Expressing My Feelings After Failing the Examination
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Summary
Traditional Chinese thought has a long history and is highly original, inventive, and literary. Early forms of thought have distinctive characteristics: religious theology, classical Chinese medical texts, ancient military strategy, Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism, and the Hundred Schools of Thought, feng shui and metaphysics, the Twenty-Four Histories, and customs and geography—all are profound and extensive. This "Essence of Classic Chinese Culture Original Texts" series preserves the original appearance of the books and focuses on preserving and transmitting traditional Chinese thought and culture. By reading the literary essence left by ancient sages, readers can cultivate their temperament and subtly appreciate the classics of Chinese learning.
Editor's review
This book collects Zhang Pin's *Expressing My Feelings After Failing the Examination* and belongs to the "Essence of Classic Chinese Culture Original Texts" series. The series aims to preserve and transmit traditional Chinese thought and culture and to preserve the original appearance of the books; its selections are broad in scope, covering religious theology, classical Chinese medical texts, ancient military strategy, Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism, and the Hundred Schools of Thought, feng shui and metaphysics, the Twenty-Four Histories, and customs and geography, reflecting an emphasis on the original state of traditional documents. Zhang Pin's poem, titled after expressing his feelings after failing the examination, directly voices his sentiments and aspirations amid examination disappointment and is a concrete text for understanding ancient scholars' examination experience and emotional world. The point of reading this book is not plot progression but close attention to the rises and falls of emotion and the appropriateness of allusions in the lines, which can be understood in light of the cultural background of the Tang examination system. It is suitable as a lightweight reader of original classical poetry, for readers to recite, copy, and reflect on in fragmented time, and it also offers a plain starting point for further reading in the Chinese classics.
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Literary readers interested in Tang poems on failing the examination and the mentality of scholars
- Beginners in Chinese learning who wish to encounter traditional poetry and prose through original texts
- Readers who need short classical poems for daily recitation and copying
- Readers of literature and history interested in ancient examination culture and social life
Not a good fit for
- Readers hoping for detailed vernacular translation and line-by-line appreciation
- Readers needing a systematic history of the examination system or discussion of Tang social history
- Readers who prefer narrative genres such as fiction and prose
Reading tips
- First understand the meaning of *xiadi* and basic knowledge of the Tang examination system, then move into the lines
- Read each couplet aloud and mark emotional turns to appreciate the lyric structure of a poem expressing feelings
- Read alongside Dai Qu's *Night Recitation After Failing the Examination* and compare different approaches to the same theme
- After reading, write brief notes on your responses and connect them with your own experience to reflect on disappointment and self-encouragement
Contents
- 版权信息
- 卷702_25【吊孟浩然】张蠙
- 卷702_26【送友人及第归】张蠙
- 卷702_27【次韵和友人冬月书斋】张蠙
- 卷702_28【过山家】张蠙
- 卷702_29【宿山驿】张蠙
- 卷702_30【宿开照寺光泽上人院】张蠙
- 卷702_31【宿山寺】张蠙
- 卷702_32【题紫阁院】张蠙
- 卷702_33【白菊】张蠙
- 卷702_34【丛苇】张蠙
- 卷702_35【郑毂补阙山松】张蠙
- 卷702_36【新竹】张蠙
- 卷702_37【和友人送赵能卿东归】张蠙
- 卷702_38【送人归南中】张蠙
- 卷702_39【塞下曲】张蠙
- 卷702_40【边将二首】张蠙
- 卷702_41【朔方书事】张蠙
- 卷702_42【经荒驿】张蠙
- 卷702_43【赠栖白大师】张蠙
- 卷702_44【赠闻一上人】张蠙
- 卷702_45【赠可伦上人】张蠙
- 卷702_46【寄法乾寺令諲太师】张蠙
- 卷702_47【寄太白禅师】张蠙
- 卷702_48【遇道者】张蠙
- 卷702_49【赠道者】张蠙
- 卷702_50【雨】张蠙
- 卷702_51【长安春望】张蠙
- 卷702_52【过黄牛峡】张蠙
- 卷702_53【逢道者】张蠙
- 卷702_54【边情】张蠙
- 卷702_55【赠李司徒】张蠙
- 卷702_56【送卢尚书赴灵武】张蠙
- 卷702_57【投翰林张侍郎】张蠙
- 卷702_58【投翰林萧侍郎】张蠙
- 卷702_59【宴驸马宅】张蠙
- 卷702_60【边将】张蠙
- 卷702_61【赠水军都将】张蠙
- 卷702_62【赠九江太守】张蠙
- 卷702_63【赠信安太守】张蠙
- 卷702_64【赠江都郑明府】张蠙
- 卷702_65【赠南昌宰】张蠙
- 卷702_66【赠丘衙推】张蠙
- 卷702_67【献所知】张蠙
- 卷702_68【投所知】张蠙
- 卷702_69【南康夜宴东溪留别郡守陆郎中】张蠙
- 卷702_70【言怀】张蠙
- 卷702_71【喜友人日南回】张蠙
FAQ
How should *shuhuai* in *Expressing My Feelings After Failing the Examination* be understood?
*Shuhuai* means to express one's feelings and state one's aspirations, a common title type in classical poetry. Combined with *xiadi*, it shows that the poem centers on the feelings and thoughts after failing the imperial examination and may include layers such as disappointment, self-reflection, and self-encouragement. The specific emotions and expressions should be based on the original text in the book; readers may appreciate them line by line without applying a fixed interpretation.
What is the difference between this book and *Night Recitation After Failing the Examination* in the same series?
Both books belong to the "Essence of Classic Chinese Culture Original Texts" series and collect, respectively, Dai Qu's *Night Recitation After Failing the Examination* and Zhang Pin's *Expressing My Feelings After Failing the Examination*. The authors and titles differ, and the specific lines are independent. The themes are similar, both involving recitation and expression of feelings after failing the examination, and they are suitable for comparative reading. Readers who wish to understand how different poets handle similar situations may read the two books together.
What should I prepare before reading this book?
It is advisable first to understand the basic meaning of *xiadi* in the Tang examination system and to prepare a dictionary of common classical Chinese characters for looking up words and allusions. This book preserves the original appearance of the text and focuses on presenting traditional poetry and prose as they are; readers should slow down and read aloud repeatedly. For deeper understanding, an anthology of Tang poetry or a related literary history may serve as background reference.
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About the author
张蠙
Author
Zhang Pin was a poet of the Tang Dynasty. Very little is recorded about his life in surviving historical sources: his native place, birth and death years, and other basic information are all unknown, and publicly available material is limited. Judging from the works that have come down to us, he spent much of his life moving between the civil examinations and the staffs of regional officials, and he had firsthand experience of the frustrations of scholars and the hardships of travel. The collection here includes one work by him, "Expressing My Feelings After Failing the Examination," which belongs to the category of classic works. The poem centers on the state of mind after failure in the examinations; its emotions are somber and restrained, writing both of personal disappointment and of the pressure the examination system placed on Tang candidates generally. Zhang Pin's style tends toward the plain and concise, conveying deep feeling through unadorned language with little ornamentation yet genuine power to move. Because few of his works and few records about him survive, later attention has focused mainly on this poem, whose value lies in offering a concrete and vivid sample for understanding the psychology of failed Tang candidates and the culture of the examination system.
