A wizard in the history of Chinese literature. He used his unparalleled pen to complete the pinnacle of Chinese verse. His poems had a profound influence on Chinese classical poetry. He was a great realist poet in the Tang Dynasty. (title in middle school Chinese textbooks), he was respected as the "Sage of Poetry" by later generations, and his poems were called "History of Poetry". Later generations called him Du Shiyi and Du Gongbu based on the official positions he had held, and also called him Du Shaoling. This second-generation official (both his grandfather and father were officials in the dynasty) spent the first half of his life "living wildly between Qi and Zhao, and his horses were quite wild"; in the second half of his life, he was homeless and impoverished. His poems were compassionate and concerned about the country and the people. About 1,400 of his poems have been preserved. The world calls the poet Li Bai and he together "Li Du". Han Yu, a writer in the Tang Dynasty, once said: "Li Du's articles are as long as the flames." Zhu Xi, a Neo-Confucian scholar of the Southern Song Dynasty, once listed five people who can be called "great" in Chinese history: Zhuge Liang, Yan Zhenqing, Han Yu, Fan Zhongyan, and Du Fu. Zhu Xi commented that Du Fu was upright and aboveboard and a model in terms of personality.
After the age of 20, Du Fu lived a roaming life that was highly praised by the literati of the Tang Dynasty at that time. First in Wuyue and other places, and then in the Qi and Zhao areas, he made friends with celebrities and spread his reputation. He said to himself: "Drinking to the fullest and looking at the eight extremes, all common things are blurred." At this time, the Tang Dynasty was prosperous and prosperous; the young Du Fu was so ambitious that he climbed Mount Tai and wrote such a heroic and famous saying as "I will be at the top of Mount Tai, and I will see all the small mountains at a glance."
At that time, Du Fu had a strong family background. Although he did not do business or become a high official, he did not worry about making a living. He arrived in Luoyang and built a manor at the foot of Shouyang Mountain where his ancestral mausoleum is located. While reading, I socialized with local celebrities.
In March of the third year of Tianbao (AD 744), Li Bai, who was released with gold by Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, passed through Luoyang and met Du Fu. The encounter between Li and Du was called a major event in the history of literature by later generations. The actual situation is that Li Bai was eleven years older than Du Fu and was already a great poet who was famous all over the world at that time. Du Fu was just a little-known young man. He was a loyal fan of Li Bai. Their meeting was like the meeting of today's star-chasers. Superstar. He followed Li Bai, roamed around Shandong together, and visited the famous Taoist priests at that time. He admired Li Bai's "writing was shocked by the storm, and the poems became weeping ghosts and gods." Later Gao Shi also came, and Du Fu described their days together like this: Chasing Eagles Chasing rabbits, drinking and singing wildly, climbing to the high platform, nostalgic about the past and discussing the present. "He is a wealthy man, addicted to alcohol, jealous of evil and has a strong heart... he is debauched between Qi and Zhao, and his horses are quite wild. Spring songs are on the stage, and winter hunting is by the green hills." During this period, Du Fu lived quite relaxedly, as if I spent it hunting and singing karaoke with my friends. [pagebreak]
In a wealthy and leisurely life, love comes as expected. The 29-year-old Du Fu married the 19-year-old daughter of Yang Yi, a young minister from Hongnong County (now Lingbao County, Henan Province). Si Nong was in charge of money and food. In modern terms, Du Fu's father-in-law was the deputy director of the county finance, grain, and agriculture bureaus. We don’t know the name of Du’s wife Yang, but after their marriage, they were very loving.
In ancient Chinese society, it was very common for men to take concubines, especially in the sexually open Tang Dynasty. The so-called loyal love was often just a temporary sweetness. But Du Fu was able to stay with Yang for a lifetime. Although their love was not as shocking and vigorous as Sima Xiangru and Zhuo Wenjun in the Han Dynasty, it was like a gurgling stream, flowing slowly and never ending.
A few years after Du Fu got married, his father died. The source of income suddenly disappeared, and life gradually became poor. Later, when the country was at war, Du Fu's family fled everywhere. Poverty, illness, frequent separations, and fear became the main content of the family's daily life. However, no matter how hard it was, no matter how poor he was, Du Fu never abandoned the Yang family. The Yang family always used her delicate shoulders to carry a hoe to cultivate the land, carry a bag and flee, with her husband and wife accompanying her.
Du Fu did not write any love poems that have been passed down through the ages, but among the poets of the past dynasties, he is probably the one who appears the word "wife" most frequently in his works. The most famous and touching poem he wrote for his wife is undoubtedly "Moonlight Night". In the fifteenth year of Tianbao (756 AD), Du Fu sought an official position in Chang'an and left his wife and children with his wife's uncle in Yanzhou (now Fuxian County, Shaanxi Province). One night, Du Fu wrote a poem "Moonlight Night". The last four sentences of the poem are dedicated to expressing his longing for his wife: "The fragrant mist and clouds are wet on the temples, and the clear jade is cold on the arms. When will I lean on the empty canopy, and the tears will dry on my eyes?" "At this time, Du Fu was already forty-four years old and had been married for many years, but the affectionate nostalgia for his wife in the poem was like that of a newly married young man.
In the second year of Qianyuan (759), there was a severe drought in Guanzhong and famine spread. The Du Fu family, who were settling in Tongli (now Chengxian County, Gansu Province), fell into unprecedented hunger and cold. The oak chestnuts follow the sniper, and the weather is cold and the sun is setting in the valley. "It's freezing cold, and for the sake of his wife and children, Du Fu has to go up the mountain to pick up acorns or dig wild taro for food." Du Fu's life was so difficult that it was sad. [pagebreak]
“The old wife draws paper to make a chess board, and the child knocks needles to make fishing hooks.” This was Du Fu’s life when he lived in Chengdu. His wife had nothing to do, drawing a chess board on paper, and his youngest son hammered Use iron needles to make fishing hooks. The words "drawing" in the previous sentence and "knocking" in the next sentence show the concentration and focus of the wife and children through their movements.
Du Fu's contrasting description of his wife and children, one old and one young, not only shows the beauty of the harmony of the family, but also his attachment to his wife who depends on each other. He also expresses his yearning for a better life and his weariness with the wandering life. Every word shows the happiness in the ordinary.
Du Fu is a role model in terms of personality, not only because he is devoted to his wife and stays with her throughout his life. What's more, he is far away from the world, but he can care about the people of the world and the sufferings of the people. When he was living in Chengdu, he even raised his arms and shouted: "There are tens of millions of mansions in Anhui. It shelters all the poor people in the world and makes them happy. It is as safe as a mountain without being affected by wind and rain. Woohoo! When did I suddenly see this house in front of me, my house was broken and frozen to death." That's enough." Although Du Fu's sincere appeal could not change the current social situation, it still raised the voice of the bottom of society.