Nie Gannu 聂绀弩 （1903-86）, essayist and poet, had begun his literary career as an avid advocate of the New Culture and New Literature Movement of the early twentieth century; but later in life, he became well-known...Nie Gannu 聂绀弩 （1903-86）, essayist and poet, had begun his literary career as an avid advocate of the New Culture and New Literature Movement of the early twentieth century; but later in life, he became well-known for his classical-style poetry. This paper examines the paradox of old and new in Nie Gannu＇s writings by juxtaposing classical-style with new-style poetry for a comparative analysis. In contrast to new-style poetry, classical-style poetry with its prosodic requirements and formal conventions has a strong technical aspect. Nie Gannu＇s preference for the regulated verse in the seven-syllable line is a deliberate embrace of this technical aspect of classical-style poetry： On the one hand, the absorption in poetic skills and craftsmanship was therapeutic for him in the traumatic years of the socialist revolution; on the other, the restraint of the form and the use of parallel couplet afforded him linguistic resources unavailable in the new-style poetry, so that he was able to express emotional complexity, ambivalence, and an irony that is, in his own words, ＂both there and not quite there.＂ Nie Gannu＇s case demonstrates the importance of understanding the new and old verse forms in each other＇s context. Rather than considering the mapping of modern Chinese poetry as following a linear line of progression from classical-style to new-style, this paper proposes a spatial model of configuring the relationship of the two major verse forms in modern times, as mutually defining and constricting.展开更多
When late Qing and early Republican-period Chinese reformers grappled with the challenges of creating a new poetic language and form in the early decades of the twentieth century, Zhou Zuoren （1885-1967）, one of mod...When late Qing and early Republican-period Chinese reformers grappled with the challenges of creating a new poetic language and form in the early decades of the twentieth century, Zhou Zuoren （1885-1967）, one of modern China＇s most influential intellectuals, believed that much could be learned from the experiments of modern Japanese poets who had overcome similar challenges in the decades following the Meiji restoration. Of all the verse forms Japanese poets were experimenting with, Zhou was particularly interested in modern haiku and tanka. Zhou felt that the modern haiku and tanka＇s rootedness in tradition on the one hand and their ability to express modern sensibilities on the other could offer a model for Chinese poets seeking to create a poetic voice that was at once modern, but also anchored in traditional poetics. This article will analyze some of Zhou＇s translations of modern haiku and tanka and illustrate how these translations led him to promote a new poetic form in China, typically referred to as ＂short verse＂ （xiaosh0. By further reading Zhou＇s critical essays on modern Japanese poetry against the writings of a number of Western modernist poets and translators who themselves were inspired by East Asian verse forms--Ezra Pound in particular--I will comment on the degree to which Zhou＇s promotion of short verse inspired by modern Japanese haiku and tanka challenges a perceived Western role in legitimizing East Asian forms as conducive to modernism.展开更多
1919年4月出版的中文《圣经》“和合本”问世不到两年,著名文学家许地山就参照美国芝加哥大学英国文学教授莫尔顿(Richard Green Moulton,1849-1924)著作里的《雅歌》英文①,以当时出现不久的新诗体的措辞和格式,重译了《雅歌》,其《新...1919年4月出版的中文《圣经》“和合本”问世不到两年,著名文学家许地山就参照美国芝加哥大学英国文学教授莫尔顿(Richard Green Moulton,1849-1924)著作里的《雅歌》英文①,以当时出现不久的新诗体的措辞和格式,重译了《雅歌》,其《新译绪言》与重译全文发表在《生命》杂志1921年11月出版的第二卷第4期和12月出版的第5期上.展开更多
文摘Nie Gannu 聂绀弩 （1903-86）, essayist and poet, had begun his literary career as an avid advocate of the New Culture and New Literature Movement of the early twentieth century; but later in life, he became well-known for his classical-style poetry. This paper examines the paradox of old and new in Nie Gannu＇s writings by juxtaposing classical-style with new-style poetry for a comparative analysis. In contrast to new-style poetry, classical-style poetry with its prosodic requirements and formal conventions has a strong technical aspect. Nie Gannu＇s preference for the regulated verse in the seven-syllable line is a deliberate embrace of this technical aspect of classical-style poetry： On the one hand, the absorption in poetic skills and craftsmanship was therapeutic for him in the traumatic years of the socialist revolution; on the other, the restraint of the form and the use of parallel couplet afforded him linguistic resources unavailable in the new-style poetry, so that he was able to express emotional complexity, ambivalence, and an irony that is, in his own words, ＂both there and not quite there.＂ Nie Gannu＇s case demonstrates the importance of understanding the new and old verse forms in each other＇s context. Rather than considering the mapping of modern Chinese poetry as following a linear line of progression from classical-style to new-style, this paper proposes a spatial model of configuring the relationship of the two major verse forms in modern times, as mutually defining and constricting.
文摘When late Qing and early Republican-period Chinese reformers grappled with the challenges of creating a new poetic language and form in the early decades of the twentieth century, Zhou Zuoren （1885-1967）, one of modern China＇s most influential intellectuals, believed that much could be learned from the experiments of modern Japanese poets who had overcome similar challenges in the decades following the Meiji restoration. Of all the verse forms Japanese poets were experimenting with, Zhou was particularly interested in modern haiku and tanka. Zhou felt that the modern haiku and tanka＇s rootedness in tradition on the one hand and their ability to express modern sensibilities on the other could offer a model for Chinese poets seeking to create a poetic voice that was at once modern, but also anchored in traditional poetics. This article will analyze some of Zhou＇s translations of modern haiku and tanka and illustrate how these translations led him to promote a new poetic form in China, typically referred to as ＂short verse＂ （xiaosh0. By further reading Zhou＇s critical essays on modern Japanese poetry against the writings of a number of Western modernist poets and translators who themselves were inspired by East Asian verse forms--Ezra Pound in particular--I will comment on the degree to which Zhou＇s promotion of short verse inspired by modern Japanese haiku and tanka challenges a perceived Western role in legitimizing East Asian forms as conducive to modernism.
文摘1919年4月出版的中文《圣经》“和合本”问世不到两年,著名文学家许地山就参照美国芝加哥大学英国文学教授莫尔顿(Richard Green Moulton,1849-1924)著作里的《雅歌》英文①,以当时出现不久的新诗体的措辞和格式,重译了《雅歌》,其《新译绪言》与重译全文发表在《生命》杂志1921年11月出版的第二卷第4期和12月出版的第5期上.
