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Why is Lisao important in the development of Chinese romantic poetry?
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Chinese literature
Zhang Fei on the Long Sloped Bridge Turning Away One Million Wei Troops with a Powerful Stare, woodblock colour print by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi, 1884. It depicts a scene from the novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
The Lisao ("On Encountering Sorrow"), attributed to the poet Qu Yuan, is foundational to Chinese romantic poetry because it initiated a distinct tradition of romanticism in Chinese literature.1
Its importance stems from several key characteristics that diverged from the earlier, more conventional Shijing ("Classic of Poetry"):
- Imaginative Allegory: The poem functions as a "politico-erotic ode," using a love allegory to express the poet's profound disappointment with his royal master.2
- Creative Scope: It features highly original and imaginative descriptions, including the poet's imaginary travels through distant regions and celestial realms, which he uses as a vehicle to process his sorrow.21
- Stylistic Innovation: Unlike the regular, four-syllable lines of the Shijing, the Lisao utilizes longer, more irregular lines marked by a strong caesura. This structure creates a plaintive, chanting effect that influenced the development of the Chuci ("Songs of the South") genre.2
By blending personal emotional expression with mythic and shamanistic elements, the Lisao established a lasting literary genre that was cultivated for centuries, marking a significant shift toward subjective, romantic expression in Chinese verse.21