juyi"
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Bai Juyi, along with [[Du Fu]], [[Li Bai]], and [[Wang Wei]], is considered one of the greatest Chinese poets in history. He is perhaps best known for authoring the "[[Song of Everlasting Sorrow]]" (C: ''Changhen ge'', J: ''Chôgonka''), a lengthy poem which tells the story of Imperial concubine [[Yang Guifei]]. | Bai Juyi, along with [[Du Fu]], [[Li Bai]], and [[Wang Wei]], is considered one of the greatest Chinese poets in history. He is perhaps best known for authoring the "[[Song of Everlasting Sorrow]]" (C: ''Changhen ge'', J: ''Chôgonka''), a lengthy poem which tells the story of Imperial concubine [[Yang Guifei]]. | ||
| − | He was originally from Taiyuan in [[Shanxi province]], and later led a successful career as a scholar-bureaucrat at the Imperial Court. | + | He was originally from Taiyuan in [[Shanxi province]], and later led a successful career as a scholar-bureaucrat at the Imperial Court. Bai's father, an assistant governor, died in [[794]], and so for a time, Bai, his mother, and his two brothers, moved around the country, living with relatively alternately in [[Suzhou]], [[Hangzhou]], and outside the capital. He passed the local [[Chinese Imperial examinations|civil service examinations]] in [[799]], and the national exams the following year, after which he composed a collection of one hundred statements on government & society, which he had published. Among these was an argument against the ban on members of the merchant & artisan classes sitting for the exams; the ban was eased shortly afterwards. |
Bai was a staunch defender of [[Confucianism]] and critic of Imperial excess and ostentation; his poetry has been described as clear and intelligible, being written in a plain, accessible style. | Bai was a staunch defender of [[Confucianism]] and critic of Imperial excess and ostentation; his poetry has been described as clear and intelligible, being written in a plain, accessible style. | ||
{{stub}} | {{stub}} | ||
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| + | ==References== | ||
| + | *Valerie Hansen, ''The Open Empire'', New York: W.W. Norton & Company (2000), 230. | ||
[[Category:Heian Period]] | [[Category:Heian Period]] | ||
[[Category:Scholars and Philosophers]] | [[Category:Scholars and Philosophers]] | ||
[[Category:Artists and Artisans]] | [[Category:Artists and Artisans]] | ||
Revision as of 13:36, 8 April 2013
- Born: 772
- Died: 846
- Other Names: 楽天 (C: Letian / J: Rakuten)
- Chinese / Japanese: 白居易 (Bai Juyi, Bo Juyi / Haku Kyoi)
Bai Juyi, along with Du Fu, Li Bai, and Wang Wei, is considered one of the greatest Chinese poets in history. He is perhaps best known for authoring the "Song of Everlasting Sorrow" (C: Changhen ge, J: Chôgonka), a lengthy poem which tells the story of Imperial concubine Yang Guifei.
He was originally from Taiyuan in Shanxi province, and later led a successful career as a scholar-bureaucrat at the Imperial Court. Bai's father, an assistant governor, died in 794, and so for a time, Bai, his mother, and his two brothers, moved around the country, living with relatively alternately in Suzhou, Hangzhou, and outside the capital. He passed the local civil service examinations in 799, and the national exams the following year, after which he composed a collection of one hundred statements on government & society, which he had published. Among these was an argument against the ban on members of the merchant & artisan classes sitting for the exams; the ban was eased shortly afterwards.
Bai was a staunch defender of Confucianism and critic of Imperial excess and ostentation; his poetry has been described as clear and intelligible, being written in a plain, accessible style.
References
- Valerie Hansen, The Open Empire, New York: W.W. Norton & Company (2000), 230.
