On Wei Yingwu County Fasting Poetry

As a representative for magistrate poets during the"Da Li"period,middle Tang poet We Yingwu founded an important theme in the history of Chinese poems-"Jun-Zhai Poems", with"Jun-Zhai"referring to the mansions that officials lived in."Jun-Zhai Poems"reflects on the different levels of contradiction on whether to serve(in government) or to recluse by the officials,and reveals the ideal way of life for them,which is to serve physically and recluse psychologically.The origin of how"Jun-Zhai Poems"came about can be trace back to Xie Tiao of the Southern Qi Dynasty.Even though Xie's poems were not fully shaped and developed to become the latter's"Jun-Zhai Poems",it established the basic theme of officials seeking reclusion through leading a simple life-style in their mansions while enjoying the sights of nature,and yet physically serving the country at the same time.Wei Yingwu's"Jun-Zhai Poems"can be classified into three stages according to their period of writing,i.e.the Luoyang period,the Chang'an to Chuzhou period,and the Jiangzhou and Suzhou period.In each of the three stages,due to different experience,psychological conditions and also meetings with different people,Wei Yingwu developed different understanding on the contradictions between serving and reclusion.The experiences not only provided distinct styles for his poems during the different periods,it also broadens the contents of his poems to include his longing for his family,friends and his hometown.On the basis of combing through his poems in details,the third part of this paper emphasizes on the causal of"Jun-Zhai Poems"and its artistic traits.Through an analysis of history,the life of Wei Yingwu and other factors,we can roughly see his point of view on serving and reclusion,and also not just his personality,but also the profundity involved with the creation of"Jun-Zhai Poems"and its relations with history and society.On the artistic aspects,Wei Yingwu's"Jun-Zhai Poems"provided the field of ancient Chinese poetry with a series of important images,and also amassed a deep cultural information within.The"human"within the poems exhibit to us the clashes between elegance and ordinary,and display the distinct personality of Wei Yingwu.It also made"Jun-Zhai Poems"a clear comparison with other categories of poems like"Tian-Yuan Poems"in the world of ancient Chinese poems. To conclude,through the contents,deepness of thoughts and artistic techniques, Wei Yingwu not only broadens the scope of"Jun-Zhai Poems",but also greatly influenced later generations of officials with their way of life and poems writing.