Wu Gorge

1. First read it aloud to feel the orderliness of the phrasing and the unfolding momentum, then go back and look at the levels of description line by line.
2. Place the poem beside works on similar themes by Wang Bo and Luo Binwang, and compare how the four poets take different approaches to the gorge.
3. While reading, map the spatial directions in the poem and note how the poet moves from nearby scenes toward a distant force.
4. In class, have students retell the scene first, then discuss the spirit the poet expresses through the landscape.

Jinzhang Book Company (Jinzhang Shuju) was a private publishing and distribution house in Shanghai during the late Qing and early Republican periods, issuing traditional works by lithographic printing. Judging from the 1,194 titles in the collection, its publishing focused on classical poetry, Eastern philosophy, historical reading, traditional Chinese medical texts, and canonical works, along with books on literary appreciation. Representative titles include the poetry and prose collections of Du Fu and Ouyang Xiu; historical works such as the Book of Han and Zizhi Tongjian; classical texts such as the Book of Documents and Mencius; and specialized and literary classics such as Treatise on Cold Damage and Li Sao. Its author resources cover major figures across the ages, including Du Fu, Ban Gu, Sima Guang, Zhang Zhongjing, Qu Yuan, Ouyang Xiu, and Tang Shenwei, reflecting the house's characteristic reliance on traditional scholarship and medical literature while serving general readers. Public information on its early history and operational details is limited, so no conjecture is offered here.