A Study Of Su Guo’s Poetry During His Idle Period In The Central Plain

Su Shi had four sons: his eldest son Su Mai(1059-1119),his second son Su Dai(1070-1126),his third son Su Guo(1072-1123)and his youngest son Su Dun(1083-1084).Because Su Dun died before he reached the age of one year,later researchers seldom mentioned Su Dun,and mostly referred to Su Guo as Su Shi’s youngest son.Among the sons of Su Shi,Su Guo has the higher literary achievements,people at the time called him "Xiao Po",and his father Su Shi "Da Po".According to Shu Xing’s revise and supplement of the book "The Chronological Notes on the Poetry and Literature of Su Guo",annotated by Shu Dagang and Jiang Zong Xu,Su Guo has 304 surviving poems,of which 226 were composed during his period of leisure in the central plains,accounting for 74.34% of all poems,indicating that the period of leisure in the central plains was the main period of Su Guo’s poetic creation.Therefore,it is of some value to study Su Guo’s poetic creation in the period of leisure in the central plains.The first thirty years of Su Guo’s life have already been studied in some detail,but this essay attempts to take Su Guo’s family studies and Su Shi as a starting point and delve into Su Guo’s mind and poetry during his period of leisure in the central plains,the last twenty-two years of his life(1102 to 1123),in order to grasp his person and poetry.This thesis is divided into five parts.The first part deals with Su Guo’s life and writings;the second part discusses the influence of family style on Su Guo’s literary creation,including the family origins of the Meishan Su clan in the Song dynasty and the influence of Su Shi on Su Guo’s literary creation.The third part analyses Su Guo’s emotions in his poetry during his period of leisure in the central plains,including two sections on family affection and friendships.The fourth part analyses Su Guo’s thoughts and mentality during his period of leisure in the central plains,including the change of mind from seclusion to entering politics and a Confucian mindset of concern for the country and the people.The fifth part is the characteristics of Su Guo’s poetry during his period of leisure in the central plains,including his learning from many others in poetic style and his extensive use of allusions.