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Tu Fu: Selected Poems
This volume is published in commemoration of the 1,250th birthday of Tu Fu, one of China's greatest poets who lived in the Tang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.). Tu Fu was a contemporary and equal of Li Po, widely known in the West. In the minds of many Chinese people he is even greater. Both glorified their days, the golden age of classical Chinese poetry, with writings of unmatched brilliance. It was a lime of great turmoil, a time when the Tang rule was declining and wars of aggression swept the country. Tu Fu, born of an intelligentsia family, sank to the lowest rung of the social ladder. He shared the lot of the common folk and therefore had a deep insight into the calamities and sufferings in which they were involved. He hated wars of aggression and longed for peace. He made his poetry a vehicle for the expression of his sympathy for the people, as well as a faithful account of his own tragedy. His poems have been cherished with ever-growing admiration. In 1962, Tu Fu was commemorated as one of the World's Cultural Giants. Feng Chih, the compiler of this book, is a professor of Peking University and the outstanding specialist on Tu Fu's works. His other collection of Tu Fu's works, containing 264 poems, is popular reading among Chinese lovers of poetry. The translator Rewi Alley, himself a poet from New Zealand, has been in China for more than thirty years. He has travelled widely in northwestern and southwestern China and has personally seen the mountains, rivers, cities and countryside mentioned by Tu Fu. He is most qualified for the translation of Tu Fu's poems. The present volume contains 140 of Tu Fu's poems written at various periods of his life, some of them already widely read. Additional features include the reproductions of the rubbing of a stone carving of Tu Fu's portrait, facsimiles of Tu Fu's works printed in the Sung and Yuan Dynasties, and paintings inspired by the poems.
- GenresPoetryCollectionsChina
216 pages, Paperback
Published December 6, 2004
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About the author
Du Fu
110?books56?followersDu Fu (Chinese: ¶Å¸¦, 712¨C770) was one of China's greatest poets and a central figure in the literary tradition of the Tang dynasty, often hailed as the "Poet Sage" (ÔŠÂ}) for his moral integrity and the depth of his work. His poetry, numbering over 1,400 surviving pieces, captures the essence of his turbulent era, blending historical insight, personal struggle, and a deep concern for humanity.
Born into a scholarly family, Du Fu was well-educated in the Confucian classics and aspired to a government career. However, his attempts to gain a stable official position were largely unsuccessful. He experienced firsthand the chaos of the An Lushan Rebellion (755¨C763), which devastated the Tang empire, displacing millions and leading to widespread suffering. These events profoundly shaped his poetry, turning his work into a powerful chronicle of war, political corruption, and the hardships faced by common people.
Unlike his contemporary Li Bai, whose poetry often embraced spontaneity and romanticism, Du Fu¡¯s verse is marked by realism, technical precision, and a strong sense of moral duty. His ability to fuse personal emotion with historical narrative made his work deeply moving and enduring. Themes of exile, poverty, and loyalty pervade his later poetry, as he spent much of his life wandering in hardship, struggling with illness and poverty.
Though largely unrecognized in his lifetime, Du Fu's influence grew over the centuries. Later generations admired his ability to elevate poetry into a form of social commentary, and he became a defining figure in classical Chinese literature. Today, his works continue to be studied and celebrated, both in China and worldwide, for their timeless wisdom, humanistic perspective, and artistic brilliance.
Born into a scholarly family, Du Fu was well-educated in the Confucian classics and aspired to a government career. However, his attempts to gain a stable official position were largely unsuccessful. He experienced firsthand the chaos of the An Lushan Rebellion (755¨C763), which devastated the Tang empire, displacing millions and leading to widespread suffering. These events profoundly shaped his poetry, turning his work into a powerful chronicle of war, political corruption, and the hardships faced by common people.
Unlike his contemporary Li Bai, whose poetry often embraced spontaneity and romanticism, Du Fu¡¯s verse is marked by realism, technical precision, and a strong sense of moral duty. His ability to fuse personal emotion with historical narrative made his work deeply moving and enduring. Themes of exile, poverty, and loyalty pervade his later poetry, as he spent much of his life wandering in hardship, struggling with illness and poverty.
Though largely unrecognized in his lifetime, Du Fu's influence grew over the centuries. Later generations admired his ability to elevate poetry into a form of social commentary, and he became a defining figure in classical Chinese literature. Today, his works continue to be studied and celebrated, both in China and worldwide, for their timeless wisdom, humanistic perspective, and artistic brilliance.
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