Gu From Its Poetry Study

Gu Qiyuan is a famous scholar and writerin in late Ming. He specialized in calligraphy, temperament, classics, history and intellectual studies. Gu lived six dynasties, namely, Jiajing, Longqin, Wanli, Tianqi, Taichang and Chongzhen. He recorded and checked the facts of the politics and history of late Ming, especially the society and its vicissitudes in the Nanjing area. His literary writings and critical works can also reflect the literary society in late Ming, which deserves some serious research. But his works were banned in Qing Dynasty and the history of Ming did not include his biography. Thus, few records of his life exist today. Most existing records are obscure. Few scholars in Qing paid attention to him, which is quite unfair to him. This absence of research renders meaningful the study of his thought, literary and poetic theory and writings. My paper, based upon previous research, start from his basic works of poems and essays combined with related historical materials and delineate his life process.Ⅰ'Ⅱinvestigate his writings under the background of the literary development of the late Ming and clarify his thoughts to form a comprehensive intellectual framework. My paper is divided into six parts. The first part is a comprehensive description of research in academia. The second is a biographical recording of his life and related friends and teachers, with some factual revisions. The third is the introduction of his works and intellectual tendencies, in whichⅠ'Ⅱtry to clarify his academic thoughts. The fourth is poetic criticism which focuses on his poetic criticism and compares it with contemporary schools of poetry and thoughts. The fifth is centered on his characteristics of poems and essays. The sixth is a conclusion that emphasizes his unique literary meaning and influence in late Ming's literary circle. Moreover, there is a supplement which chronics his life briefly.