Su Shi Tao Study

Su Shi's "He-Tao-Shi(和陶诗,Poems in reply to Tao Yuan-ming)" is the set of poems written by Su Shi,a famous writer of the Northern Song,which match those poems by Tao Qian,a poet in the Eastern Jin Dynasty.In format,all those matching poems use the same rhyme words as Tao's corresponding poems.Because of their unique format and abundance,He-Tao-Shi draws attentions from many critics in different times.On the other hand,because of this format too,researchers on literature have dividing views on those poems,some even deny that they have any values and significance at all.Moreover,on the quantity,writing time,background,thoughts, content,achievement,significance and influence of the poems,the previous studies have left much to be desired.There is room for further discussion and rethinking. Besides,there is no overall research on the topic which covers all the aforementioned aspects.This thesis is to study Su's He-Tao-Shi.The first chapter studies on the concept,scope,formal characteristics,and process of circulation of Su's He-Tao-Shi and discusses the much debated issues of quantity and chronicle of the poems.On the quantity and time of the writing of Su's He-Tao-Shi,the thesis attempts to make a more comprehensive and reasonable point, according to the collection of He-Tao-Shi in the different versions of Su's works through the ages and the latest results of research.Among the numerous versions of collections of Su's poems,the thesis makes use of the Dong-po Xiansheng He Tao yuan-ming Shi, four volumes,published in the Song Dynasty(宋刊《东坡先生和陶渊明诗》四卷),as a main text.With the mentioned research,the thesis points out that 109 of Su's poems match Tao's ones,and investigates their specific writing time.The second chapter discusses the background of Su's He-Tao-Shi.Firstly,the thesis studies Su's writing of matching poems which repeat the same set of rhyme words as other poets' works and the reception of Tao.Rhyme-matching is the main technique of poem composition during the later stage of Su's life,while he invented the form of poem writing which matches an ancient poet's rhymes.On the reception of Tao Yuanming, the personality and poems of Tao gradually becomes the utmost model of Su's outlook on life and view of poem composition in his elderly time.Moreover,the thesis explores the background of Su's He-Tao-Shi in the perspectives of cultural history and literary history.With the mentioned studies,the thesis asserts that Su's He-Tao-Shi is not only his own personal innovation but the crystalization of the literary and cultural trends through the ages as well. The third chapter categorizes and analyses Su's He-Tao-Shi.The poems reveal several aspects of Su's later stage of life,including a "let it be" attitude,ways to discover joy in the midst of deprivation in daily life,depth of his affection for relatives and friends,unique and acute judgments about history,genuine exploration of philosophy of life,and keen pursuit of spiritual liberation.The poems also show the complicated and paradoxical psychological state in which he wants to withdraw from government services and liberate his own mind on the one hand,while on the other hand,he still intends to work for the society and people.On the relation to Tao's poems, the thesis indicates that Su is not bounded or restricted by the content of the original poems written by Tao.With the analysis and discussion,it can be understood that Su's He-Tao-Shi are genuine reflections of his elderly life,thoughts and emotions,instead of merely copycat imitations.The fourth chapter compares and contrasts Su's He-Tao-Shi and Tao's original poems and studies the artistic and intellectual achievements of the set of poems.In artistic aspect,Su's He-Tao-Shi represents the artless and natural style adopted in Su's later stage of life.The core of vigour and beauty which is covered by the artless style,is an artistic monument in Su's twilight years.In writing He-Tao-Shi,Su is not restricted by the rhyme words of the original poems by Tao,but expressing his own thoughts and feelings freely,and even creating some unique and innovative verses.In intellectual aspect,Su's He-Tao-Shi mirror the poet's acceptance of his destiny and spiritual freedom from any worries and bigotry.With such spirits,the poet attempts to solve the paradox of being an official or a hermit,and seeks transcendence over the ordinary world and the matter of life-and-death.Su's He-Tao-Shi occasionally show very different lines of thoughts to Tao,but it can be argued that this is a manifestation of "harmony and divergence at the same time(和而不同)" instead of Su's negation and rebuttal of Tao's thoughts.With this study,the thesis finds that Su's He-Tao-Shi shows specific similarities and difference to Tao's poems,but as a whole,they match the realm of Tao's poems in a higher level.The fifth chapter discusses the significance of Su's He-Tao-Shi for the poet personally and for literary and cultural history.For an elderly Su,the writing of He-Tao-Shi is meaningful as it is a crucial part of his poem writing during the Lingnan-Hainan period,and also a path to explore life philosophy and realms of personality.It makes Su overcome the setbacks and hardship of life in exile in old age.Thus,Su enjoys a vigorous and meaningful life there.Moreover,with the writing of He-Tao-Shi,Su proves to himself and others that as a poet,he is still live and sound,and further proves himself as the second self,successor and literary friend of Tao the "utmost poet".On the significance for history of literature and culture,Su's He-Tao-Shi confirm the format of writing poems which match ancient poets' works,and play an important part in actual affirmation of Tao the person and his poems as a canon.Lastly,the thesis discusses the influence of Su's He-Tao-Shi.The writing of He-Tao-Shi after Su in China and Korea is studied so as to understand the profound impact of Su's He-Tao-Shi on the literati in the later ages.With the aforementioned research,it is hoped that some prejudice towards the He-Tao-Shi by scholars in former times can be refuted and the mistakes in previous studies can be corrected.The thesis also aims at providing reference to the readers,especially the readers who intend to understand Su's He-Tao-Shi in a more thorough way.