Tragic Xu Zhimo

Author: Han Shishan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-03-01
Features: Guo Moruo, Wen Yiduo, and Xu Zhimo are three names long familiar to the Chinese people. Guo Moruo's "talent," Wen Yiduo's "melancholy," and Xu Zhimo's "affection" are all well-known to lovers of literature. However, comparing and analyzing them would be even more meaningful. The "Literary Three Swords" series is a biography of these three swordsmen, written through comparison and analysis.
Born in 1897, Xu Zhimo is the one among the "Literary Three Swords" with the most "romantic life." Passionate, early death, and untapped poetic talent, coupled with his controversial reputation, make it indeed difficult to write a biography of Xu Zhimo. Author Han Shishan adheres to an objective principle in recounting the poet's life, documenting his loyalty to Zhang Youyi, his affection for Lin Huiyin, and, of course, his poetry. Among the three, Xu Zhimo passed away the earliest, leaving behind the most speculations for later generations, and he did so at the peak of his creative career. He is also the only one of the three who "completely withdraws" in his poetry.