For those of you who want to find out more about Chinese ethical philosophy, this entry includes wonderful scholarly accounts of Confucianism and Taoism:
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/ethics-chinese/
Please use this background to reflect on the poetry of Tu Fu, who is regarded as a representative of Confucianism.
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Tu Fu
ReplyDeleteI was touched by Tu Fu's poem "My Thatched roof is ruins by the autumn wind" in the way that no previous poem did.
Although in most parts it seems like the main character is complaining about himself, he is actually building the case for poor and homeless people. those people who we don't see because of our high walls and didn't hear ( I screamed lips dry and throat raw...)because of their status in the society.
Tu Fu also make the case that there is not such difference between poor and homeless as their living's conditions are the same (inside a poor's home is as wet as outside... no place was dry). they might be poor or homeless but for Tu Fu they are still gentlemen (poorest gentlemen...) just like the wealthy. I can translate this as a call for acceptance of poor and homeless inside our society as they are just like everybody else with just less money.
this poem ends with the sacrifice of one for the well being of the others. This shows how united homeless and poor people are among each others. they understand their struggle and live in a tight community. Whereas the wealthier people are always divided and fighting each other to gain more wealth.
For Tu Fu Harmony and well being of the society come before wealth.
Tu Fu's My Thatched Roof Is Ruined by the Autumn Wind is probably the most heartwrenching poem I have ever read. Tu Fu's graphic description of the scene provokes sadness and pity. I was particulary moved by lines 11-18, where he speaks of the children laughing at the old man and running off with his thatch and him trying to scream with an achy, sore throat, but not being heard. I think his reference to children serves to empahsize just how miserable he was. The children possessed what he lacked--youth, agility, the ability to laugh. He stood before them incapable of anything, not even shouting. He just watches in agony as they ran away with his home.
ReplyDeleteI also like line 35 and interpret it to have a double meaning. He writes, "But I have no idea how I shall pass/this night of soaking." Here, I think he is refering to what is literally, physically happening as the rain pours onto him, but also how he will get through this night of soaking in his own misery. In comparison to the world surrounding him, it seems his life is meaningless, he is old and useless and things cannot possibly get any worse. He wonders how he will get through this night.
To start off. I dislike poems not because of how its structured. But because I usually don't understand it or analyze it correctly. I like when someone reads it to me and tells me the meaning is. So if I messed the meaning up in this one, forgive me.
ReplyDeleteThe poem that I tried to understand most was "Spending the Night in a Tower by the River".
I felt that this poem describes mostly a time of suffering when a person or a group of people that are in the middle of a war or battle and are unable to do anything. My reason for this is "a visible darkness grows up mountain paths" Meaning to me that the enemy is nearing their land. and then the ending "No sleep for me. I worry over battles.; I have no strength to right the universe." Meaning that this person or group are worried of what can happen and they are stuck in a situation in which they can't avoid. They have no strength signifies that they have no power or ability to stop or do anything about it. The title also relates to this in a way because in a night which signifies fear, terror, and evil is the situation in which they are in. Also the word tower. A tower is tall and its used as a look out. I see it as all they can do is watch and be helpless and hope that they can survive in this tower which I would assume would mean their defense (military, country).
I like the poem Moonlit Night by Tu Fu.
ReplyDeleteInstead of creating a story, he created a image of his wife and kids looking up at the moon. The word "pity" goes well with words "night" and "alone", and give readers more feeling of sadness. I believe Tu Fu wrote this poem when he was in prison. What is interesting is that he is the one who is alone, on the other hand, his wife is there with his kids, so why would he describe his wife as "Woman's chamber in only alone watch"? He answers the question in the next few sentences, how the boy and girl "don't know why she thinks of Chang'an". Since the kids doesn't know anything about Chang'an (I believe is the city where Tu Fu was jailed), his wife is missing him alone. At this time, he doesn't really know what his wife and kids are doing, but he knows his wife must miss him as much as he misses them. The moonlight connected their feeling together, make them tear.
I didn't perfectly understand the concept of Confucianism but two poems clearly show that TU FU cares about his family, which is one of the Confucian virtues. Specially, line 7("Moonlit together, its light drying traces of tears.") is a heart-touching part because it indicates that how much he had missed her wife by putting the phrase "traces of tears." He also shows us he love their children as well, saying that "While faraway I think lovingly on dauthters and sons."
ReplyDeleteThe image of moonlit and night goes well with the theme of this poem because at night people become more emotional and sensitive.
Meanwhile, in the poem "My Thatched Roof Is Ruined by the Autumn Wind" we can still see that he devotes himself to his family by mentioning his son again.
I really love that Tu Fu writes poems not just about his surroundings, but about his life. What's interesting is the fact that his poetry resonates and can still relate to the experiences of people regardless of the time in which it was written. I feel that his poem "Moonlit Night" can really apply to almost anyone because everyone has experienced some sort of longing or pining for a loved one. He also states, beautifully in his lyrical abstraction, that his longing is so great that a vision of her appears. Through his poem we are taken into his world, and I think that is crucial in the success of his poetry. He engages those who read his poetry through his imagery and emotion and we ultimately share his feelings as well.
ReplyDeleteThe line "moonlit together, its light drying traces of tears" exquisitely shows how he sees the moon as something constant in their separate lives and is the only thing that keeps them together. It brings the thought that perhaps as he is dreaming of her under the moonlight, she is dreaming of him as well. This sort of beautiful poeticism will remain timeless because no matter where in the world you are, you can relate to his pain of missing the one he holds dearest to his heart.
His poem "My thatched roof is ruined by the autumn wind," depicts the sadness and destitution of old age, loneliness and poverty. However, as the poem progresses you realize that this man is not simply a man who experiences the pain of poverty, but a man who is willing to die if it promises that no one ever has to go through his own experiences too. This sort of thinking is a Confucianism belief that he is trying to portray and ultimately persuade following generations to partake in. Perhaps if a young reader, who does not consider these things, will learn from his poem to understand self-sacrifice for others. Perhaps what Tu Fu is trying to say is that the younger generations lack an understanding of the world in which they live.
The idea that "I'll help myself before I help you," is seen in every generation in our society and perhaps Tu Fu's poem is timeless because this idea of a utopian way of human morality is not yet applied in all our lives just yet. Therefore, I feel that Tu Fu is not only a man who wrote poems about his life or simply about his surroundings, but a man who wrote poetry to inspire and relate to the experiences of many while portraying his beliefs.
To Fu's poem "My Thatched Roof Is Ruined by the Autumn Wind" really caught my attention as we were discussing it in class. This poem makes me feel as if To Fu is talking about all the struggles in life he has had to over come, but it was as if that was it like Professor Sorin said the last straw had been drawn from his roof. He was fed up. To fu had been looking to be remebered his whole life as this one great poet and he got no recognition this poem must of been written while he was sitting alone thinking about his life. It is actually a very depressing story and it makes you think about your own life in terms of how its is going or where it is going. Have you ever felt like no one cared or heard you. This poem definitly gives you a sense that To Fu indeed lived a life in which he was not heard or listened to by toomany people. Near the end of the poem it is as if he wanted to tell the readers that if he could only be the last to live through this depression he would be content. This is very admiring because not too many poeple would do the same.
ReplyDeleteusually i do not like reading poems because im not one to sit and think about hidden meanings and also because i feel like i can not relate to poetry besides my own personal words. Tu Fu surprisingly caught my personal attention even though i can not relate to his life, i found myself engaged in his words and meanings. my favorite poem he wrote was "My thatched roof is ruined by the autumn wind," the reason this one is so powerful is Tu Fu and his use of wording. this poem in some parts could speak metaphorically, for example " And i screamed lips dry and throat raw, but no use." he is screaming because the village children stole his roof, or he is trying to scream for life but he has no voice in this world. i love the way he uses choice wording to make you wonder what the hidden meaning actually is. this whole poem is about how cold, helpless and taken advantage of he is feeling but i feel like he has felt and been this way his whole life. he makes you know that his life has been ruined and helpless through the words " i have lived through upheavals and ruin and have seldom slept well." this line is saying that this night is not the only night when he feels helpless and defeated in his life. through his words Tu Fu can touch and relate in someway to people and their feelings and life. even if we have not went through what he is going through in his poem, we have felt ruined and helpless, without a voice or have felt taken advantage of. throughout all his poems, he gives hidden meanings which even people like me who do not read poetry can be enticed to feel for him.
ReplyDeleteIn the poems by Tu Fu I love the way he breaks up his poems into two parts where he portrays the realties of his situation and then going into his imaginations of what he wants for the future.
ReplyDeleteIn "Moonlit Night" we are previously informed about his seperation from his family. When looking at the beginning of the poem he explains how he is trapped behind the border and his dispair of not being able to be with his family.Then he looks at the moon, seeing it as a connection to his wife and child. This poem reminds me of a movie I had seen named "Under the Same Moon". It portrays the same concept of having distance between a loved on. A mother who had crossed the border to get a job to support her child, having to seperate herself from him. In the movie the same concept of watching the moon to form a connection when they are so far away is portrayed. I recomend this movie it has a different background to what Tu Fu talks about in his stories but it contains the emotion of being away from a loved one.
I really liked this poem because its full of imaginary elements which connects the whole idea of the poem. He connects the moon light with his wife and kids, and expecting that his wife misses him a lot. He also gives a very good background information that how he was trapped into this mess, and got away from his family. "emotions" pays a key role in his poem, because he Tu Fu is describing his feelings through non- living objects, but connecting these non-living objects with his family and emotions.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading Tu Fu's poems. I liked that Tu Fu's life is being played out in his poems. His poems in some ways are like a "People's History of China". A take on Chinese life for the average person, his poems are like a gateway that reveals that. My favorite of all the poems we read for class is "My Thatched Roof is Ruined by the Autumn Wind" because it wasn't just about his life but it is something that people during his time can relate to. He ends his poem by saying that if he knew that a life like this existed where "to own a mighty mansion"(pg.1388), then he would die for this perfect life for everyone to get. I liked that Tu Fu takes his personal life and experienes and make them so relatable.
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