唐诗
The zenith of Chinese poetry, balancing formal rigor, emotional depth, and universality.
Introduction: the golden age of Chinese poetry
The Tang Dynasty (唐朝 , 618–907) is considered the golden age of Chinese poetry. Never before or since has poetry occupied such a central place in China’s cultural, intellectual, and political life.
Tang poems are not just literary works: they were recited, memorized, calligraphed, sung, and were an integral part of scholars’ education.
1. Historical and Cultural Context
The Tang period corresponds to a time of great political stability, cultural openness, and economic prosperity. The capital, Chang’an (长安 ), was one of the world’s largest metropolises.
This openness fosters:
- cultural exchanges (Silk Road)
- development of the arts (painting, music, calligraphy)
- poetry as a social practice
Being a poet during the Tang era meant being a scholar, an official, an observer of the world, and a witness to one’s time.
2. A Highly Mastered Poetic Language
Tang poetry is written in Classical Chinese (文言 ), a concise, dense, and highly elliptical language.
Each character carries meaning, imagery, and cultural resonances. The poet must therefore make extremely precise choices.
This language allows for:
- controlled ambiguity
- layered meanings
- great emotional intensity with few words
3. Major Poetic Forms of the Tang
Regulated verse (近体诗 )
This is the most emblematic form of Tang poetry. It adheres to very strict rules:
- lines of 5 or 7 characters
- precise tonal patterns (平仄 )
- central syntactic parallelism (对仗 )
The quatrain (绝句 )
A brief form of 4 lines, highly condensed, often used to capture an instant, an image, or a fleeting emotion.
The ancient poem (古体诗 )
More free in form, it allows for more direct and narrative expression, while maintaining a strong stylistic demand.
4. Major Themes of Tang Poetry
- Nature: mountains (山 ), rivers (水 ), moon (月 )
- Solitude and exile: central theme of the scholar’s condition
- Friendship and separation
- The passing of time and impermanence
- War and the suffering of the people
These themes are rarely addressed directly: they emerge through suggested images and scenes.
5. Three Major Figures of Tang Poetry
Li Bai (李白 )
Poet of vitality, freedom, and imagination. His style is spontaneous, lyrical, sometimes visionary.
Du Fu (杜甫 )
Poet of moral rigor and historical lucidity. He bears witness to the sufferings of his time with great humanity.
Wang Wei (王维 )
Poet-painter, master of landscape poetry and contemplation. His poetry is marked by Buddhism and silence.
6. Legacy and Posterity
Tang poems are still today:
- memorized in schools in China
- quoted in everyday language
- adapted into music, calligraphy, and visual arts
They form an essential foundation for understanding Chinese culture, language, and sensibility.
