Nineteen Old Poems

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The Nineteen Ancient Poems (古詩十九首; Gǔshī shíjiǔ shǒu ; also " Nineteen Ancient Poems " or "Nineteen Old Style Poems"), the author of which is unknown, occupy a key position in the history of Chinese poetry .

Probably originated in the 2nd century AD, towards the end of the later Han period (25–220), they are considered the earliest examples of the consistent use of the five-syllable verse, which from then on became the dominant form of verse in Chinese poetry. The “Nineteen Old Poems” try out new possibilities of expression not only on a formal level, but also in terms of content. Echoes of the earliest Chinese poems from the "Book of Songs" ( Shijing ) are still recognizable, especially in the evocative images of nature in the opening verses of some poems, and the proximity to the ballad-like music official songs ( yuefu ) of the Han period (202 BC - 220 AD) is evident both in the simple, sometimes formulaic language and in material overlaps. The strongly performative character of the Shijing lyric has almost disappeared, and the folk-narrative element of the Yuefu has condensed into subtle depictions of soul moods. The lyrically concentrated form creates space for more abstract reflections on the condition of human existence. As a dominant theme, the transience of life runs like a red thread through the cycle: While in some poems it is expressed indirectly in the woman's longing for her distant lover, in others it is bluntly encouraged to enjoy life in the face of death, but the basic tone remains always melancholy, which in turn reveals an influence of the elegies of the Chuci collection, which are characterized by melancholy and the pain of separation , the “chants from Chu” rooted in shamanic rites in southern China.

The "Nineteen Old Poems" combine elements of the traditions of Shijing , Chuci and Yuefu into a new form of poetry in which, for the first time in Chinese poetry, the emotions of the individual come to the fore and the psychological introspection is closely interwoven with concise images of nature . The people in these poems are completely under the spell of their feelings, and the fact that they reveal themselves through these alone contributes significantly to the timeless character of these verses. Separation and loneliness, disappointment and transience, the traveler abroad and celebrating together are the big themes of this poetry, which Chinese poets of later times were supposed to play through in ever new variations.

German translations

  • Nineteen ancient poems. Gushi shijiu shou. Chinese and German. Translated from the Chinese by Raffael Keller. Waldgut, Frauenfeld 2016, ISBN 978-3-03740-276-4 .

literature

  • Reinhard Emmerich, Ed .: Chinese literary history. Metzler, Stuttgart 2004, ISBN 3-476-01607-2 , p. 99.
  • Manfred W. Frühauf: Nineteen Old Poems (Gushi Shijiu Shou 古詩十九首) from the Han period. (= Lun Wen. Studies on intellectual history and literature in China. 24). Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 2019, ISBN 978-3-447-11257-4 .
  • Helga Sönnichsen: On the prosody of the 'Nineteen Old Poems'. In: Han times. Festschrift for Hans Stumpfeldt on the occasion of his 65th birthday. Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 2006, ISBN 3-447-05445-X , pp. 359-378.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Volker Klöpsch, Eva Müller (Ed.): Lexicon of Chinese Literature . Beck, Munich 2004, p. 115 .
  2. ^ Raffael Keller: Foreword. In: Nineteen Poems from Ancient Times. 2016, p. 5.
  3. ↑ Helga Sönnichsen: On the prosody of the 'Nineteen Old Poems'. In: Han times. Festschrift for Hans Stumpfeldt on the occasion of his 65th birthday. Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 2006, p. 359.
  4. ^ Raffael Keller: Foreword. In: Nineteen Poems from Ancient Times. 2016, p. 7.
  5. ↑ detailed book review , accessed on March 29, 2020.