Song poetry refers to Classical Chinese poetry of or typical of the Song dynasty of China (960–1279). The dynasty was established by the Zhao family in China in 960 and lasted until 1279.
Many of the best known Classical Chinese poems, popular also in translation, are from the Song dynasty poets, such as Su Shi (Dongpo), Ouyang Xiu, Lu You and Yang Wanli. This was also a time of great achievement in painting and literature, and many artists were accomplished in more than one of these, as well as often being government officials.
Historical background
The Song dynasty (960–1279) was the first time that China was unified into one state since the Tang dynasty, the two dynasties were separated from each other by the Tang-Song transition period, known as the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, a period of disunity. The Song period is divided into two parts, the first being the Northern Song (960–1127) which consisted of the China as reunified by the dynastic founder Emperor Taizu of Song. The second part of the Song period, known as the Southern Song (1127–1279) because the northern part of the empire was ceded to the military forces of the Jurchens, who formed their own Jin dynasty (1115–1234) out of this former Song imperial territory. The Southern Song then faced a protracted struggle against the Mongol Empire before finally succumbing to the Mongol forces, who then established themselves as the Chinese Yuan dynasty. Despite the constant military pressure and its numerous foreign affairs difficulties, the Song dynasty was generally a time of growing population, economical prosperity, and excellence in the fine arts.
The poetic tradition
The poets of the Song dynasty drew on a long tradition of poetry in China, particularly upon forms prevalent in the Tang dynasty, together with influences from Central Asia.The ci form is especially associated with the Sung dynasty period shows signs of development toward the end of the Tang dynasty and the period of disunity immediately before the Song dynasty, especially as exemplified in the works of Li Yu of the Southern Tang dynasty. One of the new developments was a large increase in the popularity of the Ci form of poetry, a form based on the traditional forms and rhythms, ultimately drawn from popular songs, but with new words. Many of these tunes were imported from Central Asia and were popularized outside of mainstream scholarly culture, and some of them were indigenous Chinese folk developments, developed in the streets and the pleasure houses. The ci form centered around providing new lyrics to existing tunes. Another development was an increasing fusion of painting and poetry, such as in the various Eight Views of the Xiao Xiang series of matched paintings and poems. Many of the Song Dynasty poets were greatly affected by the politics of the time.
Poetry and politics
During the Northern Song many of the government officials/poets were caught up on one side or the other over the controversial reformism of the powerful government minister Wang Anshi. One of those affected by his opposition to Wang Anshi's policies was Su Shi, who got his nickname "Dongpo" from his place of banishment during his first period of exile, in which his poems were used against him as evidence of disloyalty to the empire, in what has been known as the Crow Terrace Poetry Trial. Su Shi's poetry also was much affected by his second period of banishment to what was then an extremely remote imperial outpost on the far southern island of Hainan. During the Southern Song, much of the political controversy was waged around the issue of the status of the occupied northern part of the empire, which had been lost in the Jurchen invasion. Lu You was one of the poets who considered reconquering the north his patriotic duty and wrote poems in this regard.
Poets
Famous Song dynasty poets include Cai Xiang, Chao Chongzhi, Fan Chengda, Fan Zhongyan, Emperor Gaozong of Song, Gong Kai, Han Shizhong, Lady Huarui, Jiang Kui, Li Houzhu, Li Qingzhao, Lin Bu, Liu Kezhuang, Lu You, Mei Yaochen, Mi Fu, Ouyang Xiu, Qian Chu, Qin Guan, Shao Yong, Shen Kuo, Song Qi, Su Shi, Su Zhe, Wang Anshi, Wang Yucheng, Wen Tianxiang, Wen Tong, Xin Qiji, Yan Yu, Yang Wanli, Yue Fei, Zeng Gong, Zhang Xian, Zhu Shuzhen, and Zhu Xi.