A Study On Old-style Poetry Of Shuntian Times

Shuntian Times is a comprehensive newspaper established by Japanese in the late Qing Dynasty,which has enormous influence in Northern China.Approximately50,000 old-style poems have been published in the 30 years from 1901 to 1930,which contain important values of literary,documentary,history and culture.However,these poems in Shuntian Times have been neglected for a long time and the research work is urgent to carried out.According to the available information of Shuntian Times,numerous of documents are sorted and cataloged,while the evolution of both the literary page and the poetry column is also summarized.In general,the amount of the old-style poetry in the Shuntian Times indicates a stable and slightly falling trend after a zigzag rising.This is mainly resulted from the gather and separation of the literati groups,the management status of the newspaper,the literary fortune fluctuation of old-style poetry,as well as the literary tendency of Tsuji Tinghua,who is the editor-in-chief of literature and art page in Shuntian Times.With extensive networking and great editorial power,Tinghua has established discourse authority,thus his personal connects,Japanese identity and intellectual stance directly affect the poetry publication in Shuntian Times.Depending on the Shuntian Times,a large and loose literati population was founded between the poetry authors with various of identities.Among them,literati associations and small groups were also formed.For instance,the Chutun Poetry Club,established in Beijing,with the purpose of preserving the quintessence of Chinese culture,took Shuntian Times as an important media and it was the first literary group to appear in Shuntian Times;Some lower-middle class literates in Beijing including Sun Guren,Xu Yugong,Wang Bingfu,Xu Xueyuan,Guo Yating,etc created a small group named “Dumen Yin Tan” in 1914;Yuan Dexuan,the administrator of “Traffic Cong News”,was born in Hunan and worked in the Ministry of Communications.He usually gathered townsmen and colleagues in “Yishi World Building” for poetry composition,and these poems represented professional characteristics.In addition,along with the publication of poems in “Caifenglu”,a column of “Guowen Weekly”,numerous of poems from celebrities of Beijing and Tianjin appeared,which indicated that a new literati group with higher artistic level appeared in Shuntian Times.Some representative poets and their works have also been investigated individually.“Jianghu Zaijiu Poetry” by Pan Feisheng can provide important documentary clues for restoring the author’s travel tracks;the works by Tsuji Tinghua recorded details of the life in China,and also expressed his true political stand as a Japanese;Yin Changheng was formerly the governor of Sichuan,and his poems were full of army spirit;while Xu Xueyuan experienced the Wuchang Uprising,and his poetry style was wild and unrestrained;and the works from these two poets described the ups and downs of life in the troubled times.The old-style poetry in Shuntian Times covered most types of traditional poetry themes,and also reflected the characteristics of the times.The poems published were mainly focused on reality and affairs,expressing the concern of foreign invasion and the willingness for social stability,as well as attitudes and opinions about regime change in China.However,these expressions can be not conflicted with the purpose of safeguarding interests of Japan.On the other hand,the themes related to opera and actors were more interested than other themes,since it can satisfy the entertainment needs of the public and the personal preference of Tsuji Tinghua.These themes also reflected the style of Peking Opera in Beijing,as well as the evolution of the relationship between the literati and the artist.“Zhuzhici in Beijing” described and recorded the social phenomena,the life of common people and city changes in Beijing,with the poetry style of documentary and popularity.Some poems from both Chinese and Japanese poets,which expressed their observations and feelings in the foreign country were also published,and these poems reflected cultural exchange between the two county in modern times.During the 30 years since established,Shuntian Times has continuously provided an influential communication platform and public space for the old-style poetry,and played a significant role in promoting the development of the old-style poetry in the late Qing Dynasty,especially in the period of the Republic of China.By investigating the old-style poetry published in Shuntian Times,more documents,historical information and academic space is available for the investigation of poetry in the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China,and it is helpful to study the condition of old-style poetry creation in this period.Furthermore,The research work on poetry in Shuntian Times still needs to be further deepened and expanded in the future.