Little Primer of Du Fu, Poems 21-25

[x_los]

This is week 5/7 on David Hawkes' Little Primer of Du Fu. I'll replicate the poems themselves here, but this book contains considerable exegesis, so I do advise you to grab this copy.

 

This week we're reading poems 21 through 25, inclusive.

 

How to Read Chinese Poetry has two chapters on forms Du Fu uses extensively:

 

Ch 8, Recent Style Shi Poetry, Pentasyllabic Regulated Verse (Wuyan Lüshi) 

Ch 9, Recent Style Shi Poetry, Heptasyllabic Regulated Verse (Qiyan Lüshi) 

 

Three other chapters on other verse forms Du Fu sometimes employs, or which people quoting Du Fu employ, also mention him:

 

Ch 10,  Recent Style Shi Poetry, Quatrains (Jueju): some mention of Du Fu’s “Three Quatrains, No. 3”

Ch 14, Ci Poetry,  Long Song Lyrics on Objects (Yongwu Ci): some mention of Du Fu's “Beautiful Lady” (Jiaren)

Ch 18, A Synthesis:  Rhythm, Syntax, and Vision of Chinese Poetry: some mention of Du Fu’s poem “The Jiang and Han Rivers” 

 

Additional Reading for this Week: Chapter 10

Comments

22. 宿府 Sù fǔ

[x_los]

宿府
Sù fǔ

清 秋 幕 府 井 梧 寒
1. Qīng qiū mù-fǔ jǐng wú hán,
獨 宿 江 城 蠟 炬 殘
2. Dú sù jiāng-chéng là-jù cán.
永 夜 角 聲 悲 自 語
3. Yǒng yè jiǎo shēng bēi zì-yǔ,
中 天 月 色 好 誰 看
4. Zhōng tiān yuè-sè hǎo shuí kān?
風 塵 荏 苒 音 書 絕
5. Fēng-chén rěn-rǎn yīn-shū jué,
關 塞 蕭 條 行 路 難
6. Guān-sài xiāo-tiáo xíng-lù nán.
已 忍 伶 俜 十 年 事
7. Yǐ rěn líng-pīng shí nián shì,
強 移 棲 息 一 枝 安
8. Qiǎng yí qī-xī yì zhī ān.

Read Aloud: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gm6LzpR1l0o

A Night at Headquarters

In the clear autumn air, the wu-t’ung trees beside the well in the courtyard of the Governor’s headquarters have a chilly look. I am staying alone here in the River City. The wax candle is burning low. Through the long night distant bugles talk mournfully to themselves, and there is no one to watch the lovely moon riding in the midst of the sky. Protracted turmoils have cut us off from letters, and travelling is difficult through the desolate frontier passes. Having endured ten years of vexatious trials, I have perforce moved here to roost awhile on this single peaceful bough.

Re: 22. 宿府 Sù fǔ

[x_los]

江 城 is not 江澄; don’t get excited

“obtained for him the nominal court position which would enable him to assume once more, after five years’ unemployment, the uniform and insignia of official rank” what a millennial

“Notice the bisyllabic alliterative or homoioteleutic” no.

清秋 (Clear autumn) that IS, however, Qingqiu spelled right, so this may well be where the name is from

Tho D says “Qingqiu is a pretty common formulation tho; Like wine-dark sea”

wut’ung trees: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vernicia_fordii
How do they look chilly?

Re: 22. 宿府 Sù fǔ

[superborb]

The chilly reads to me as projection of Du Fu's mental state?