Zeng Guofan said more than once: "Ancient prose and poetry are both very powerful." Zeng Guofan's ancient prose and poetry creations were famous at the time, and were also highly praised by later generations. "Manuscript of Qing History" said He said: "He is naturally good at writing, and he will never tire of ruling all his life. He has a family law and is not limited to one master." Liang Qichao pointed out that even if Zeng Guofan had no career, he could gain a foothold in history just by relying on his articles.
Zeng Guofan relied on his drive to study hard, his advantages of diligent study and good thinking, and his enthusiasm for cultivating talents. He overcame the decline of the Tongcheng literary school and pioneered the Tongguang poetry style, becoming an outstanding figure in the late Qing Dynasty. literary masters. Some of his ideas and methods for writing are also scattered in letters from home and diaries. After reading "Letters from Zeng Guofan", he outlined them and sorted them out to facilitate timely reading and study.
Xianghai Yan Shi’s text must be studied in Donglai Boyi. In particular, I must first circle it with a pen, and then select a few articles and read them by heart. You don’t have to read them. No matter what book, you must read it from beginning to end; otherwise, you will flip through a few pages and excerpt a few articles, but you will not know the overall essence of the book. It is better to learn poetry from "Zhongzhou Collection", but I prefer to read general collections rather than special collections. Everyone has different opinions on this matter and has different hobbies. My hobbies are that in the Five Ancients, I like to read "Selected Works", in the Seventh Ancient, I like to read "Changli Collection", and in the Five Rules, I like to read. When reading "Du Ji", Qilu also likes "Du Shi" the most, but it is difficult to follow it, so I also read "Yuan Yishan Ji". My poems are the shortest of seven rhymes, and I have experience in other styles. It is a pity that there is no one in Kyoto with whom I can talk freely. If you want to learn poetry, you must first read a collection of poems. Don't read here and there. You must first learn the whole poem. Ling Dizhou is the best at poetry and rhythm. If he is in the province, I can ask him for advice.
Reading and writing complement each other, and those who are good at writing are good at reading. From this family letter, we can draw some suggestions from Zeng Guofan in poetry writing.
First, to learn to write poetry, one must be good at imitating. "It is necessary to study "Donglai Boyi" for contemporary literature" and "it is better to learn poetry from "Zhongzhou Collection"." "Donglai Boyi" was compiled by Lu Zuqian in the Song Dynasty, also known as "Zuo Shi Boyi". "A Work for Students' Class Examination" contains many of Lu Zuqian's insights. The "Shi Wen" in Zeng Guofan's writings is the eight-legged essay. "Zhongzhou Collection" is a collection of Jin Dynasty poems compiled by Yuan Haowen. It has 10 volumes and contains more than 200 writers and more than 2,000 works. These two collections served as models for studying poetry and eight-legged prose at that time.
Why imitate?
It is not advisable to copy the ancient human frame in a close-up manner, but it is also advisable to imitate the ancient human frame in the composition. There is no sentence without its origin in the method of constructing sentences in "The Book of Songs". The articles in "Zuo Zhuan" mostly have ready-made sentences. Yang Ziyun was the Wenzong of the Han Dynasty, and his "Tai Xuan" copied the "Yi", "Fa Yan" copied the "Analects", "Dialect" copied "Er Ya", "Twelve Proverbs" copied "Yu Zhen", and "Chang Yang Fu" 》copy "It's hard for Shu Lao Lao", "Jie Mo" copied "Guest Hardship", "Ode to Ganquan" copied "Adult's Ode", "Drama Qin Meixin" copied "Feng Xiangwen", "Remonstrance Not Allowed to Shan Yu Chao Shu" copied "National Policy" 》"Jun Xinling admonished Han", almost every article is copied. Even the writings of Han, Ou, Zeng, and Su Jugong were all imitated to form body parts. From now on, when writing compositions and poems, it is appropriate to imitate them with your heart in mind, and then the framework can be established. The effect will be faster and the approach will be easier.
Second, how to read it? "No matter what book you read, you must read it from beginning to end; otherwise, you will flip through a few pages and excerpt a few articles, but you will not know the overall situation of the book."
Third, what are the best books to read? The answer given by Zeng Guofan is that reading general collections is worse than reading special collections. Zeng Guofan once mentioned many times: "There is no other way for me to teach my brothers to learn poetry, but they must read the special collections of the family. Do not read selected volumes, as it will destroy your spirit. The most important thing is "It's important." Not only must you be focused when reading, but you must also be focused when imitating genres. When learning the five rhymes, you must focus on the five rhymes. If you don't study at the same time, you will be overwhelmed and don't know where to go. "If you want to learn poetry, you must first read a collection. Don’t read here and there. You must first learn as one, not learn from each other.”
Fourth, read widely. Only by reading extensively and carefully selecting can we know our own preferences. "My hobbies are: "Selected Works" in the Five Ancients, "Changli Collection" in the Seventh Ancient, and "Du Collection" in the Five Classics. , Qilu also likes "Du Shi" the most." Only by knowing the advantages and disadvantages of your own preferences can you be more conducive to your own imitation. The spirit to be carried forward here is "Don't read another book until you finish it." For example, if you have a river, you need to build a bank protection so that your energy can flow in the direction you are interested in.
Fifth, we must pay attention to consultation and communication.
"My poems are the shortest of seven rhymes, and I have experience in other styles. It's a pity that there is no one in Kyoto with whom I can talk freely." "Ling Dizhou is the best at verses. If he is in the province, I can ask him for advice." Zeng Guofan gives people a sense of being sanctimonious and has a halo. In fact, his nature is to be free-spirited and good at speaking. It was only later that he deliberately corrected his character and ran towards the requirements of Neo-Confucianism that he gave people a dull feeling. The impression of reticence.