The first collection of poetry and prose about rural landscapes
Overview
Chinese Name: 陶渊明集
English Name: Tao Yuanming Sets
Author: Tao Yuanming 陶渊明
Originally Published: May 1, 1979
Genre: Literature, Poetry
Brief Introduction of Tao Yuanming Sets
Tao Yuanming Sets 陶渊明集 is The first collection of poetry and prose about rural landscapes. It consists of poems and essays written by Tao Yuanming 陶渊明 in the Eastern Jin 东晋. It was first collected and compiled by Xiao Tong 萧统 of Liang Dynasty 梁朝.
Tao Yuanming Sets includes three aspects: the description of pastoral beauty, such as drinking 饮酒, the experience of their own labor production and the fun of leisure and social networking, such as returning to the garden 归园田居, and the fun of reading and drinking, such as drinking alone in the rain 连雨独饮. Tao Yuanming’s works inherited the tradition of Han and Wei dynasties 汉魏朝 and formed his own unique style. His works are full of content, sincere emotions, and leisurely. He is good at using freehand brushwork to dye simple and profound artistic conception. We can see Tao Yuanming’s ideal life and noble character from Tao Yuanming’s collection.
Tao Yuanming regarded the pastoral natural scenery as a place to settle down in life and another ideal realm completely opposite to the dark reality and muddy officialdom. Therefore, he tried his best to objectify his own social and political ideals and life personality ideals, so as to integrate the pastoral spirit with his own. There are many poems and articles describing natural scenery in Tao Yuanming Sets.
Tao Yuanming especially stressed the great significance of labor to life and his insistence on seclusion. As a feudal dynasty scholar-bureaucrat, his most valuable place is to retire to the countryside after subsistence. There are many poems describing his productive labor in Anthology of Tao Yuanming . For example, the third poem of Returning to the Garden 归园田居 and Living in The Field describes him weeding the soybean plants.
The Tao Yuanming Sets also contains articles describing Tao’s happy conversations with friends and travels around the country.
Author of Tao Yuanming Sets
The Tao Yuanming Sets were written by Tao Yuanming.
Tao Yuanming (c. 365-427), also known as Mr. Wu Liu 五柳先生 and Mr. Jing Jie 靖节先生, was born in Jiujiang city 九江市, Jiangxi Province 江西省. He was an outstanding poet and essayist from the late Eastern Jin Dynasty to the early Liu Song Dynasty. He was the founder of the pastoral school and the first poet in literature to write extensively about drinking. Tao Yuanming was known as “the originator of pastoral poetry”, and was called a real hermit by later literators. He was the first literary giant in Jiangxi province.
His life can be divided into three stages. Until the age of 29, he studied at home. From 29 to 41, he was an official. From 41 to 63, he retired to rural life. During his lifetime, he wrote 125 poems and 12 articles, including Tao Yuanming Sets. He died in Xunyang 浔阳 in 427 AD.
Excerpts From Tao Yuanming Sets
采菊东篱下，悠然见南山。
PICKING CHRYSANTHEMUMS UNDER THE EAST FENCE,LEISURELY ,THE DISTANT NANSHAN COMES INTO VIEW.
芳菊开林耀，青松冠岩列。
Close to see the forest full of chrysanthemums in full bloom, brilliant and dazzling, fragrance overflow; The rock is lined with green pines
山气日夕佳，飞鸟相与还。
NANSHAN IS BEAUTIFUL SCENE IN THE EVENING, WITH MIST CURLING OVER ITS PEAKS AND FLOCKS OF BIRDS FLYING BACK TO THEIR NESTS
Evaluation of Tao Yuanming Sets
Tao Yuanming Sets look very simple and plain, but inside they are really beautiful and rich.”
Su Shi 苏轼
Tao Yuanming Sets are refreshing, wonderful and make people feel a pure land in their hearts
Wang Anshi 王安石