Du Fu poetry

Author: Du Fu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-06-01
Features: Du Fu lived during the historical period of the Tang Dynasty's transition from prosperity to decline. His poems often touch upon social upheaval, political darkness, and the suffering of the people, earning him the title of "Poetic History." He was a man of deep concern for his country and its people, with a noble character and exquisite poetic skills, revered as the "Sage of Poetry." Du Fu skillfully employed and creatively developed many classical poetic forms. He was a pioneer of the New Yuefu poetic style. His Yuefu poems contributed to the development of the New Yuefu Movement in the mid-Tang period. His long poems in five-and-seven-character ancient and regulated styles were both poetry and history, featuring detailed narratives with a focus on the overall structure, marking a high achievement in Chinese poetry art. Du Fu also demonstrated significant creativity in five-and-seven-character regulated verse, accumulating comprehensive artistic experience in tone, parallelism, and word refinement, bringing this genre to full maturity.
Du Fu (712–770) was a Tang Dynasty poet. His courtesy name was Zimei. His ancestral home was Xiangyang (now part of Hubei), and he was born in Gongxian, Henan. Because he once lived near the Shaojing area in the southern suburbs of Chang'an, he called himself the "Wild Old Man of Shaojing." During his time in Chengdu, he was recommended as a military advisor and acting Assistant Minister of Works, earning the posthumous titles of "Shaojing Du" and "Du the Minister of Works." Du Fu grew up in a family that valued Confucianism and official service, with a literary tradition. His grandfather, Du Shenyan, was a renowned poet during Wu Zetian's reign and served as Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Food and Clothing. His father, Du Xian, held positions such as Military Marshal of Yan and Magistrate of Fengtian. At the age of seven, Du Fu began studying poetry, and by the age of fifteen, his poems had already attracted the attention of famous scholars in Luoyang. From the 19th year of Emperor Xuanzong's Kaiyuan era (731) to the fourth year of Tianbao (745), Du Fu undertook two long journeys of exploration. The first was in the Jiangnan region, returning to Luoyang in the 23rd year of Kaiyuan to take the imperial examination for scholars but was not admitted. The following year, he began his second journey in the Qizhao area. In the 29th year of Kaiyuan, he settled in Shouyang Mountain between Luoyang and Yan Shi, possibly marrying Lady Yang around this time. In the third year of Tianbao, he met Li Bai in Luoyang and formed a deep friendship. The following autumn, Du Fu headed west to Chang'an, while Li Bai prepared to revisit Jiangdong. They parted in Yan, and Du Fu never saw Li Bai again, writing many touching poems in his memory. From the fifth year of Tianbao to the 14th year, Du Fu lived in Chang'an for ten years, during which his life, thoughts, and poetry underwent significant changes. His goal in going to Chang'an was to seek an official position and achieve something meaningful. In the sixth year of Tianbao, Emperor Xuanzong decreed that those with literary and artistic talents be summoned to the capital for selection, and Du Fu participated but was rejected due to the scheming of Li Linfu, the Chief Secretary known as "sweet words, sharp heart." In the tenth year of Tianbao, Emperor Xuanzong held three grand ceremonies to worship the Yellow Emperor (Laozi), the Grand Ancestral Temple, and Heaven and Earth. Du Fu submitted three "Great Rites Odes," which were praised by the emperor, and his articles were examined by the chief ministers but never followed up. He continuously wrote poems to influential officials, hoping for recommendations, but to no avail. Later, he secured the position of Assistant Military Advisor to the Right Protectorate, marking the later years of his time in Chang'an, just before the An Lushan Rebellion.
In his later years, Emperor Xuanzong completely abandoned the virtuous governance of the Kaiyuan era, allowing corrupt ministers to thrive and border generals to wage war recklessly, while he indulged in pleasure in the palace. In the winter of the 14th year of Tianbao, Du Fu visited his wife in Fengxian, writing "Ode on the Journey from Chang'an to Fengxian in Five Hundred Characters," a summary of his ten years in Chang'an and also a reflection on the decline of the Tang's golden age. After An Lushan's rebellion, he advanced southward, quickly capturing Luoyang and Chang'an. Upon hearing that Emperor Xuanzong had fled to the west and Emperor Shaozong had ascended the throne in Lingwu, Du Fu left his family in Qiang Village to the north and journeyed north to join the new emperor, only to be captured by rebels and brought to Chang'an. In the fourth month of the second year of the Great Deference era (757), Du Fu risked his life to escape Chang'an and reached Fengxiang, the temporary capital of Emperor Shaozong, where he was appointed Left Vice Censor. Soon after, he offended Emperor Shaozong by protecting Fang Jing, leading to interrogation. In the eighth month, he returned to Yan to visit his wife, completing a long poem titled "Northern Expedition," rivaling "Ode on the Journey from Chang'an to Fengxian in Five Hundred Characters." That September, Tang forces recaptured Chang'an, and in October, they recaptured Luoyang. Emperor Shaozong returned to the capital in late October, and Du Fu returned to Chang'an as Left Vice Censor. The following May, influenced by the struggle between Emperor Shaozong's new court officials and Emperor Xuanzong's old allies, Du Fu was transferred to the position of Assistant Minister of Works in Huazhou, marking his permanent farewell to Chang'an.
From the first year of Shaozong's Shangyuan era (760) to the fifth year of Daizong's Dali era (770), Du Fu spent eight years in Sichuan and three years in Jing and Xiang. During his time in Kuizhou, he described himself as "wandering in the southwest between heaven and earth" ("Ode on the Ruins of Ancient Sites"), though he actually lived in Chengdu for five years, a relatively stable period. In the spring of Shangyuan, he built a cottage by the Xianhua Creek in the west of Chengdu, ending four years of wandering and finding a place to live. By the end of Shangyuan, Yan Wu arrived in Chengdu as the Military Commissioner and Vice Censor-in-Chief, offering Du Fu much assistance. In the seventh month of the first year of Emperor Daizong's Baoying era (762), Yan Wu was summoned to the capital, and Xu Zhidao rebelled in Chengdu, forcing Du Fu to flee to Zizhou and Langzhou. In the spring of the second year of Guangde (764), Yan Wu was appointed Military Commissioner of Chengdu and Commander of the Southern Circuit, and Du Fu returned to Chengdu in March. Yan Wu recommended Du Fu as Military Advisor and Acting Assistant Minister of Works. In the fourth month of the first year of Yongtai (765), Yan Wu suddenly died, leaving Du Fu without support. In the fifth month, he led his family out of the cottage and traveled eastward by boat. "Five years in Sichuan, one year in Zizhou" ("Leaving Sichuan"), marked the end of the first half of Du Fu's "wandering in the southwest." He arrived in Yun'an in September but was too ill to continue, only moving to Kuizhou in late spring of the following year after his condition improved. Due to the harsh climate and lack of friends in Kuizhou, Du Fu left the gorges in the first month of the third year of Dali (768). He arrived in Jiangling in March but was unable to return north to Luoyang due to turmoil in Henan and blocked transportation. After staying in Jiangling for half a year and moving to Gong'an for several months, he reached Yueyang by the end of the year. The last two years of Du Fu's life (770–775) were spent without a fixed residence, traveling between Yueyang, Changsha, Hengzhou, and Leiyang, mostly at sea. He died in the winter of the fourth and fifth years of Dali on a boat between Changsha and Yueyang on the Xiang River, at the age of 59.
After Du Fu's death, his remains were temporarily buried in Yueyang. It was not until 43 years later, in the eighth year of Emperor Xianzong's Yuanhe era (813), that his grandson Du Siye moved his remains to Shouyang Mountain in Henan. Du Fu greatly expanded the scope of poetry in both content and form. His poetic styles were diverse. He mastered all forms of poetry and developed each to new heights. During his lifetime, his poems were not highly regarded, but 40 years after his death, they were recognized by scholars such as Han Yu, Bai Juyi, and Yuan Shen. Famous Song Dynasty poets like Wang Anshi, Su Shi, Huang Tingjian, and Lu You all admired Du Fu deeply, inheriting his legacy in various ways. The Old Book of Tang and the New Book of Tang·Bibliography both mentioned that Du Fu's collected poems had 60 volumes, but they were long lost. In the second year of Baoyuan (1039), Wang Zhu, compiling from imperial archives and incomplete collections of Du Fu's poems, created a 20-volume edition titled The Collected Works of Du the Minister of Works, including 1,405 poems and 29 additional essays. This was later revised by Wang Qi in the fourth year of Jiaqing (1059). Most later editions of Du Fu's collected works were based on this collection, with the number of poems gradually increasing. The collection is organized into ancient verse and regulated verse, and a photocopied edition exists. In the eighth year of Chunxi (1181), Guo Zhida's Collected Annotations of Du Fu Poems by Nine Scholars followed a similar organization by poetic form. The Harvard-Yenching Institute's Du Fu Concordance (1940) was also based on this collection. In the 23rd year of Shaoxing (1153), Lu Xing compiled Du Fu's poems chronologically, and in the fourth year of Jiatai (1204), Cai Mengbi added annotations, titled The Cottage Poems of Du the Minister of Works, which is available in a photocopied edition. Xu Juyin compiled The Collected Works of Du the Minister of Works Annotated by Category, included in the Commercial Press's Four Treasuries Collation. These four are now easily accessible Song Dynasty editions of Du Fu's collected works, organized by poetic form, chronology, and category. There are over 100 annotated editions of Du Fu's collected works in later dynasties. Some widely used ones include Qian Qianyi's Annotations of the Collected Works of Du the Minister of Works, organized by poetic form with detailed historical research; Qiu Zhaoao's Detailed Annotations of Du Fu Poems (also known as Detailed Annotations of Du Shaojing's Collected Works), which compiled the findings of previous scholars but sometimes went too far in interpretation; Yang Lun's Mirror and Selection of Du Fu Poems, which is concise and helpful for beginners; and Pu Qilong's Heart's Understanding of Reading Du Fu, organized by poetic form with many original insights, accompanied by A Chronological Catalog of Du Shaojing's Poems. The New and Old Books of Tang both contain biographies of Du Fu. Since the Song Dynasty, there has been a wealth of literary discussions and interpretations of Du Fu's poems in poetry commentaries and notes. The Commercial Press compiled A Collection of Classical Literature Research Materials·Du Fu Volume in 1964, gathering annotations and interpretations from various eras, though only the Tang and Song Section was published. Additionally, Wang Siqi's Du Yi in the late Ming Dynasty offered insightful interpretations of Du Fu's poems. Shi Hongbao's Sayings on Reading Du Fu Poems expressed differing views from Qiu Zhaoao's Detailed Annotations of Du Fu Poems, both of which were originally handwritten and later published by the Commercial Press. In 1962, the Commercial Press also published A Collection of Essays on Du Fu Research in three volumes, compiling important essays on Du Fu since the May Fourth Movement. Biographies and new research monographs include Feng Zhi's Biography of Du Fu, Xiao Difei's Studies on Du Fu, Fu Gengsheng's On Du Fu's Poetry, and Zhu Dongrun's Discussions on Du Fu. Detailed chronologies include Wen Yiduo's Collected Annotations of the Chronology of the Scholar Shaojing and the Chronology of Du Fu compiled by the Sichuan Cultural and Historical Research Institute.