Ci Poems of the Old Man Who Knows Farming

黄公度Jun 2024

3.3

Word count: 2.6K words
Chapters: 2

Summary

The intellectual heritage of traditional Chinese culture has a long history and is highly original, inventive, and literary. Early forms of thought are especially distinctive: religious theology, classical texts of Chinese medicine, ancient military strategy, Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism, and the Hundred Schools of Thought, feng shui and metaphysics, the Twenty-Four Histories, and customs and local gazetteers—all are profound and broad in scope.

This series, “Essence of Classic Chinese Culture: Original Texts,” preserves the appearance of the original books and focuses on conserving and transmitting traditional Chinese thought and culture. By reading the literary essence left by ancient sages, readers can cultivate their temperament and quietly absorb the classics of Chinese learning.

Editor's review

Zhijiaweng Ci is the ci collection of Huang Gongdu of the Southern Song. A jinshi degree holder who was once demoted and sent to posts in the provinces, Huang fills his ci with reflections on his life and travels in office. His style is clear and gentle yet never lacking in backbone; it has both the delicate sensibility of the graceful school and, at times, the outlook and emotion of a scholar-official. This book belongs to the series “Essence of Classic Chinese Culture: Original Texts,” which preserves the original appearance of the text and emphasizes faithful transmission, making it a concrete sample for understanding the early Southern Song ci scene. When reading this collection, it is worth placing it back in the political and scholarly circumstances of the early Southern Song: demotion, relocation, and poetic exchanges with friends were often the very occasion for the ci. For readers familiar with the bold, expansive style of Su Shi and Xin Qiji, Huang Gongdu offers another kind of expression—more restrained and closer to everyday feeling. The book is short and suited to quiet, careful reading; with some knowledge of ci-pattern prosody, one can better savor the craft in the lines.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers interested in Song ci and the life of Southern Song scholar-officials
Students of classical literature seeking supplementary material for research on Southern Song ci
Readers who enjoy delicate, clear ci and are willing to savor the language closely
Poetry enthusiasts who want a sample of an original collection beyond Song ci anthologies

Not a good fit for

Beginning readers expecting vernacular annotations and line-by-line explanation
Readers who prefer the bold school or long narrative works
Browsers who only want quick exposure to famous Song ci without reading an original collection

Reading tips

First read through once to get a sense of the overall style, then choose favorite ci patterns and recite them repeatedly.
Read with some knowledge of ci-pattern prosody, paying attention to phrasing and rhyme to appreciate how sound and feeling work together.
Consult relevant historical events of the early Southern Song while reading to help understand the sense of personal circumstance in the ci.
Keep a notebook to record recurring images and emotional threads, forming your own map for reading ci.

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FAQ

What does Huang Gongdu’s ci mainly write about?

From the ci that survive, they mostly concern the drifting life of an official, reflections on personal circumstance, and poetic exchanges with friends; the feeling is delicate and the style tends toward the clear and gentle. For the content of specific pieces, rely on the original text in this book; readers can identify themes and emotional directions for themselves as they read.

Does this book have annotations and translation?

This book belongs to the series “Essence of Classic Chinese Culture: Original Texts,” which focuses on preserving the original appearance of the text and generally does not provide line-by-line vernacular translation. When reading, it is advisable to have a reference work on classical Chinese at hand or consult relevant annotated editions to understand the wording and allusions.

Do I need to understand ci-pattern prosody first to read a ci collection?

You do not need to master it systematically first, but knowing the basics of ci patterns, tonal patterns, and rhyme will make it easier to appreciate how sound and feeling work together. You can read the works first and look up the prosody afterward; learning as you read is more natural than starting with a book on prosody.

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About the author

黄公度 Author

Huang Gongdu: public sources on his life, official career, and dates of birth and death are limited. What can be confirmed is that two works are extant under his name, both belonging to classical poetry and song lyrics. Judging from the titles of Songshi Chao: Zhijiaweng Ji Chao and Zhijiaweng Ci, his writing covered both shi poetry and ci lyrics, and his sobriquet or studio name was likely connected with "Zhijiaweng." The inclusion of his verse in the Songshi Chao, an anthology of Song poetry, indicates that his poems were selected and preserved by later compilers and possess a degree of documentary value; the separate volume of ci shows that his lyrics also had a distinct character. Because the primary materials are insufficient, his life, stylistic sources, and later influence are difficult to describe in detail; readers may turn to these two collections and, beginning with their subjects, rhyme schemes, and tone, appreciate the basic features of his poetry and lyrics.