It can be said with certainty that understanding the writing background is the basis for understanding and appreciating ancient poetry.
First of all, let’s take a look at a song written by Zhu Qingyu of the Tang Dynasty, "The recent examination is on Zhang Ji Shuibu/ The recent examination is on Zhang Shuibu/ The best wishes are presented to Zhang Shuibu"
The red candles were stopped in the bridal chamber last night , waiting to pay homage to my uncle in front of Xiaotang.
After putting on makeup, I asked my husband in a low voice, "How dark is my eyebrows?"
The meaning of this poem is: The bridal chamber was lit up with candles and flowers all night long, waiting for dawn to pay homage to the parents-in-law. After dressing up, I gently asked my husband: "My eyebrows should be painted in a dark or light color that suits the fashion."
If we don’t understand the writing background, we will mistakenly think that this poem was written by a woman and that it expresses the love between husband and wife. In fact, this is a big mistake.
Zhu Qingyu is a man. His intention in writing this poem was not to express the couple's sweet newlywed life at all. So, why would a grown man write this poem? Then you need to understand the writing background.
During Baoli (the reign of Emperor Jingzong of the Tang Dynasty, 825-827), Zhu Qingyu had to take the Jinshi examination. At that time, "Xingjuan" was popular, that is, scholars taking the exam could present their poems to celebrities before taking the exam. Zhu Qingyu was appreciated by Zhang Ji, and Zhang Ji was willing to recommend his juniors. Zhu Qingyu was afraid that his work would not meet the requirements of the examiner, so he wrote a poem and submitted it to Zhang Ji.
In the poem, he compared himself to the bride, Zhang Ji to the groom, and the examiner to his parents-in-law. Asking whether the new daughter-in-law's dress will please her parents-in-law is actually asking whether her article will be appreciated by the examiner.
If you don’t know the writing background, your understanding of poetry will be very different.
Let's look at Li Shangyin's "Deng Le Youyuan":
Xiang Wan felt unwell and drove to Guyuan.
The sunset is infinitely beautiful, but it’s almost dusk.
The meaning of this poem is: In the evening, I was feeling depressed and drove to the old Leyouyuan. The scenery under the sunset is infinitely beautiful, but it is a pity that it is approaching dusk.
If we don’t understand the writing background, we will think that this poem is the author who was depressed and went to the countryside to relieve his sorrow, expressing his nostalgia for the beautiful evening scene.
However, the background of the author writing this poem is: the poet was living in the decline of the late Tang Dynasty, and was depressed and frustrated. Facing the sunset of the ancient plains, he thought about the difficulty of realizing his lifelong ideals, and that the country's fate was about to end, and he was worried. This kind of sadness and lamentation is firstly for myself, and secondly, for the fate of the country. In the midst of sadness and lamentation, the author still retains his persistent pursuit of life and beauty.
In short, poetry expresses aspirations, and poetry is the voice of the heart. Chinese ancient poetry has a wide range of contents: historical themes, pastoral scenery, frontier style, boudoir resentment, expression of anger, etc. If you don’t understand the writing background, you really can’t appreciate the beauty of ancient poetry
There are many poems like this, so if we want to better understand and appreciate ancient poetry, we must understand the author’s writing background.