The Gate of Dream Images cover

The Gate of Dream Images

Rating 3.2
Word count
85K words
Chapters
402
ISBN
9787521201338

Tags

Summary

A collection of 400 poems by Wang Xiaofang, author of the mega-bestseller Office Director in Beijing.

Pioneering a new poetic form—meaning and rhythm, imagery and atmosphere, poetic sensibility and philosophy—bringing poetry back from the colloquial to the ivory tower and the kaleidoscope.

Editor's review

Wang Xiaofang is known to readers for his novel Office Director in Beijing; this poetry collection shows a different hand, gathering four hundred poems that attempt to work out a meaningful poetic form in rhythm, imagery, and atmosphere. Judging from the materials, the author deliberately pulls poetry back from colloquial plainness toward a more wrought mode of expression, emphasizing the fusion of poetic sensibility and philosophy. For readers of his novels, this is a chance to recognize another side of the author; for poetry readers, it offers a look at how a non-professional poet polishes language and organizes imagery across a large body of writing. A volume of four hundred poems means style and quality will fluctuate, making it better suited as a collection to open and close at will than as a long work to read in one sitting. While reading, it is worth attending to the imagery system and rhythmic arrangement, and seeing how the author uses short lines to carry speculation.

Who it's for

A good fit for

  • Readers of Wang Xiaofang's novels who want to understand his poetry
  • General readers interested in new poetic forms and the handling of imagery
  • Readers who like dipping into short poems without pursuing continuous narrative

Not a good fit for

  • Novel readers expecting a continuation of the realistic narrative of Office Director in Beijing
  • Readers who prefer traditional regulated verse and have little interest in free-verse new poetry

Reading tips

  1. Read a few poems a day, mark striking images as you go, and revisit the marked passages after finishing a round.
  2. Sort and read by image or theme on your own, observing the words and situations the author uses repeatedly.
  3. Read aloud to feel the rhythm and pauses of the lines; it makes the poetic design easier to appreciate than silent reading.
  4. Don't force yourself to finish all four hundred poems; skipping is allowed to keep the experience fresh.

About the publisher

Writers Publishing House China · Founded in 1953

Writers Publishing House is a Chinese publisher focused mainly on literary publishing. Its output covers classical literature, foreign literature, folk literature and Eastern philosophy, with some extension into popular reading such as social fiction and parenting books. Its catalogue contains more than 900 titles, including representative works such as Dream of the Red Chamber and its edited editions, Shakespeare's Macbeth and A Midsummer Night's Dream, and foreign literary classics such as The Brothers Karamazov and Lost Illusions. In terms of authors, it includes classical writers such as Cao Xueqin and Gao E, foreign masters such as William Shakespeare, Dostoevsky and Balzac, and translations by translators such as Zhu Shenghao, Geng Jizhi and Fu Lei. Overall, its publishing profile balances Chinese and foreign literary classics, emphasizes quality translations, and serves both academic and general readers; publicly available information on its specific publishing plans is limited.

Contents

  1. 版权信息
  2. 梦象之诗与画
  3. 创作
  4. 魔方
  5. 心灵的奏鸣曲
  6. 喧闹的孤独
  7. 一切归阴
  8. 意义
  9. 奇异的湛蓝
  10. 无数的时刻
  11. 经外经
  12. 目眩之后
  13. 一分为二
  14. 本能的力量
  15. 昼与夜的关系
  16. 灵魂的尘埃
  17. 水乳交融
  18. 素与简
  19. 时间之岸
  20. 光感
  21. 墓志铭
  22. 形式之内
  23. 燃烧的要素
  24. 独自凭栏
  25. 失踪者
  26. 天际线
  27. 梦痕
  28. 宁静的形式
  29. 不可名状
  30. 真理的脚下
  31. 渗透
  32. 深呼吸的人
  33. 摇晃的光晕
  34. 幽香如迷
  35. 灵魂的感知力
  36. 编织天体
  37. 表白
  38. 聆听万物
  39. 落地的灵性
  40. 梦的深处
  41. 虚无的河边
  42. 觉者的圆满
  43. 水的骨架
  44. 统一体
  45. 非显化生命
  46. 思维空白
  47. 观察者
  48. 弯曲之后
  49. 升腾之梦
  50. 时间深处
  51. 深度
  52. 象形文字
  53. 祭坛
  54. 蝴蝶效应
  55. 想入非非
  56. 一团符号投向诗行
  57. 瞬间的厚度
  58. 此岸的此岸
  59. 白与透明
  60. 无意识的冲动
  61. 正午
  62. 语言的汪洋
  63. 花环
  64. 刻意的慵懒
  65. 诗人的姿态
  66. 无
  67. 的确可能
  68. 极致摄影
  69. 理由
  70. 远古的河床
  71. 寻找光的彼岸
  72. 旋转的河
  73. 自言自语
  74. 回声
  75. 光的波段
  76. 途中的秘密
  77. 榨取真理
  78. 洞见
  79. 解释链
  80. 闪光的直觉
  81. 天人合一
  82. 沉默之剑
  83. 碑文
  84. 自命不凡
  85. 象外
  86. 不见心性
  87. 痴人说梦
  88. 美
  89. 圆
  90. 局限
  91. 遗梦
  92. 心路历程
  93. 插图
  94. 体验
  95. 预言家的虚妄
  96. 剧照
  97. 画眼
  98. 自欺欺人
  99. 处方
  100. 死胡同
  101. 盗版
  102. 此刻或定格
  103. 灵感与魔性
  104. 静水深流
  105. 个性
  106. 蛋白质
  107. 断想
  108. 告别
  109. 理解的目光
  110. 阴影的烦忧
  111. 高峰
  112. 出口
  113. 折射
  114. 发酵
  115. 天路
  116. 一根天线
  117. 意识之外
  118. 宁静的语言
  119. 方程式
  120. 证据
  121. 感官实验
  122. 原始手稿
  123. 启示之光
  124. 仰天看云
  125. 尽头之外
  126. 形式
  127. 微观片段
  128. 凝视
  129. 标本
  130. 对称
  131. 诵经
  132. 情节
  133. 荷尔蒙
  134. 序言
  135. 诱惑
  136. 瞬间
  137. 虚无
  138. 布局
  139. 见证
  140. 光环
  141. 品味
  142. 执念
  143. 元气
  144. 留白
  145. 联想
  146. 所有的颜色都有秘密
  147. 草稿
  148. 暗语的线索
  149. 心魔
  150. 角色
  151. 裂缝
  152. 客观世界
  153. 荒诞
  154. 直觉流动不定
  155. 本体
  156. 黄昏
  157. 网
  158. 装置
  159. 细节
  160. 无意识流
  161. 焦灼的心
  162. 阴影深处
  163. 灰色地带
  164. 宁静
  165. 陷阱
  166. 并非似与不似
  167. 或许是月亮
  168. 老船
  169. 自我
  170. 七天
  171. 时尚的躁动
  172. 意外之思
  173. 神性
  174. 哲人的钥匙
  175. 梦象乐园
  176. 摆渡
  177. 直线
  178. 风格练习
  179. 倒影
  180. 混沌之感
  181. 小说
  182. 自我掩饰
  183. 跑题
  184. 且思且写
  185. 文字
  186. 暗语
  187. 遗言
  188. 沟通
  189. 原型
  190. 看不见的存在
  191. 呼吸锻炼
  192. 心影
  193. 暗流
  194. 飘零
  195. 排斥之谜
  196. 问号
  197. 精神分裂
  198. 否定
  199. 蓝
  200. 一个阴暗的背景
  201. 一声叹息
  202. 意义的要素
  203. 大师
  204. 对立
  205. 魔圈
  206. 特征
  207. 逆光
  208. 面孔
  209. 标尺
  210. 雕塑
  211. 基因
  212. 平面
  213. 非客观
  214. 无意识
  215. 深沉
  216. 启蒙
  217. 理论
  218. 变量
  219. 障碍
  220. 邂逅
  221. 虚无的河流
  222. 蠕动
  223. 谜底
  224. 废墟
  225. 痉挛
  226. 放浪
  227. 梦的边缘
  228. 寓言的火花
  229. 虚掩的门
  230. 表皮
  231. 监控
  232. 空灵
  233. 知觉
  234. 能量
  235. 寻路
  236. 巫术
  237. 残碑
  238. 逃离
  239. 耳鸣
  240. 未知空间
  241. 天才
  242. 郁结
  243. 阴影一哄而散
  244. 隧道
  245. 梦游
  246. 成长
  247. 思想的影子
  248. 圆满
  249. 不朽
  250. 想入非非
  251. 内心的低语
  252. 分岔的小径
  253. 虚空
  254. 照片
  255. 苹果
  256. 后窗
  257. 眩晕
  258. 虚构
  259. 省略号
  260. 诗人的鼾声
  261. 心门
  262. 秘密
  263. 孕育
  264. 心轮
  265. 死鱼
  266. 窥视癖
  267. 永无休止的循环
  268. 梦乡
  269. 自我
  270. 符号
  271. 精神向度
  272. 命运的卜辞
  273. 无中生有
  274. 夜的意识
  275. 破题
  276. 基因突变
  277. 内心狂澜
  278. 行为艺术
  279. 预兆
  280. 开始与结局
  281. 元素
  282. 心的方向
  283. 寓言
  284. 地图
  285. 一滴墨汁
  286. 安魂曲
  287. 明日即昨日
  288. 冒险的旅行
  289. 破折号
  290. 编剧
  291. 卵
  292. 调情
  293. 诗河
  294. 道路
  295. 天扰
  296. 痛苦
  297. 堆积情感
  298. 诗人
  299. 未知的旅途
  300. 指纹
  301. 黑狗
  302. 竞赛
  303. 上升犹如下降
  304. 悬念
  305. 充血的静脉
  306. 呓语
  307. 辐射
  308. 鹦鹉
  309. 灰色
  310. 思想的结构
  311. 僵死的忧伤
  312. 划破空白
  313. 奇特文本
  314. 终篇
  315. 迷恋阳光
  316. 气象无常
  317. 枯萎的路标
  318. 思维流
  319. 梦蝶
  320. 速写
  321. 故事
  322. 迷局
  323. 思想者的天堂
  324. 卷宗
  325. 直觉的独白
  326. 滚烫的呼吸
  327. 生命线
  328. 起源
  329. 伊甸园
  330. 拐点
  331. 白日梦
  332. 冲浪板
  333. 随风而去
  334. 历史的缝隙
  335. 自嘲
  336. 小花
  337. 挽歌
  338. 包裹
  339. 青涩
  340. 存在是一片海
  341. 黑色是一种洞悉
  342. 画家
  343. 隐居
  344. 凋谢的梦
  345. 阅读
  346. 生花妙笔
  347. 走火入魔
  348. 小偷
  349. 流浪是一种渴望
  350. 意外空间
  351. 质变
  352. 通灵者
  353. 杜撰
  354. 经典
  355. 空洞
  356. 脸
  357. 幕后
  358. 万花筒
  359. 发现自己
  360. 迟钝的神经
  361. 心弦
  362. 旋律
  363. 永恒是个摇篮
  364. 倾听落日
  365. 时间
  366. 漩涡
  367. 诗兴
  368. 梦中红颜
  369. 反省
  370. 舞台
  371. 虚无之下
  372. 向导
  373. 解密
  374. 木偶戏
  375. 脸庞
  376. 幻痛
  377. 徜徉
  378. 凝视
  379. 心灵图景
  380. 臆想
  381. 虚无之上
  382. 夜半歌声
  383. 大设计
  384. 宁静的幻化
  385. 灵光乍现
  386. 历史
  387. 时间的河床
  388. 一切交给偶然
  389. 碎片
  390. 他者
  391. 错觉
  392. 玄想
  393. 随心所欲
  394. 蛊惑
  395. 咒语
  396. 向死而生
  397. 源头
  398. 心曲
  399. 小丑的台词
  400. 色盲
  401. 误区
  402. 冥想

FAQ

Is this poetry collection very different in style from the author's novels?
The difference is obvious. The novels lean toward realistic subject matter and narrative momentum, while the collection turns to imagery, rhythm, and speculation, with more condensed language; reading expectations need to be adjusted accordingly.
Can I read it without a background in poetry?
Yes. Most of the poems are short with relatively clear imagery, so no specialized background is required; on a first reading, just grasp the lines and images you can understand—there is no need to decode every word.
Do the four hundred poems need to be read in order?
No. The collection is suited to skipping and repeated dipping; you can pick by interest or read a few poems a day, building up your sense of the reading at your own pace.

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About the author

王晓方 Author

Public information about Wang Xiaofang is currently limited, and it is not possible to confirm the author's nationality, dates of birth and death, or full writing career. Judging from the holdings in our database, only one work appears under this author's name, The Gate of Dream Images (Mengxiang zhi Men), which is classified as modern poetry; on this basis, the author's writing can be broadly situated within contemporary poetic creation. The title itself carries a strongly imagistic and dreamlike quality, suggesting that the work may use imagination, hallucination, and inner landscapes as entry points for a twofold observation of reality and the spiritual world. Owing to the limited materials, it is difficult to further describe the author's specific artistic lineage, linguistic style, or poetics, or to assess their position and influence in the poetry world. For readers who wish to learn about this author, the most direct route remains reading The Gate of Dream Images itself, experiencing its choice of subject matter, construction of imagery, and lyrical approach, and forming their own judgment.

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