Song without Music: Chinese Tz’u Poetry
Song without Music: Chinese Tz’u Poetry
Edited by Stephen C. Soong
1980
282 pages
ISBN 962-201-206-X
'Tz'u' [Ci] means 'song words' in Chinese. The genre originated as lyrics written to music, sung and enjoyed by the common people. Its popular appeal continued after its adoption by the literati. Tz'u poetry reached its peak in the Song dynasty (AD 10th to 12th century) and still stands as one of the major achievements of China's poetic tradition.
Comprising nine critical essays and translations of eight representative poets, this volume presents a comprehensive survey of the history of the genre as well as the achievements of individual writers. Contributors to this volume include many leading scholars of classical Chinese literature in the West and in China.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
PREFACE — 1
Twenty Selected Lyrics Translated by D.C. Lau — 5
MIAO YÜEH: The Chinese Lyric Translated by John Minford — 25
Eleven Tz’u by Wei Chuang Translated by C.Y. Hsu — 45
CHANG TSUNG-SU: Behind the Lines: Tz’u Poets and Their Private Selves Translated by Frederick C. Tsai — 57
Thirteen Tz’u by Liu Yung Translated by Winnie Lai-fong Leung — 62
CHA-YING YEH CHAO: An Appreciation of the Tz’u of Yen Shu Translated by James R. Hightower — 83
Twenty-one Tz’u by Ou-yang Hsiu Translated by Teresa Yee-wha Yü — 100
RUTH W. ADLER: Confucian Gentleman and Lyric Poet: Romanticism and Eroticism in the Tz’u of Ou-yang Hsiu — 121
CHENG CH’IEN: Liu Yung and Su Shih in the Evolution of Tz’u Poetry Translated by Ying-hsiung Chou — 143
KU SUI: Interpretation of Su Tung-p’o’s Tz’u Translated by Huang Kuo-pin and Teresa Yee-wha Yü — 157
Nine Tz’u by Chou Pang-yen Translated by Julie Landau — 177
YÜ P’ING-PO: Appreciations of Tz’u Translated by Ying-hsiung Chou and Winnie Lai-fong Leung — 190
Ten Tz’u by Lu Yu Translated by James P. Rice — 199
LIANG MING-YÜEH: The Tz’u Music of Chiang K’uel: Its Style and Compositional Strategy — 211
Three Tz’u Songs with Prefaces by Chiang K’uei Translated by Huang Kuo-pin — 247
Eleven Tz’u by Nalan Hsinteh Translated by John C.H. Wu — 252
WAI-LEUNG WONG: “The River at Dusk Is Saddening Me”: Cheng Ch’ou Yü and Tz’u Poetry — 265
Notes on Contributors — 280
Review(s)
Review(s)
'In this very attractive anthology, editor Soong has brought together poems and essays that gracefully introduce the reader to a major genre of Chinese poetry.'
—A.L.A. Booklist
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