Mei Yao Chen

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Mei Yao Chen (梅堯臣) (1002~1060) was a poet and politician of Song Dynasty and an advocate for “new subjective” poetry style. He was born to a deprived peasant family, but his persistent pursuit in poetry had made his influence in Chinese Shi (poetry) broad and enduring. Along with Ou Yang Xiu and other famous poets, Mei propelled an innovation in the Chinese poetry world at that time. The innovation movement encouraged Song Shi to be restored to simplicity and realism. The poetic representation of such simplicity and realism can be seen in many of his work, which are mainly inspired by his early pastoral life. Early Life In his early years in Xuanchen, Anhui Province, where he was born and raised, he went to the local school was fascinated by literature. When Mei was sixteen he wrote the Xiang Shi exam but failed. On the other hand, his family could not afford further education for him. As a result, Mei’s uncle took him to Luo Yang (a city in He Nan Province). Political Career Mei worked as a secretary in several counties, and his political career took off since then. At the peak of his career he was assigned the title Jin Shi (a candidate eligible for nobility) and Assistant Professor in the Imperial Academy. His ambition in politics was reflected by his later name Yao Chen, meaning “wise one who supports a wise king”. However, he never encountered such wise king in reality. Nonetheless, he carried out his role as a county governor well during his 5-year term. He understood and sympathized with the poverty-stricken people, whom he wrote the majority of his poems on. Mei’s Work Mei’s poetry style started out as typical Xikun style. Xikun poems are beautifully written odes to banquets, to life, to love, and to history. This particular style uses highly structured phrases and wide variety of vocabulary. But Mei’s experience as a county governor had led

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