Nineteen Old Poems
AnonymousNanhai Publication Company · ChinaJun 2024
Rating 5.0- Word count
- 1.8K words
- Chapters
- 2
Tags
Classical Poetry Anonymous AuthorshipBrevity of LifeSorrow of PartingFive-Character PoetryWenxuan ClassicEastern Han LiteratiSummary
The Nineteen Old Poems is the earliest known body of literati five-character poetry in ancient China; it was compiled by Xiao Tong of the Southern Dynasties, who selected nineteen poems from the anonymous Old Poems in circulation and included them in the Wen Xuan.Editor's review
The Nineteen Old Poems is the earliest known body of literati five-character poetry in ancient China; Xiao Tong selected the poems from anonymous works and included them in the Wen Xuan, and this act of selection itself made the group a classic. Its value lies not in who wrote the poems but in the universal emotions that strike straight at the heart: parting, longing, the brevity of life, the fickleness of the world. The language is plain and natural, yet every line carries weight, and critics through the ages have cited it again and again. This edition presents the group in collated form, suitable both as an introduction to classical poetry and as an object of repeated savoring. Reading the Nineteen Old Poems requires no complex background knowledge, yet each rereading brings new understanding, because the poems speak to emotional situations anyone may experience. For readers who wish to understand the starting point of Chinese literati five-character poetry and feel the spiritual world of late Han literati, this is an indispensable classic.Who it's for
A good fit for
- General readers seeking a reliable entry point into classical Chinese poetry
- Literature lovers interested in late Han literati sensibility and the development of five-character poetry
- Chinese teachers and students who need a classic text for repeated recitation
Not a good fit for
- Readers hoping for rich biographical detail and textual scholarship on the authors
- Readers who prefer long narrative or plot-driven works
- Those impatient with short lyric poetry and seeking a fast reading experience
Reading tips
- Read only two or three poems at a time, reciting repeatedly to feel the rhythm of five-character lines and the natural beauty of the language.
- After reading, try summing up the emotional core of each poem in your own words rather than borrowing ready-made judgments.
- Read alongside basic background on the Wen Xuan if desired, but do not get bogged down in the dispute over authorship.
About the publisher
Nanhai Publication Company China · Founded in 1988Nanhai Publication Company is a comprehensive publisher known for its literature and arts titles, covering fields such as classical poetry, martial arts fiction, and folk literature. Judging from the more than 1,600 books in the database, the company has released classical poetic works including the Nineteen Old Poems and the Nine Songs, as well as multiple volumes of Huanzhulouzhu's series The Swordsmen of Mount Shu, along with related writings by authors such as Guan Hanqing, Qu Yuan, Zuo Si, and Wang Zhihuan. Its publishing character lies in balancing the organization of classic texts with the dissemination of popular literature, placing poetry anthologies alongside long martial arts novels and presenting a relatively diverse literary profile. Public information is limited, and further details about its editorial practices and series planning remain to be supplemented.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 古诗十九首
FAQ
Is the authorship of the Nineteen Old Poems really entirely unknown?
The authors are unknown; when Xiao Tong compiled the poems into the Wen Xuan in the Southern Dynasties, no names were assigned, and although later ages offered various conjectures, none is confirmed. This allows readers to focus on the emotions and language of the poems themselves rather than on questions of identity.Do the nineteen poems repeat the same themes? Would reading them all feel monotonous?
On the surface they mostly concern parting, longing, and reflections on life, but each poem has its own angle of entry, emotional layering, and verbal handling. Reading them together actually reveals subtle variations on shared themes; read slowly and savor them rather than rushing through in one sitting.Why is it called the beginning of literati five-character poetry?
Before it, five-character poetry was mostly folk song; the Nineteen Old Poems, with their condensed language and deep feeling, display a literati consciousness of craft and are regarded as marking the maturity of literati five-character poetry, with far-reaching influence on later verse.Related on WeRead
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About the author
Anonymous AuthorAnonymous is not a real personal name but a general Chinese designation for authors whose names are unknown, lost, or unsigned. Neither nationality nor dates of birth and death can be verified, and available public information is limited, so the works attributed to this name are the only basis for description. The collection holds 2,078 works under Anonymous, spanning medicine, classics, historical readings, ancient poetry, classical literature, and philosophy. Representative works include The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon: Lingshu, Mencius, The Book of Documents, Nineteen Old Poems, Complete Song Ci, and The Peacock Flies Southeast. Most of these works took shape through long transmission and editing, emerging either from collective folk creation or from authors whose names were lost over time. In ancient China, the Book of Songs, the Great Learning, and many popular storybooks and plays were signed Anonymous because their authors could not be traced. Anonymous works cross the classics, histories, philosophical writings, medical texts, and poetry; their subjects are broad, and their styles vary from archaic simplicity to clear naturalness, making them important and influential sources for understanding ancient Chinese thought, medicine, and literature.