I Poem, Therefore I Am - Du Fu Of Tang Dynasty Culture,

The research on Du Fu (712—770, a poet in the Tang Dynasty) started shortly after his death. In the Song Dynasty (960—1279), many people had studied him. People in later dynasties also studied and contributed something to his interpretation. The enthusiasm for him has been on the rise for over 1200 years. The dissertation focuses on the interpretation of Du Fu, a poet of noticeable characteristics, from the culture of the Tang Dynasty (618-907)—how the time influenced him and what contribution he had made to his time.A great variety of cultural interpretations of Du Fu are dispersed in various books and dissertations. However none of them is systematic. This dissertation —Du Fu and the Culture of the Tang Dynasty is meant to make a preliminary research into the culture of the Tang Dynasty and to invite more influential monographs on the cultural research of Du Fu.At present, various methods have been employed such as the research method of comparative literature, aesthetics and constructionism from the west. However, I prefer the poetic research method favored by Mr. Lin Geng and Mr. Zong Baihua. Research on a poet should not be conducted in rigorous theories which twist and distort the poet. Therefore, in this thesis, I put emphasis on reading Du Fu' s poems and documents directly instead of reading others' comments and interpretation. I try to experience his feelings and compare him with the poets of his time to set up his cultural character and render his real image in the Tang Dynasty. The danger of this method is that it is not rational so that sometimes it can not be comprehensive in every aspect. There is no denying the fact that the interpretation of a poet can not be achieved perfectly,for there must be some parts left untouched.The unique characteristic of Tang culture is the fusion of three religious sects—Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism. The first chapter explores the influence the three dominant religious beliefs had on Du Fu.Confucianism puts emphasis not only on inner cultivation, honesty and reverence but also on practice instead of mastering theories which is very important in shaping Du Fu' s cultural character. People of the Tang Dynasty placed great value on Mencius' s doctrine (Mencius : Chinese Confucian philosopher who thought that man are. innately good and that one' s nature can be enhanced or perverted by one' s environment), but Du Fu especially liked Yang Xiong. He profoundly understood the reason why Yang Xiong jumped from the tower and the situation that what Yang Xiong had written was not appreciated by others. Yang Xiong didn' t desire much; he did not pursue fame and wealth; he was not depressed although in poverty; he did not fish for fame and compliment; he was very peaceful at heart although he was nearly broke; he favored only books written by sages and philosophers and he did not do anything unwillingly for the sake of wealth. ( From biography of Yang Xiong in Han Shu—History of the Former Han Dynasty). Such noble and high - hearted character is what Du Fu had pursued silently all his life. There are a lot of exploration of the inner heart in his poems which embodied his sincerity in practicing Confucian cultivation. More work had been put on the serious thinking about real life. He was very strict with his-own behaviors. In making a single move, he would think it over carefully. People in the Tang Dynasty began to put emphasis on the learning of Tao Yuanming (365—427). But Du Fu learned more from Tao Yuanming about Confucianism instead of Taoism.As for the influence of Taoism on Du Fu, the fact is quite contraryto the popular belief that Taoism had nothing to do with Du Fu. In fact, although Du Fu was short of religious fervor when he learned from Li Po (a Chinese poet who spent much of his time wandering and composing romantic, wine-inspired verse in the Tang Dynasty) when he was young, he still absorbed seriously the way to preserve one' s health and carefully put it into practice. His later pursuit of Taoism is mainly his longing for the recluse life advocated by Taoism. His earlier pursuit of Taoism is mainly the blind pursuit of fashion, but he later regarded the recluse life of Taoists as the regular pain-killer in his bitter life. The recluse Taoism counteracted with secular Confucianism, which comforted him when he met setbacks and drawbacks.Commentators throughout ages evaded talking about the influence of Buddhism on Du Fu as if Du Fu showed no or little interest in the flourishing Buddhism in the Tang Dynasty or they simply came down to discuss the point that which sect the Buddhism Du Fu had learned belonged to, the Northern sect or the Southern sect. I think Du Fu had been influenced greatly by Buddhism and there must be a long process in which he encountered it, hesitated before it and finally accepted it. Buddhism was most flourishing in the Tang Dynasty and as the social and cultural environment, Du Fu did not repulse it, which was also the main attitude of most people at that time. However, Du Fu was not assimilated by this quickly either. Instead he accepted Buddhism step by step guided by his inner mind. His final acceptance of Buddhism was his personal experience in all his life: the ten-year humiliation he endured in Chang' an, the chain, poverty and embarrassment he experienced after he got his lower position, the huge risk he faced when trapped by thieves and going to the place where he lived, the enormous pain he suffered when demoted for putting forward a piece of advice, the hopelessness when he fled to the Southwest and depended on others for living. All these had left profoundmarks on him, and also inspired him to explore the meaning of life in a society where Buddhism was highly respected. Only the basic truth of Buddhism can solve these puzzles in one' s life. The doctrine of Buddhism he had known is to teach people how to go back to one' s inner mind, namely to liberate one' s soul and get permanent freedom. His struggling for official career, the indifference of the world and the ups and downs of his life gave him too many puzzles and too much pain which can not be regulated by Buddhism. The only solution is to liberate one' s soul advocated by Buddhism. Therefore, Du Fu pursued Buddhism sincerely and from his inner heart.The most important part in the cultural interpretation of Du Fu is to understand his thoughts. People of later ages have thought that Du Fu was deeply influenced by Confucianism and nobody thought that Taoism and Buddhism had also played important roles in shaping Du Fu' s thoughts, as he was regarded as a Confucian poet saint. The dissertation illustrated Du Fu' s acceptance of Confucianism from different angles which is the mainstream of his thinking. At the same time, he was strongly influenced by Taoism and Buddhism.His biggest contribution to Tang Culture is his poems. Without discussing the artistic research on Du Fu' s poem, the dissertation lists many poets who had the same style with him to verify his basic attitude toward poetic arts of his time from two aspects: how the time he lived in influenced him and what contributions he had made to it. If Li Po can be the representative of all the poets in the thriving period of the Tang Dynasty, then more emphasis had been put on the influence of literature from the Han (206 BC-220 AD) and the Wei Dynasty (386-581) in learning from the predecessors. But there is a misunderstanding of the practice and theory in the Six Dynasties (222-589). Du Fu did not look down upon the old generation only to love the present generation, and he learnedfrom anybody around him for everybody can be his teacher. As for lushi (a poem of eight lines, each containing five or seven characters, with a strict tonal pattern and rhyme scheme ) which was not very popular and valued at that time, his passion for study was not affected by the popular trend of thought. His poems are rather rational. And the scope of exploration in his poems is extensive and profound. His original and unbiased exploration makes him immortal and every exploration of his has inspired a great number of poets.In addition, the imperial examination, the drinking culture, the art of drawing and calligraphy, the custom of dancing and going whoring in the Tang Dynasty were all indispensable to Du Fu' s unique culture. Comparing him with other poets, I showed his unique cultural choice. Take imperial examinations for example, just like most people at that time, Du Fu was trapped by the culture of that time. In order to realize his ideal —to help the emperor to be better than Yao and Shun (two emperors in a legendary monarch in ancient China), he must take the imperial examinations and become an official. However the fact that this system was damaged during the middle of the Tang Dynasty put Du Fu in a dilemma. He would be starved to death if he didn' t pursue officialdom, and if he wanted to pursue it he must betray his morality. His lament that a pure guy like him was stained by the time was his final judgement of that culture which also influenced his life choice.In the conclusion, more emphasis was put on "heart theory" —a new theory derived from the fusion of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddism. It is more practical than theoretical.Du Fu was affected by various thoughts all his life. He also adjusted himself constantly during his lifetime according to practice. When he was young, he had done something which made him embarrassed later as he was driven by fame and wealth, by his career ambition and by passion . Forexample he had followed the rich to beg for some remains of a meal, and he understood the meaning of life for he was embarrassed about his begging for food. He had written a letter to the emperor to plead for Fang Guan who had offended the emperor and his was chilled by his political career. All these contributed to the fact that he mentioned retirement in anger for many times. But the stern reality smashed his dream completely. He did not take Taoism and Buddhism blindly by following the tide of that time. He experienced the new philosophy in his life and in his constant thinking and practice. He had made many mistakes. Like all the mortals, he was troubled and disturbed by material and spiritual pursuits. But he was bold enough to reform and to face his own mistakes. He constantly discovered himself and shaped his character in the process of reform and correction. His perfect image in the eyes of the later generation was mainly realized by his reform, discovery and correction, besides the compliments he received from the later generation.He existed in his poems which showed comprehensively the feature of his time and his own characteristics. His cultural character is mainly shaped by the openness and generosity of his time.Du Fu was influenced by the culture of his time and he also made great contribution to his time. There are merits and demerits in his cultural character too. Yet he had an inerasable merit which covers even nullifies his shortcomings. Willing to accept anything new, he was bold to reform and was not afraid to deny the old and the wrong. His change, his hesitation and his development were all embodied in his poems which vividly and comprehensively expressed the culture of his time. The implication of reading his poems for the later generations is not only to pay great tribute to him but also to discover ourselves.