We usually divide the Tang Dynasty into four stages according to the rise and fall of the national situation: early Tang Dynasty, prosperous Tang Dynasty, middle Tang Dynasty and late Tang Dynasty. The development of literature is always closely linked with the development of society. Frontier poems in Tang Dynasty showed different styles and different thoughts and feelings in different historical periods. Through these works, we can not only understand the social state and the thoughts and feelings of the soldiers guarding the border in various social periods in the Tang Dynasty, but also understand the evolution law of poetry, that is, poetry will always develop with the development of society. Due to the difference of national strength and the outcome of foreign wars, frontier poems in the early Tang Dynasty were full of passionate style, which still echoed in the early middle Tang Dynasty, while in the late middle Tang Dynasty and the late Tang Dynasty, there were only admiration for the past grand occasion and lament for the bleak reality.
(1) "Live or die."
After the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, the northern frontier remained a serious problem and became a major concern of the whole country. The theme of the frontier war has attracted more and more attention from poets. These continuous wars are the deep foundation for the prosperity of frontier fortress poems. In the face of strong enemy invasion, people with lofty ideals have the ambition to serve the country, the heroic feelings of striving for progress, and the courage to pull out. Frontier poems in this period concentrated on the positive spirit of the early Tang Dynasty.
During the Wuhou period, the "Four Masters" rose. They all paid close attention to Guansai and wrote many frontier poems. "If you don't want to live, die and report to your majesty." In Luo's Join the Army, the poet is full of passion. He gave up his life and just wanted to "report to your majesty". Nothing is braver than him. Yang Jiong's "Joining the Army": "The peak fire shines on Xijing, and my heart is uneven. Toothless, riding a dragon city. The heavy snow darkened the color; The wind roared and the drums rang. Better be a centurion than a scholar. " This poem does not write about the hardships of joining the army, but focuses on the desire to join the army. "Better to be a centurion than a scholar" praised the martial spirit of young people at that time, making people feel an irresistible force waiting to erupt and full of vitality.
Poets in this period generally have a high degree of national pride and enterprising spirit, and all poems reflect the poet's open mind and the idea of serving the country faithfully. Confidence and pride are beyond words. Chen Ziang's frontier poems are not well-known, but he lived in Murong for a long time and went to war twice, and wrote about 20 frontier battle poems, such as Returning to the Border with General Lu Mingfu and Sending David to the Army. Among them, Sending David to the Army said: "The Huns still exist, and Jiang Wei will join the army again ... instead of joining the army, he will stay in Han Jiangong." The feelings are bold and passionate, and the tone is generous and tragic. "The Huns are still alive, and Jiang Wei rejoined the army." As long as the country needs it, he will stand up and even sacrifice himself for the country without hesitation.
There were not many poets who wrote frontier poems in this period. Even if I write about the frontier fortress campaign, there are not many works. They are not famous for frontier poems, and their poems have not formed a unique frontier style. They can only be counted as the development period of frontier poetry, and their maturity and prosperity need to be completed by the frontier poetry school in Tang Dynasty.
(2) "The yellow sand wears golden armor in hundreds of battles, and the loulan is not returned."
The Tang Dynasty was the peak of poetry prosperity. At this time, frontier poems made brilliant achievements, and a number of frontier poets emerged. Among these poets, Gao Shi and Cen Can have the highest achievements, and Wang Changling, Li Qi and Wang Zhihuan are also outstanding frontier poets. Their poems reflect the enterprising, confident and heroic spirit of the prosperous Tang Dynasty from all directions, the magnificent atmosphere of the prosperous Tang Dynasty and the majestic Tang Jun. On the other hand, these works did not shy away from the hardships of the war when expressing the lofty aspirations of the soldiers, and this hardship and the bitterness of the soldiers guarding the border were covered up by the passionate and generous patriotic spirit, which is the so-called "innocent sorrow."
For example, Gao Shi's "Listen to the flute on the plug": "The snow is clear and the horse is still grazing in the lake field, and the Qiang flute is in the moonlight building. Excuse me, where did the plum blossom fall? The wind blew all over the mountain overnight. " "Qiangdi" and "Guanshan" are common images in frontier fortress poems. Spring melts into the Great Wall, soldiers and horses return, the moonlight is bright, and the sound of Qiang flute is "full of Guanshan", which makes people homesick. But there is no feeling of sadness and resentment, the sky is clear, the atmosphere is peaceful, the tone is cheerful and majestic, feeling but not hurting, optimistic and cheerful. In Song of Xia Sai, "Wan Li died without fear and succeeded once", and his ambition was vividly displayed. His Ge Yanxing is more distinctive, bold and tragic. The flags are flying, the drums are stirring, and the battlefield is filled with smoke, which fully renders the tragic war and the hardships of the campaign. Here, he exposed the arrogance and corruption of soldiers guarding the border, regardless of soldiers' life and death ... and opened up the field of poetry theme. "Half of our frontline people are dead, but the other half are still alive, and there are beautiful girls dancing and singing for them in the camp." Facing the incompetent general, the soldiers "still miss General Li", hoping to have a good general who is good at fighting and cares about the foot soldiers to fight with them, defend the frontier and make the country prosperous forever. The hardships paid by the foot soldiers are valuable.
The poet Cen Can, also known as Gao Shi, has always been regarded as the poet with the highest achievement in frontier fortress poetry creation. His frontier poems have a wide range of themes, the magnificent and wonderful frontier scenery, the vastness and cruelty of the war and the perseverance and courage of the expedition, all of which are described and praised in his poems. His poems are passionate, giving people a positive, optimistic and romantic feeling, such as Song of Snow White Farewell to Tian Shuji Wu's Home, North Wind Rolling White Grass, Eight In the snow Crossing Tatar Days and so on. Just like the strong wind in spring, it blows at night and blows open the petals of ten thousand pear trees. "The magnificent snow scene of the frontier fortress is rendered here. Although it is cold but not sad, what makes people feel more is the majestic momentum, strange and spectacular, especially the "blowing open the petals of ten thousand pear trees", which makes people feel infinite vitality and embodies the optimistic spirit of the soldiers guarding the border who are not afraid of the cold. Optimistic and romantic, the future is full of hope ... "Song of Running Horse River Farewell to General Feng of the Western Expedition" is another masterpiece. Have you seen it? Traveling in the snow, sand flies from the desert and yellow flies to heaven! On the night of the ninth month, there was a cold wind blowing in the wheel tower and the valley, and the valley was full of broken boulders like pecking rice, which moved down in tandem with the wind. "This poem depicts a magnificent picture, rather than focusing on the harsh and hard environment. This optimism is closely related to Cen Can's cheerful personality. This poem is magnificent and accomplished in one go, showing the lofty style of the prosperous Tang Dynasty. For example, "Judge Yuwen went to Longshan for the first time", "sent someone to Anxi" and "sent Deputy Ambassador Li to Qiaoxi". , which also wrote a strong feeling of making contributions, reflecting the spiritual outlook of the scholars in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, the so-called "spirit of the prosperous Tang Dynasty".
Look at Wang Changling again. "Qinghai has long dark snow-capped mountains, and the lonely city overlooks Yumenguan. The yellow sand wears golden armor in hundreds of battles, and the loulan is not returned. " (Join the Army). Scenes blend, the first two sentences describe the scenery, and at the same time, they are permeated with rich and complex emotions. It not only shows the concern of border guards about the border situation, but also shows their pride and sense of responsibility for their tasks. "If you don't break Loulan, don't give it back", the soldiers feel like an enemy, and it also reflects the loneliness and hardship of the life of the soldiers guarding the border. "Yellow Sand" and "Hundred Battles" have a tough war environment and frequent wars. However, the soldiers' ambition to serve the country has not weakened, but they have become more determined in the desert sand, and they must defeat the enemy and return to their hometown. This kind of lofty sentiments is equally incisive in his song "Embankment". Although there is a sigh that "the Long March people have not returned", there is always a great ambition in my heart to "not teach Huma Huayinshan". "The desert is dusty and the sun is dim" in "From the Army" and "Jumping over the White Saddle" in "Out of the Village" are excerpts from the war fragments, which not only describe the fierceness and cruelty of the war, but also set off Tang Jun's high morale, strong military strength and victory. He tried his best to show and carry forward the spirit of the prosperous Tang Dynasty.
Famous frontier poets Wang Zhihuan, Li Jie, William Wang and Cui Hao also wrote many excellent poems.
Wang Zhihuan's Heron Lodge and Liangzhou Ci. "The Yellow River is far above the white clouds. It is an isolated city, Wan Ren Mountain. Why does the flute complain about the willow, but the spring breeze is only Yumenguan? " The scene of this poem is magnificent and desolate. The poet is a typical representative of "the voice of the prosperous Tang Dynasty", with an open mind, taking his time, and being sad without losing his strength.
Li Qi's frontier poems are fluent and unrestrained, and sometimes express grief and indignation with bold and passionate expression, like an ancient war song, which is full of ancient meaning. Cui Hao's frontier poems, such as Song of the Wild Goose Gate for the Conference semifinals, Ancient Rangers Offering Generals to the Army, and Works in Western Liaoning, are unrestrained, generous and impassioned. William Wang's Liangzhou Ci better embodies the characteristics of the times when grief is covered by impassioned patriotism. "Grape wine luminous cup, want to drink pipa immediately rush. Drunk in the battlefield, you don't laugh, and you have fought several wars in ancient times. " The sadness contained in the poem is covered by pride, which can be described as extremely sudden.
Poet Li Bai and poet Saint Du Fu, as two bright stars in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, also have many excellent frontier poems. "Tianshan five In the snow, no flowers only cold. Spring can only be imagined in the flute "Folding Willow", but it has never been seen in reality. The soldiers fought the enemy in the golden drum during the day and slept in the saddle at night. I would like to put my sword under my waist and cut Loulan straight. " (Li Bai's Xia Sai Qu) It is freezing outside the Great Wall and life is hard. The soldiers are still full of heroism, and their ambition to serve the country has not changed. Du Fu's Nine Frontal Poems and Five Back Poems are excellent works in ancient frontier poems, especially the two back poems, which are impassioned, gloomy and healthy, and should be regarded as frontier poems.
The prosperity of frontier poems is a basic content of poems in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. The prosperity of the Tang Dynasty injected infinite pride into the poets, which made them make vigorous, generous and positive poems, praised the prosperous times and enhanced the national prestige. Instead of avoiding bitterness, it is more impassioned, reflecting the spirit of the times in the prosperous Tang Dynasty.
(c) "Today's border court battle is the fate of Bak Yan."
In the mid-Tang Dynasty, after the "An Shi Rebellion", the Tang Dynasty fell from the peak of prosperity, the eunuchs monopolized the power, lost the advantages of foreign wars, and the society declined day by day. Poets often sigh helplessly in the cowardly court.
The frontier poems in this period have certain inheritance to the frontier poems in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. The lost spirit of prosperous Tang Dynasty and the newly lost voice of prosperous Tang Dynasty still exist, and poets in the middle Tang Dynasty must cherish their memories and try their best to admire them. However, frontier fortress poetry is as specious as frontier fortress poetry in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, and it is also a frontier fortress theme, but it lacks the spirit of frontier fortress poetry in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. It is no longer the main content of the prosperous Tang Dynasty to embody the heroic, confident and optimistic poetic spirit and enhance national prestige. Taking "homesickness and weariness of war" as the main theme, it reflected the reality of frontier fortress at that time and the homesickness of the majority of sergeant. The dominant style is "desolation".
Dai Shulun, Rong Yu, Gu Kuang, Lu Lun, Liu et al. They are all writers who are good at frontier poems in the early middle Tang Dynasty. Dai Shulun's Song of Frontier fortress and Rong Yu's Song of Frontier fortress are both representative works of frontier fortress poetry, which naturally flourished in the Tang Dynasty and were full of lofty sentiments. Lu Lun's "Xia Sai Qu" is about the majestic momentum when a horde of troops set out, and the spirit of unity of the whole army, which also hides the afterglow of the prosperous Tang Dynasty. Although these poems tended to be bold and vigorous in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, they did not give people sincere feelings. In the middle Tang society, such poems have deteriorated. Liu's "Complaining about People" "Jinhe belongs to Yutong, and Ma Ce's knife encircles the DPRK. In the third spring, Snow White returned to the grave.
Wan Li Yellow River around Montenegro ",this is the real feeling of this period! This poem can be said to be a typical combination of tragic frontier poems in the prosperous Tang Dynasty and sentimental frontier poems in the middle Tang Dynasty.
In the middle Tang Dynasty, Li Yi was famous for his frontier poems, which reached a considerable level. Li Yi was frustrated politically. He joined the army in frontier fortress for many years. Due to his extensive and long-term experience in joining the army, his frontier poems amount to as many as 50 or 60, and his heroic generosity often carries a touch of sadness. Some of his poems inherited the tradition of frontier poems in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, showing a heroic spirit of dying and serving the country, such as his Song of Xia Sai, "Fu Bo only wants to be buried, so why enter the customs?" Don't just send a reincarnation hole and still leave an arrow to shoot the Tianshan Mountains ",praising the impassioned patriotic spirit of the soldiers. However, more of his frontier poems tend to be desolate and melancholy. At that time, the internal and external wars continued for years, and the outcome was hard to tell. The heroism of the soldiers who have made contributions to the country has disappeared. His "Night in the Army" and "Today's Border Court Battle, the Name of Bak Yan" have already revealed this situation. Therefore, many people express that soldiers are eager to live in their hometown for a long time to show their hatred of war. For example, "On the Night Crying on the Wall of the Country": "The sand before Yuefeng is like snow, and the moon outside the city is like frost. I don't know where to play the flute, I want to look forward to my hometown for one night. " On the desolate night of the frontier fortress, the flute sounded, and the atmosphere was cold, empty and lonely, which made people feel desolate and desolate, and made the homesickness in their hearts stronger. "One-night housekeeping just shows the mentality of the border guards at this time. Another example is his "Going North to Join the Army", which also causes homesickness with music, revealing a deep homesickness and sadness. " Listening to Liangzhou music in the west at night "and so on. Poetry is a masterpiece of frontier fortress, but there is no optimistic and bold tone of frontier fortress poetry in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, and it is always filled with deep, sad and sentimental mood. Li Yi's poems have some characteristics of poetry in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, which is a residual phenomenon in the poetic art in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. His poems are sentimental, sad and sad, which is closely related to the poetic style in the middle Tang Dynasty. As the saying goes, "Articles are about fate" [1].
(d) "The poor bones by the Wuding River are still living in dreams"
Down to the late Tang Dynasty, the prosperous time was far away and the future was boundless, and the Tang Dynasty declined irretrievably. The theme of poetry is not "active conquest and enterprising", but passive retirement. It is often reflected in poetry as a weak sigh mixed with indignation and sadness. Frontier poets often attack the darkness with outstanding satirical features. Most of the poems are anti-war, resentful and sad, with gloomy colors and sad scenes. They write more about the sufferings of soldiers, linking frontier fortress with death, and the enthusiasm of heroism is getting colder and colder. What is written often reveals a bleak sadness and a strong sentimental atmosphere. The style is sad, angry and desolate, and the overall mood tends to decline. [2]
Chen Tao and The Journey to the West vowed to sweep the Huns regardless of their health, and five thousand minks mourned Chen Hu. Poor riverside bone, still a dream girl. " Shen Deqian said, "Nothing is more bitter than this". This poem reflects the pain and disaster brought to the people by the long-term border war in the Tang Dynasty. Soldiers fought hard, and in the end, only "mourning for Chen Hu" was left, with a great contrast between ups and downs, from admiration to regret. The last two sentences are even more painful The bones of the fallen soldiers have been buried deep in the river for many years, but because there is no news for a long time, the wives of the soldiers are still looking forward to the return of their husbands who have gone to the frontier fortress. Thinking during the day and dreaming at night, in the dream, her husband came back alive and lived happily with herself, but she didn't know it was never possible. Of course, it will be sad to know the death of a loved one, but at least it is a comfort to know the whereabouts of a loved one. Here, the wife is looking forward to the return and reunion of her husband who has become a "white bone" with hope. It can be said that this poem is full of blood and tears. These two verses not only show the cruelty of war, but also make people feel extremely sad when compared with the fresh people in their dreams. The death of soldiers is a tragedy, and the tragedy of their wives caused by this tragedy is even more touching.
Another example is the song "Xia Sai Qu", which says, "It's a midnight oil, mulberries go north, and it's too late to go. I have a letter from my hometown in the morning and I am willing to send cold clothes. " This poem highlights the cruelty of war from the same angle as Chen Tao's Longxi. It is particularly unique and shocking to read. In the battle of the night, half the soldiers died, and the young life passed away in an instant. Behind these dead strong men, old parents and weak wives and children were left behind ... You can imagine how cruel the war was. "North Korea has a hometown letter, and you send cold clothes." It's really sad Parents, wives and children at home are worried about their loved ones, afraid that he will be cold and hungry at the frontier, and send him "warm clothes" overnight to keep him warm. Who knows that people die before they get cold clothes, and the bones by the river no longer need to be warm. ...
In the late Tang dynasty, the national movement declined, and the outcome of the war was inseparable. In the declining era, the passionate and heroic spirit is always replaced by the depressed and sad mood, which is reflected in contemporary poetry. Compared with frontier poems in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, there are few battle songs, strong songs and carols in frontier poems in this period, which makes us feel passive retreat and sadness in the late Tang Dynasty.
(e) "The article is related to fate"
Poetry is an emotional literary genre, which reflects the social life and expresses the poet's thoughts and feelings. Social origin is the soil for poetry to blossom, while ideological origin and literary origin are its sunshine and rain. The Tang Dynasty is an era with social origins, ideological actors and literary origins. The emergence of outstanding frontier poets coincided with the emergence of frontier poems, which achieved unprecedented prosperity.
The Tang Dynasty experienced four stages: early Tang, prosperous Tang, middle Tang and late Tang. The development of Tang society influenced the development of frontier poems; From the development of frontier poems, we can see the historical process from prosperity to decline in the Tang Dynasty, which is always drawn by a certain law, that is, "what kind of society produces what kind of articles."
"The article is related to fate." The frontier poems in the prosperous Tang Dynasty are passionate, bold and confident. In the declining late Tang Dynasty, frontier poems were gloomy, sad, overflowing and bitter.
Poets such as Luo and Yang Jiong felt the prosperity and unstoppable momentum of the early Tang Dynasty, so they were full of lofty aspirations of "making contributions to the country" and wrote down the sighs of "not being a centurion, not being a scholar".
Gao Shi, Cen Can and Wang Changling felt the national prestige, military strength, economic and social stability in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, so they were full of self-confidence and optimism. Even when they lamented, they were not sad, and they were still full of hope for the country and the future. This is why they wrote down the ambition and self-confidence of "Wan Li will die and succeed once", the optimism of "blowing open the petals of ten thousand pear trees", and the passion of "Yellow sand is bitter and strong, and it will never come back without breaking Loulan".
Li's mid-Tang poetry is a combination of the excitement in the prosperous Tang Dynasty and the sadness and resentment in the late Tang Dynasty. Li Yi's frontier poems not only have the influence of frontier poems in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, but also have the sad mood caused by the gradual decline of national fortune. "I don't know where to play the flute, and I miss my hometown all night." The flute of homesickness is endless. In the late Tang dynasty, the passionate and heroic atmosphere disappeared, replaced by a bleak, depressed and sad state of mind. The decline of the country has deeply hit the poet, who can no longer be optimistic, so Chen Tao, Xu Wei and others insincerely linked frontier fortress with death and wrote bitter poems such as The Journey to the West and Song of Xia Sai.
Frontier poems in the late Tang Dynasty have always been the most profound, imaginative and artistic part of Tang poetry, which can best reflect the rise and fall of the prosperous Tang Dynasty. With its generous and tragic style and complicated contents, it left a page full of exotic customs in the history of China's poetry, and its charm will last forever.