| This thesis examines the shihua (“talks on poetry”) of Jin dynasty (1115–1234) literatus Wang Ruoxu (1174–1243). As the only remaining shihua text from the Jin period, Wang Ruoxu's Hunan shihua (Talks on Poetry from South of the River Hu ) is an invaluable source of information regarding the poetic mores of the day. Wang Ruoxu's principal critical beliefs are examined, and his vitriolic attack on Northern Song poet Huang Tingjian (1045–1101) is assessed in detail. In seeking to explain the polemic nature of Wang Ruoxu's poetry criticism, this thesis asserts that a combination of social and cultural factors combined to cause Wang to write a shihua with the intention not only of commenting on literary, particularly poetic, aesthetics, but also of preserving and participating in the Confucian tradition. |
