But you should know that, in fact, before and even after Du Fu's death, not many people paid attention to his works, and even there was not much personal information about him. Then, why did Du Fu gradually become famous in the world, and was even honored as a "poet saint", just like Li Bai?
Du Fu became famous long after his death, mainly because most of his works were melancholy works that worried about the country and the people, and the contents of his poems were mainly social unrest and human suffering. The value of these poems has long gone beyond the scope of literature and art, but few people in the society at that time could find them.
Du Fu's "Three Officials" and "Three Farewells" vividly describe the process and scene of the prosperous Tang Dynasty from prosperity to decline. At that time, the society was in turmoil and the war lasted for years. All the men in the family were recruited to fight as soldiers, and later even the old man and the old woman were spared. It's really tragic that people are separated by this kind of war. There is also the well-known "hope of spring". The first sentence, "Although the country is divided, the mountains and rivers last forever, and the vegetation turns green in spring", shows us a miserable and dilapidated scene in Chang 'an. You can imagine how fierce the war is, and there are not many people in Chang' an.
So when did Du Fu's works begin to be gradually valued?
In the Tang Dynasty, Bai Juyi once wrote an essay "Nine Books with the Same Yuan". "As for running through ancient and modern times, I try my best to be perfect, but it's too simple." He thinks that Du Fu's works have surpassed Li Bai in the application of metrical patterns. What's more, he lists Du Fu's poems such as Li Xinan and Li Shihao, and directly names the poems written by Du Fu, such as "The wine and meat in Zhumen stink, and the road freezes people to death". Among Du Fu's more than 1000 poems, there are only dozens, not to mention less than Du Fu. However, in the Tang Dynasty, only a few people, such as Bai Juyi and Han Yu, admired Du Fu's poems, and Du Fu's works really gained wide attention after the Song Dynasty.
Since the Song Dynasty, many famous poets such as Wang Anshi, Su Shi and Lu You have appreciated Du Fu's works. Su Shi, a great writer, even said, "There are many poets in ancient and modern times, with Du Zimei as the head." Du Zimei is Du Fu. Not only do people in China admire Du Fu very much, but even abroad, Du Fu's influence is very extensive. Kenneth rexroth, an American poet, praised Du Fu generously: "My poetry is undoubtedly mainly influenced by Du Fu. I think he is the greatest poet except epic and drama. In some respects, he even surpassed Shakespeare and Homer, at least he is more natural and kind. "