Peacock Flying Southeast is the pinnacle of Yuefu poetry and the first narrative poem in the history of China literature. Later generations praised it as "a double gem of Yuefu" with Mulan poems of the Northern Dynasties.
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Peacock Flying Southeast is based on a marriage tragedy that happened in Lujiang County (now in Huaining and Qianshan, Anhui Province) during the reign of Emperor Xian of the Eastern Han Dynasty. The original title was "Ancient Poems for Jiao Zhongqing's Wife", and it was named because the first sentence of the poem was "Peacock flies southeast and wanders in five miles". The whole poem has more than 350 sentences, 1700 words.
It mainly tells the story of being forced to separate and both committed suicide, accusing the ruthlessness of feudal ethics and praising Jiao and Liu's sincere feelings and rebellious spirit. It is the first narrative poem in the history of China literature, and it is also the pinnacle of Yuefu poetry. Later generations called it "a double gem of Yuefu" with Mulan poems of the Northern Dynasties.
The story of Peacock Flying Southeast is simple in plot, ingenious in conception and vivid in characters, which not only shapes the image of Jiao and Liu as soul mates, but also depicts Jiao's stubbornness and arrogance. At last, the article conceives the myth that both Liu Lanzhi and Jiao Zhongqing became peacocks after their death, and places people's strong desire to pursue love freedom and a happy life.
Peacock Flying Southeast is the earliest long narrative poem in the history of ancient Chinese Han literature, the best folk narrative poem in ancient China and the longest narrative poem of ancient Han people.
As the peak of narrative poetry in Han Yuefu, it is also an important symbol of the development of realistic poetry in the history of China literature. Its original name is "Ancient Poetry for Jiao Zhongqing's Wife", which was first published in Xu Ling's "Yutai New Poetry". It is based on real people and stories. The whole poem consists of 357 sentences with *** 1785 words. Shen Guiyu is called "the first poem in ancient and modern times".