As far as literary talent is concerned, which school is better, Cao Cao or Su Shi?

Wei has three Cao's, three Song's and three Su's, each leading the way with remarkable achievements. They not only made achievements in their official careers, but also had outstanding literary talents, and their literary works were well-known throughout the ages. Comparatively speaking, is San Cao's literary achievement higher or Su San's better? Let's compare it.

First, groundbreaking achievements. Both Cao Shi and his son have made pioneering achievements in the field of literature. Cao Zhi's five-character poems marked the transformation of China's poems from "expressing ambition" to "expressing emotion", and completed the transformation from Yuefu folk songs to literati poems. At the same time, he was also a representative of Fu Xiao in Wei and Jin Dynasties. Cao Pi's greatest contribution in the history of literature is to write a literary theory work "Dian Lun", which also created a precedent for seven-character ancient poetry; Cao Cao's poems not only had a positive impact on Jian 'an literature, but also had an important impact on later literature because of its great creativity. Among Su and his son, only Su Shi has made great achievements in literature and created a wild and uninhibited school in the field of poetry. The three of them also have excellent works in ancient prose, ci and prose, but there are several people who can match them in their time, which is not outstanding.

Second, the number of masterpieces handed down from generation to generation. No matter historical materials or literary works handed down from generation to generation, there are not many poems by San Cao, but there are many poems by Su's three fathers and sons, but this does not mean that the literary achievements of Su's three fathers and sons are higher than that of San Cao. There is a very objective reason here. It is an indisputable fact that the Wei and Jin Dynasties were long and the productive forces were underdeveloped, and many works were destroyed and lost because of years of war. However, due to the development of movable type printing and papermaking in Song Dynasty and many works of literati have been handed down in recent years.

Third, historical conditions and professionalism. Cao Shi and his son were born in troubled times, and Cao Cao fought all the year round; Cao Pi, a Wei emperor, had endless government affairs and died in his forties. Cao Zhi died at the age of forty, so all their literary achievements came from hobbies and belonged to amateur play. Su and his son all embarked on the road of imperial examination, and Su Shi and Su Zhe both entered the imperial examination, so their literary achievements came from their majors, and literary creation was their job.

Thus, in terms of literary talent, Cao Cao and his son are obviously superior to Su Shi and his son.