The poems of Li Bai and Du Fu have been read by thousands of people, and it is nothing new to read them now. Where did this poem first come from? What's the point?

From On Poetry, this is the title of a group of poems by Zhao Yi, a scholar in Qing Dynasty. This group of poems is a seven-character quatrain, which expresses some views on poetry creation through discussion. The poems of Li Bai and Du Fu have been praised by thousands of people, but now they are nothing new to read.

On Poetry is written by the poet to refute the popular views that "poetry must be called ancient" and "respecting the ancient and cherishing the present". Among them, we can see the influence of Du Fu's six quatrains in the Tang Dynasty and Yuan Haowen's quatrains on poetry in the Jin Dynasty!

The whole poem (excerpt) is as follows:

The poems of Li Bai and Du Fu have been read by thousands of people, and it is nothing new to read them now.

There are many talented people all over the country, and their poems and popularity will last for hundreds of years.

The translation is as follows:

The poems of Li Bai and Du Fu have been praised by thousands of people, but now they are nothing new to read.

There are many talented poets in this country from generation to generation, and their poems, articles and fame will last for hundreds of years.

Extended data:

Taking Li Bai's and Du Fu's poems as examples, this paper explains the first two sentences of the poem: "Du Li's poems are widely circulated and are not new so far." The poems of Li Bai and Du Fu have been passed down through the ages, and no one can compare them. However, even such a great poem is still not new.

It can be seen that "talents come forth in large numbers, each leading the way for hundreds of years", and talents appear from generation to generation in the country, and their respective influences are only a few hundred years. The author believes that poetry should keep pace with the times, and poets should be innovative in their creation, not deliberately imitating, but following in the footsteps of the ancients.

The first and second sentences point out that even great poets like Li Bai and Du Fu have historical limitations in their poems. The third and fourth sentences call for innovative consciousness, hoping that poetry writing should have the spirit of the times and personality characteristics, be bold and innovative, and oppose conformism. The world often uses this poem to praise talented people, or to show that a new generation replaces the old, or to show that the rise of a new generation is like rolling the Yangtze River, which is unstoppable.

Baidu Encyclopedia —— On Poetry