张耒

Zhang Lei was a poet of the Song dynasty; publicly available information about him is limited, and details of his life and official career cannot be reliably established. Three of his works are included here, chiefly the “Wanqiu Shichao” from the Song Poetry Anthology, Zhang Taishi's Mingdao Miscellany, and the Mingdao Miscellany. Judging from these surviving pieces, his writing follows two paths, poetry and notes. His poems, classed as classical verse, mostly record everyday observations and personal reflections in plain, unforced language with little ornamentation; his notes consist of reading jottings and miscellaneous observations and are grouped with classic works and Eastern philosophy. This combination of poetry and prose notes gives his writings a practical, life-oriented and documentary character. Owing to limited sources, his friendships, teachers and literary standing cannot be described in detail, yet his works remain readable texts for the study of Song poetry and note writing.