Li Meng Research And Ming Dynasty Poetry

This paper is committed to establish Li Mengyang’s historical position and role, after the author investigate and study the inheritance and reform towards previous poetics and the influence on becoming poets. This paper includes whole line of Ming Dynasty poet history and there are total six chapters in my paper, except Introduction and Conclusion.In chapter1, I introduce a chronicle of Li Mengyang’s lifetime chiefly and investigate inscription of his compiles in Ming and Qing Daynasties, including the views he held. There are mainly three kinds of his compiles, such as Ji, Shi, Zi. In his compiles of Ji, there are13personal books b and12chosen books and7books with comments; in addition, he had two kinds Shi and five kinds of Zi. Besides, he completed many introductions for all kinds of books. His view inflects on three points: impact on Cheng-zhu Confucianism, give up other view but Confucianism and save the world. Therein, the relationship between Li Mengyang’s view and Cheng-zhu Confucianism is first step to study. With the quick development of economics in Ming dynasty, Mengyang turned his focus from Cheng-zhu Confucianism to normal life, gave active support towards personal desire and requirement; those actual views bring strong impact on Cheng-zhu Confucianism. Meanwhile, such view in his compile leads coming literature trend in late Ming Dynasty.Chapter2studies the change of poetic leaders of Hongzhi and Zhengde Poetry Circle through the analysis of the relation between LI Mengyang and LI Dongyhang, and the former’s critical inheritance of the latter. LI Mengyang took LI Dongyang as his teacher, and referred himself as Chaling School Poet. But from the latter part of Hongzhi Period, due to differences in political and literary views, he got further and further away from LI Dongyang; together with the other members of the Former Seven Scholars, he advocated restoration of ancient ways and rose to replace Chaling School in the end. LI Dongyang is the forerunner of LI Mengyang in his poetic thoughts.LI Mengyang carried forward LI Dongyang’s ideas in poetic formal distinctions, Style Theory, and attitudes toward Song Poetry, and probed into these ideas and further developed them theoretically. He thus established initially the theoretic system advocating Restoration practice based on ancient ideals of aesthetic judgement.In chapter3, the author takes the period as research focus when Seven Scholars headed by LI Mengyang advocated Restoration Movement, and studies the development of Poetry Restoration Movement in the former part of Ming Dynasty. The sense of restoration carried through the former part of Ming Dynasty, from Schools of Wuzhong, Yuezhong, Minzhong, Lingnan, Jiangyou requiring for the restoration of Elegance of the Middle Ancient Times to Taige Style (from Yongle Period to Zhengtong Period) praising prosperity as Top priority, then to Chaling School paying attention to the aesthetic quality of poetry and liberating poetry from political dependency, and finally to Former Seven Scholars. Ming Poetry went through an evolution from pursuing quality to pursuing gentle elegance, from passion-pent reasoning to passion-encouraged dereasoning, from purity and elegance to that suiting both refined and popular tastes.Chapter4studies the evolution of Seven Scholars’ poetic thoughts in a dynamic way by illustrating how the Former Seven Scholars came into being, paying special attention to the merging of their restoration ideas at the beginning and their division in the latter period. The formation of the Seven Scholars is a gradual development when members with the same literary ideas got attached to each other, the key of the great cohesive force is LI Mengyang. Therefore, the formation of the Seven Scholars is a process in which the other members gathered round LI Mengyang and influenced each other. From examination and analyses of history files and poetry collections, we can learn that the School of Seven Scholars took shape in16th Year of Hongzhi Period (1505), symbolized by the participation of HE Jingming, and was finally formed in the18th year of Hongzhi Period (1505), symbolized by the participation of XU Zhenqing.In the early stage of Former Seven Scholar, the integration of the restoration ideas was mainly influenced and guided by LI Mengyang. Through critical review of his early learning, especially the poetry of the Six Dynasties, his division with the Chaling School, and his refuting of its weak and extravagant manner, LI Mengyang and his partners gradually developed a uniform idea, thus founding the Restoration View that Poetry should be like that of Han, Wei, and Tang Dynasties.Till the latter period, due to differences in talents and the handling of Restoration methods, Former Seven Scholars got divided.In order to save its deep-rooted shortcomings, it members tried all out; HE Jingming advocated "Forsake the boat to get ashore", while XU Zhenqing adovated "Set up Format with passion".In Zhengde and Jiajing Period, the changeable politics and literati and officialdom’s disappointment led to the fall of restoration ideals. Members like WANG Tingxiang and WANG Jiusi abandoned literature to take part in Taoism one after another, to seek rest in the depth of the heart, and quit association with literature. So far, the restoration ideas of the Seven Scholars gradually broke up and Restoration Movement came to a rest.Chapter5studies horizontally the interaction of LI Mengyang and Guanglong Poetry Circle, Zhongzhou Poetry Circle, and Wuzhong Poetry Circle at the same period. Guanzhong poets and Zhongzhou poets, regarding LI Mengyang as both a teacher and a friend, were influenced by him and became the main strength and supports of Restoration Movement. Wuzhong Poets fall into two classes, one is represented by YANG Xunji, WENZhengming, ZHU Yunming, and TANG Yin, who lived in Wuzhong,dedicated in study of ancient classics besides pursuing self interests and leisure. But they were more open-minded and opposed to writing by measuring the ancient poets and emphasizing expression of personal feelings and original ideas. The other class is represented by XU Zhenqing, GU Lin, HUANG Xingzeng, who, influenced and guided by LI Mengyang, developed their own Restoration ideas and actively involved in Restoration Movement.Chapter6studies vertically the acceptance of Former Seven Scholars’ Restoration ideas headed by LI Mengyang by various poetic schools in the latter part of Ming Dynasty. There are two classifications. One class, with the same texture and structure as Former Seven Scholars, carries forward the Restoration ideas, represented by Eight Talents of Jiajing Period, Latter Seven Scholars, Yunjian Poetry Circle. The other is opposed to restoration ideas, different from Former Seven Scholars in structure, but similar in quality to LI Mengyang’s True Feeling Study and True Poetry is in Common Life in its sphere of pursuing True Feeling and True Poetry, represented by Yangmingxin Study and Late Ming Dynasty Romanticism advocated by XU Wei, LI zhi, FENG Menglong, Gongan School and Jingling School. They developed Former Seven Scholars’ poetic ideas headed by LI Menglong from different angles.To sum up, LI Mengyang is the turning point of poetic development of Ming Dynasty, and plays a linking role vertically and a leading and influential role horizontally.This paper has two appendixes, namely A Close Study of LI Mengyang’s Works and LI Mengyang’s Biographies and Epitaphs throughout History. They are the basic materials to study LI Mengyang, and therefore put at the end of the paper, for the convenience of reading.