一
In the long history, the number of poets is countless. Although only a small number are female poets, they are undoubtedly a large number. It's just that most of them are not recognized by people yet. So, who is the first specifically identifiable female poet in history?
She is Mrs. Xu Mu. Mrs. Xu Mu (about 690 BC -?), surnamed Ji, was the daughter of Wei Gongzi Wan (Wei Zhaobo) and Xuan Jiang. He was born in Chaoge (now Qi County, Henan Province), the capital of the Wei Kingdom during the Spring and Autumn Period. When she grew up, she married Duke Xu Mu of Xu State, hence her name.
Her works handed down in the "Book of Songs" include three chapters and twelve chapters, including "Bamboo Pole", "Spring Water", and "Zai Chi". The poem "Bamboo Pole" describes Mrs. Xu Mu's life of being nostalgic for the mountains and rivers as a girl and her homesickness in a foreign country, but she often misses the country where her parents raised her. "Spring Water" describes the various activities of the lady running and shouting to save the motherland and her worries.
The most famous "Zai Chi" reflects the heroic spirit of this legendary woman. At that time, Beidi invaded Wei, and Mrs. Xu Mu was extremely sad when she heard the news that her motherland had been destroyed. She rushed to Cao to pay her condolences to the Marquis of Wei, and wanted to control the big country and save Wei. On the way, she was overtaken by the officials of Xu State and forced to return. She was very angry and wrote a poem "Zai Chi", which denounced the short-sighted and vulgar officials of Xu State and expressed the story of a woman who did not care about her personal safety in order to save the motherland. The determination to move forward courageously and unswervingly. When Duke Huan of Qi got the news, he immediately sent his son Wu Kui to lead his troops to rescue the country of Wei, thus avoiding a disaster for the country of Wei. After that, Weiguo was revived. The whole article is as follows:
Among the many poems in the Book of Songs, there are actually not many female poets. For example, "The hooligan's Chi Chi, hugging cloth and silk" obviously comes from a female poet. It is a pity that the vast majority of poets (both male and female) did not leave their names. And many explanations such as "Preface to Mao's Poems" are full of details.
The most famous female poet in the "Book of Songs" that we know today is undoubtedly Zhuang Jiang.
Zhuang Jiang was a princess of Qi State in the Spring and Autumn Period. Jiang was the surname of the royal family of Qi State. Because she married Duke Wei Zhuang, the king of Wei State, she was known as Zhuang Jiang. A beauty who first appeared in the Book of Songs, she was born into a noble family, the daughter of a noble family, and was extremely beautiful. Because Zhuang Jiang was of noble birth, he married a king, and he was very prosperous when he married. There is a poem "Shuo Ren" as evidence:
Among them, the sentence "hands are like catkins" can be regarded as a peak in ancient Chinese poems praising women's appearance. It is enough to imagine the beauty of Zhuang Jiang Qingguo.
Even so, Zhuang Jiang's future life was not happy. Because he had no children after marriage, he was left out in the cold. In ancient times, the princes were very turbulent. Duke Zhuang of Wei later married Li Si, the daughter of the state of Chen, and then married Li Si's sister Dai Gui. Duke Zhuang of Wei had a bad temper and was very indifferent to Zhuang Jiang. In the desolation and loneliness, Zhuang Jiang and Dai Gui, the concubine of Duke Wei Zhuang, became close friends. It's hard for us to know what happened between the two. Only one poem, "Yan Yan", which is called "the ancestor of the eternal farewell", can imagine the deep friendship between the two:
This poem was written when the two were parting, and it is profound and sad. Those who are in ecstasy can only say goodbye. In that era when news was difficult to transmit, every separation could be a farewell. We can't help but marvel at how beautiful and talented Zhuang Jiang really is, but also feel sorry for his ups and downs in life. According to Zhu Xi's research, she also wrote several poems such as "Final Wind", "Cypress Boat", "Green Clothes" and "Sun and Moon", but there are disputes and cannot be completely confirmed.
II
During the Han Dynasty, the "Book of Songs" continued to develop traditional folk songs. There were also many female poets whose names were not recorded during this period. I personally think that the most famous one among them is "Shangxie", which can be said to shock the world and weep ghosts and gods:
As for the song "Baitou Yin", "I wish to win the heart of one person, and we will never leave each other", it is also one of them Representative, originally a folk song, was attributed to Zhuo Wenjun by some novelists. "Nineteen Ancient Poems", which represents the highest achievement of poetry in the Han Dynasty, also contains such strong female emotional confessions as "Missing the king makes one grow old, how late is it for a handsome car to arrive".
Speaking of female poets who were recorded in the Han Dynasty, we need to mention first the "Song of Anshi Fang" written by Liu Bang's favorite concubine, Mrs. Tangshan. This is a Han Dynasty sacrificial song written for Liu Bang. There are seventeen chapters in the whole poem. The content is mainly about praising the founding Han Dynasty, which is ancient and elegant.
During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Princess Liu Xijun, who was married to Wusun, left behind a poignant poem "Song of Sorrow" in a vast foreign land:
She only lived in Wusun for five years. After living a lonely and helpless life for many years, he wanted to return to his hometown but could not, so he died in a hurry.
The female poet who achieved high historical evaluation during this period was Ban Jieyu (48 BC - 2 AD). She was the concubine of Liu Ao, Emperor Cheng of the Han Dynasty. She was good at poetry and virtuous. At first he was a young envoy, and later he was appointed as Jieyu. There is her biography in "Hanshu·Biography of Waiqi". She is also the aunt of Ban Gu, Ban Chao and Ban Zhao. She wrote many works, but most of them have been lost. There are only three existing works, namely "Ode to Self-Injury", "Ode to Punching Su" and a five-character poem "Song of Tuan Fan".
The full poem of "Tuan Fan Song" is as follows:
This poem is obviously a footnote in the life of a lonely concubine. Emperor Cheng of the Han Dynasty increasingly alienated Sister Zhao Feiyan after doting on her. Ban Jieyu then compared herself with a round fan. Since then, the round fan has become a famous allusion and has been cited by literati in the past dynasties. For example, "If life is just like the first sight, why is the autumn wind sad and the painting fan" comes from this allusion.
The female poet who had a similar experience to Liu Xijun, but had a more difficult time, was Cai Wenji. Although many people already know her from "Three Kingdoms" and "Glory of the King", they may not necessarily understand the sorrow of this talented woman's wandering.
Cai Yan, also known as Wenji and Zhaoji. She was born in Yuxian County, Chenliu County (now Qixian County, Henan Province) in the Eastern Han Dynasty, and was the daughter of Cai Yong, a great writer in the Eastern Han Dynasty. She first married Wei Zhongdao. After her husband died, she returned to her home. Later, due to the invasion of the Huns, Cai Yan was kidnapped by the Xiongnu King Zuoxian, married to the Huns, and gave birth to two children. Twelve years later, Cao Cao unified the north and redeemed Cai Yan with a large sum of money. Because she only redeemed herself, mother and son had no choice but to say goodbye. Cao Cao later married her to Dong Si. It is known in history as "Wen Ji returned to the Han Dynasty".
At first Dong Si was indifferent to him. Then Dong Si committed a capital crime, and Cai Yan went to Cao Cao to plead for mercy. At that time, Cao Cao was hosting a banquet for officials and distinguished officials, and said to the guests in the hall: "Cai Yong's daughter is outside. Let everyone see her today." Cai Yan, with his hair disheveled and barefoot, kowtowed to apologize, spoke clearly and clearly, and was filled with emotions and sorrow. They were all moved by it. But Cao Cao said: "But the document of condemnation has been sent out, what should I do?" Cai Yan said: "You have thousands of good horses in your stable, and countless brave soldiers, but you are stingy with a fast horse to save you." A dying life?" Cao Cao was finally moved by Cai Wenji and pardoned Dong Si. Dong Si also changed his attitude towards Cai Wenji, and the two became more affectionate from then on.
Cai Yan is also good at literature, music, and calligraphy. Her representative works are two "Poems of Sorrow and Indignation" that describe her misfortune and the guqin piece "Eighteen Beats of Hujia", which is sad and moving. "Poetry of Sorrow and Indignation" begins with "The Han Dynasty lost power and Dong Zhuo was in chaos". It is the first autobiographical five-character narrative poem created by a literati in the history of Chinese poetry. It truly and vividly depicts the poet's tragic experience during the great turmoil in the late Han Dynasty. It is also a record of the social turmoil and the suffering life of the people in the late Han Dynasty.
Three
As for the female poets in the Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties, the following are more famous:
Zuo Fen, the sister of the great writer Zuo Si, was famous for her talent. Because of his extraordinary talent, he was admitted into the harem by Sima Yan, Emperor Wu of Jin Dynasty. But in fact, as a vase, it is not favored all year round because of its ugly appearance. It is said that he and his brother Zuo Si wrote "Poems about Feelings of Leaving" and "Ode to Leaving Thoughts" in return.
Xie Daoyun, a talented woman who became famous for being "nothing like catkins blowing in the wind". Later, she married Wang Ningzhi, Wang Xizhi's mediocre and pedantic son, and the marriage was not a happy one. In an era when casual conversation was the fashion, she had a deep knowledge of metaphysics. The original two-volume collection of poems and essays has been lost. Now there are only "Taishan Ode" and "Simultaneous Song Song Poetry in Ji Zhong". The former is a metaphysical poem, while the latter laments the impermanence of fate.
Compared to several other female poets, Liu Lingxian's marriage to her husband Xu Qiu was quite happy. Although they were separated, they were at least happy with each other. She and her husband often convey their affection to each other through poems.
There are poems to prove it:
Xu Qiuzhi's "Gift Inside":
Liu Lingxian's "Reply to Outside":
There is also an interesting poem "Guangzhai" Temple":
Compared with those poems that describe one's life experience and express one's longing, this poem is quite plot-like and picturesque, and also gives people an implicit reverie: In a quiet and deserted temple, two men and a woman First, he made secret glances in the corridor, and then he walked into the palace to "flatter"...
This poem became famous for a while because it was in line with the aristocrats' admiration for palace poetry at that time. On the other hand, women in ancient times were far less bold and open-minded than today, so they were often criticized by conservative moralists of later generations.
After Xu Qiu's death, she left a touching "Essay in Honor of Her Husband Xu Jingye", the full text of which is as follows.
Bao Linghui, who is good at poetry and prose, especially good at imitating ancient works, is the younger sister of the famous literati Bao Zhao. Zhong Rong commented: "Ling Hui's poems are often innovative, clear and clever. "Naked Ancient" is particularly superior, but "Hundred Wish" is obscene." Because of his poor family background, he has been with his brother Bao Zhao day and night since he was a child. Since Bao Zhaowei took office, he has been thinking about his sister. This year, he came to Jiangzhou to take up a job, and he couldn't wait to write a "letter to his sister on Dali'an", which was "a superb pen and ink", telling him what he saw and felt during his trip:
And Warned her:
Bao Linghui replied to his brother:
Some years later, Bao Zhao still did not return as scheduled in the spring, and Bao Linghui wrote a song "Showing Travelers", which is elegant, simple and Touching:
Han Lanying, a native of Wujun. As famous as Bao Linghui, he has few deeds. Emperor Xiaowu of Song Dynasty presented "Zhongxing Fu" and was rewarded to the palace for his talents. Later, he served in the palace for a long time, became a doctor, and taught calligraphy in the Sixth Palace. In the palace, he was called "Han Gong" because of his age and knowledge. Zhong Rong praised: "The beauty of Lan Ying is very famous." This shows his literary talent. It is a pity that the collection of works has been lost, and there is only one poem left:
Su Hui, whose courtesy name is Ruolan. He was gifted and intelligent since he was a child. He learned calligraphy at the age of three, poetry at the age of five, painting at the age of seven, embroidery at the age of nine, and brocade at the age of twelve. When she was twenty-one years old, her love was in crisis. In order to restore the affection of her husband Dou Tao, she wrote the brocade palindrome poem "Xuanji Picture" which has been passed down through the ages. Empress Wu Zetian personally narrated this legendary story for the purpose of writing a preface:
"Xuanji Pictures" is a collection of palindrome poems, with a total of 841 words, 29 words vertically and 29 horizontally. Poems can be made by reading horizontally, obliquely, alternately, straightly, backwards, or back one character, or overlapping one character. The poems can have three, four, five, six, or seven words, which are very wonderful. Since its birth, countless literati and scholars have been fascinated by it, and Su Shi even wanted to imitate it but could not.
(Xuan Ji Tu, vertical scroll, ink on paper, made by Su Manshu in 1915)
To be continued.