''Gushi'' (), is one of the main poetry forms defined in
Classical Chinese poetry
Classical Chinese poetry is traditional Chinese poetry written in Classical Chinese and typified by certain traditional forms, or modes; traditional genres; and connections with particular historical periods, such as the poetry of the Tang dy ...
, literally meaning "old (or ancient) poetry" or "old (or ancient) style poetry": ''gushi'' is a technical term for certain historically exemplary poems, together with later poetry composed in this formal style.
Poetic form
The normal formal style is for uniform line lengths of 5 or 7 syllables (or
characters
Character or Characters may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk
* ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...
), with lines in syntactically paired couplets. Parallelism emphasizing thesis or antithesis is frequently found but is not an obligatory feature. Rhymes generally occur at the ends of couplets, the actual
rhyme sound sometimes changing through the course of the poem.
Caesura usually occurs as a major feature before the last 3 syllables in any line, with the 7 syllable lines also often having a minor caesura in between the first two pairs of syllables. The final 3 syllables in a line are often varied syntactically by whether the first and second of these are more closely linked by the syntax or whether the second and third are more syntactically connected: a feature of the ''gushi'' form which provides added poetic interest and variety.
History
''Gushi'' poems first really began to emerge as a poetic form in the second century CE. In its subsequent history, a revival during the Tang dynasty produced an additional period of flourishing for this form of poetry.
''Nineteen Old Poems''
''Gushi'' began their historical prominence with the ''
Nineteen Old Poems
''Nineteen Old Poems'' (), also known as ''Ku-shih shih-chiu shou'' is an anthology of Chinese language, Chinese poems, consisting of nineteen poems which were probably originally collected during the Han Dynasty. These nineteen poems were very inf ...
'' (literally, "Nineteen Gushi"), which seem to date to the
Han dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...
, from about this time period. These nineteen poems are generally characterized as rhymed verse, in the five-character line, unregulated style.
Tang dynasty revival
The ''gushi'' style experienced a great revival during the
Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdom ...
, during which one of the poets particularly associated with masterful use of this style was
Li Bai
Li Bai (, 701–762), also pronounced as Li Bo, courtesy name Taibai (), was a Chinese poet, acclaimed from his own time to the present as a brilliant and romantic figure who took traditional poetic forms to new heights. He and his friend Du F ...
. In the Tang dynasty, with the development of the new style poetry (''jintishi''), also known as
regulated verse Regulated verse – also known as Jintishi () – is a development within Classical Chinese poetry of the ''shi (poetry), shi'' main formal type. Regulated verse is one of the most important of all Classical Chinese poetry types. Although often rega ...
, the term ''gushi'' was applied to poetry which did not necessarily keep under restriction the length of the poem nor to fulfill requirements for verbal or tonal parallelisms: in the freer ''gushi'' form of verse, often various rules were pointedly violated, such as by the use of unusual rhyme schemes or conspicuous avoidance of verbal parallelism.
[Watson, 112]
Chinese:古诗
LiBai：李白
Tang Dynasty：唐朝
See also
*
Classical Chinese poetry
Classical Chinese poetry is traditional Chinese poetry written in Classical Chinese and typified by certain traditional forms, or modes; traditional genres; and connections with particular historical periods, such as the poetry of the Tang dy ...
*
Classical Chinese poetry forms
Classical Chinese poetry forms are poetry forms or modes which typify the traditional Chinese poems written in Literary Chinese or Classical Chinese. Classical Chinese poetry has various characteristic forms, some attested to as early as the ...
*
Li Bai
Li Bai (, 701–762), also pronounced as Li Bo, courtesy name Taibai (), was a Chinese poet, acclaimed from his own time to the present as a brilliant and romantic figure who took traditional poetic forms to new heights. He and his friend Du F ...
*
Regulated verse Regulated verse – also known as Jintishi () – is a development within Classical Chinese poetry of the ''shi (poetry), shi'' main formal type. Regulated verse is one of the most important of all Classical Chinese poetry types. Although often rega ...
References
Citations
Bibliography
*Birrell, Anne (1988). ''Popular Songs and Ballads of Han China''. (London: Unwin Hyman).
*Frankel, Hans H. (1978). ''The Flowering Plum and the Palace Lady''. (New Haven and London: Yale University Press)
*Watson, Burton (1971). ''CHINESE LYRICISM: Shih Poetry from the Second to the Twelfth Century''. New York: Columbia University Press.
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Chinese poetry forms