Chinese Poetry

About this book

Poetry has always been held in high regard in China as it can provide expressions of deep emotion, offering insight into the inner life of Chinese writers across space and time. Chinese poetry often reflects the influence of its various religious traditions. This collection contains 81 carefully selected Chinese poems arranged in chronological order, from classical periods (c.2000 BCE) to modern times (1972), although most of them are from the Tang (618‒907) and Song (960‒1279) dynasties, as these two periods were the climax of Chinese poetry creation and development. The selection is based on the popularity of the poems, from which common phrases are taken for everyday Chinese language. Pinyin has been added to help readers learn Mandarin while reading them and feel the sense of poetics in them. During the translation, it was found interesting and surprising that certain rhythms in the classical Chinese poems were able to be translated to follow certain rhythms in English. Maybe there is a universal truth about composing poetry. This bilingual edition with original Chinese text and pinyin pronunciation may help Western readers learn the Chinese language while reading the English translation.