Tu Fu(712-770) A. Background

I.

Tu Fu(712-770) a. Background 1. Chinese poet in the Tang Dynasty 2. Poet-historian, portrayed social and political disorders 3. Lost his mother early in his childhood 4. Met Li Po (another Chinese poet) 5. Captured by rebels during the An Lu-shan rebellion 6. Lived in Szechwan area 7. Ended up having a quiet life in a cottage that he built 8. Traveled on lakes and rivers for two years then died on the boat b. Poetry/Philosophy 1. Reflected on how much he loved his country 2. Talked mostly about the hardships of the common people 3. Talks about his suffering during the war 4. Excelled in a difficult verse form called lü-shih (regulated verse)

II.

Lee Li-Young(1957Present) a. Background 1. Born in Indonesia to exiled Chinese parents. 2. Mother came from a noble family, father came from a family of gangsters and entrepreneurs

3. His father was the personal physician of Mao Tse-tsung during the Chinese civil war 4. Spent 19 months in Indonesian jail 5. Ran away to Hong Kong, headed a million-dollar business there and evangelized 6. Moved to Pittsburg and started writing after he began university there 7. Lives in Chicago currently b. Poetry/Philosophy 1. Writes in free verse 2. Writes about the experiences about his family and other refugees 3. Periodically makes mistakes and has slack rhythms 4. Honors the past with his poetry

III. Li Po (701-762) a. Background 1. Born in central China, Szechwan 2. Was skilled in swordsmanship and was a knight-errant 3. Spent a period of seclusion in the mountains 4. Married the daughter of the Prime Minister 5. Worked in the court, got drunk a lot and was part of the "Eight Immortals of the Winecup" 6. Became interested in Taoism 7. Was imprisoned and threatened with a death sentence 8. Got banished to Yeh-lang 9. Searched for alchemy and the elixer of life 10.Wandered the area for 2 years and then died b. Poetry/Philosophy 1. Has an aura of romanticism 2. Reflects his love of adventure and travel 3. Was drunk often and wine was often an inspiration to his poetry

IV. Wang Wei ( 699 – 759) a. Background 1. Was born into a fairly high status family 2. At the age of 15 he was already a skilled poet and musician 3. Had a long government career as the director of the Imperial Directorate of Music

4. His wife died childless

when he was 30 and he began to seriously study Chan Buddhism 5. When he was 50 his mother died 6. Had a typical Confucian literary education 7. Soon after Wang Wei assumed official position on the court of Prince Qi, the prince was suspected of conspiring against his brother 8. The emperor charged Wang Wei with an indiscretion and was dismissed from court, and he was demoted and banished to the district of Ji Zhou 9. He makes the acquaintance of Daoist and Buddhist masters 10. Was forced into service under the usurper An Lu-shan c. Poetry/Philosophy 1. Traveling to the Eastern Provinces is what inspired unusual perspectives for many of his poems 2. His poems are often metaphysical due to his study of Buddhism 3. His poems had very vivid imagery, most likely due to him being a painter

V. Li Ching Chao (1084–c.

1150)

a. Background 1. Was a highly educated woman for her time 2. Studied Chinese history and literature, calligraphy, painting, and music. 3. Grew up in a scholarly household, father was a high official 4. Marriage with Zhao Mingcheng was extremely happy, they collected antiques together 5. During the invasion of Jin in Northern Song region they were driven out of their homes 6. Zhao died from illness when Jin was 46 and childless 7. She traveled from city to city and had to sell her remaining possessions for income b. Poetry/Philosophy 1. She was a master of the tz'u, or ci, form of lyrical poetry that was set to music 2. Euphemistic approach to tz’u (intense themes, graceful style, sincerity, and artistry) 3. Her poetry was later classified as Yi’an 4. She had emotional intensity in her poems that often reflected from her own life 5. She wrote in unconventional language 6. During the time of her marriage with Zhao her poetry was extremely happy 7. After the death of her husband her poetry reflected her grief

Works Cited McDowell, Robert. "Lee, Li-Young." Contemporary Poets. Ed. Thomas Riggs. 7th ed. Detroit: St. James Press, 2001. 679-680. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. Naperville North High School. 17 Nov. 2009 . "Li Po." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Vol. 9. 2nd ed. Detroit: Gale, 2004. 437439. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. Naperville North High School. 10 Nov. 2009 . "Li Qingzhao." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Ed. Tracie Ratiner. Vol. 25. 2nd ed. Detroit: Gale, 2005. 263-265. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. Naperville North High School. 17 Nov. 2009 . "Tu Fu." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Vol. 15. 2nd ed. Detroit: Gale, 2004. 335336. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. Naperville North High School. 9 Nov. 2009 . "Wang Wei." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Vol. 16. 2nd ed. Detroit: Gale, 2004. 106-108. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. Naperville North High School. 17 Nov. 2009 .