During the ten years when Fan Chengda retired from Shihu, he wrote many pastoral poems, among which Miscellanies of Four Seasons Pastoral was the most famous. This group of poems ***60 seven-character quatrains, with 12 poems as a group, is divided into rural life of wing chun day, late spring day, summer day, autumn day and winter day.
In the history of ancient poetry, most of the pastoral poems are actually poems of literati expressing their seclusion. For example, the pastoral scenery in the poems of Wang Wei and Meng Haoran all appeared as the externalization of the poet's quiet mood. Except for a few Tao poems, farming, the most important content of rural life in ancient pastoral poems, was neglected, and the occasional woodcutter and farmer were often endowed with the character of hermit.
Poets in the Tang Dynasty, such as Yuan Zhen and Zhang Ji, often wrote the peasants' production, life and sufferings into Yuefu poems such as Peasant Ci and Tianjia Ci. There is no description of pastoral scenery in these poems, and they are not used to being idyllic.
Fan Chengda creatively combined the above two traditions and comprehensively and truly described all kinds of details of rural life. Fan Chengda successfully transformed the traditional theme, making pastoral poetry a veritable poem reflecting rural life. Qian Zhongshu called it "the epitome of China's ancient pastoral poetry" in Notes on Selected Poems of Song Dynasty. This kind of poem had a great influence in the late Southern Song Dynasty.
Brief introduction of the author
Fan Chengda, whose word is Xiangneng and his word is young, has been a layman in this mountain since his early years and an official in his later years. Han nationality, born in Wuxian County, Pingjiang Prefecture (now Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province). Famous officials and writers in the Southern Song Dynasty.
In the 24th year of Shaoxing, Song Gaozong (1 154), Fan Chengda was a scholar, an official and a storyteller who worshipped the yamen. The main road has been out of the state for three years (1 167). Avenue for six years (1 170), as the general envoy of the state of Jin, claimed the land of the imperial mausoleum in the Northern Song Dynasty, made efforts to change the documents received and returned them without disgrace.
In the seventh year of the Avenue (1 17 1 year), Jingjiang Prefecture learned from the official of Zhongshu. In the second year of Xichun (1 175), he was transferred to Fuwen Pavilion as Sichuan Ambassador. In the fifth year of Xichun (1 178), he was promoted to participate in politics. Since then, he has known Mingzhou and Jiankangfu successively, and made great achievements.
In his later years, he retired to Shihu and added a bachelor's degree in Senior Minister's Hall. In the fourth year of Shao Xi (1 193), Fan Chengda died at the age of 68. Shao Shi, worshipping the Lord protector, and posthumous title were called "Wen Mu", which was later called "Fan Wenmu".