During Tang Dynasty, there were many poems published that talked difficulties that poets faced, such as consequences of rebellion, separation with family, and personal issues. I would like to focus on the translation of Drinking Alone with the Moon of Li Bo.
In Drinking Alone with the moon, I found it interesting that Li Po said when he drinks with the moon and his shadow; he exchanges their joys when “still sober,” (line 10),but they go separate ways when he is “drunk.” (line 11) Why would Li Po say that, which contrast to what people usually think or act? It’s because Li Po was not being understood by others, while he was being opposed by all other government officials and no one appreciated. He had no friends but the moon and his shadow. Based on his situation, I recalled the proverb “A good man in an evil society seems the greatest villain of all,” he is alone, solitary, isolated, and not being valued.
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However, I think there are better explanations for it. One of the reasons could be Li Po only sees moons as his friend which "Still sober, we exchange our joys,/ Drunk- and we'll go our separate ways," (line 10-11) but I think this explanation may not be valid since Li Po pledge with the moon to be friend. The moon might be symbolized as the friend who always back him up and willing to listening to him. Second possible reason is that moon and shadow are emotionless in the first place, so Li Po didn’t really see them as friends. Yet, I think this explanation is invalid since he actually mentions that they have enjoyed their time together, and they sing and dance. The last explanation is that Li Po is trying to say their relationship is beyond human level, which matches his characteristic of being bold, unruly, and
The Tang and Song dynasties in China existed between 618 to 1279 CE. Throughout this period, there were many developments in art, poetry, and technology. China was highly influential all around the world. It became known as the Golden Age of China. With advances in technology and ideas that could improve the everyday life, a unified government, and a strong economic system, the Tang and Song dynasties became the Golden Age of China.
In the Dynastic Cycle the Tang and Song Dynasties were very different although they had very close founding dates, one after the other, their period of decline/warfare were very different. First, the Tang dynasty was founded in the year 618 CE and ended in the year 907 CE. The Song was founded in about 960 CE right after the Tang ended. The Song Dynasty ended in 1279. Next, the Song and Tang Dynasties ended in very different ways. First, the way that the Song Dynasty ended was that they were attacked by the Khitans in the Northern part of the empire. They were very easy to attack because they believed in an educated person over a strong military. Then the rest of the Song dynasty was destroyed because of more attacks from invaders.
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A. One of the most important public works projects taken on by the Sui dynasty was the grand canal. This canal was so important due to it facilitating trade between north and south China which then allowed rice and other crops to be available in the north.
Alcohol became another common theme of Li Po's poetry. "Scholar Tan-ch'iu! Bring the wine and no delay! For you I'll sing a song- be pleased to bend your ears and hear; bells and drums, foods rare as jade- these aren't worth prizing; all I ask is to be drunk forever, never to sober up!" This excerpt from the poem "Bring the Wine", is only one of the many hundreds of poems that portrays Li Po's love of wine and its affects. "I take my wine jug out among the flowers to drink alone, without friends. I raise my cup to entice the moon. That, and my shadow, makes us three", is an excerpt from his "Drinking Alone" poem. It displays his love of wine and the enjoyment of the beauty of the moon.
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