The Chinese Interpretation of Eichendorff’s Natural Poetry

Eichendorff was a German romantic poet of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In German natural poetry history his works demonstrate a kind of “peculiar essence” that distinguishes it from other romantic and traditional poetry. His poetry differs from both enlightenment natural poetry that describes the reality of physical objects, as well as from “storm and stress” that emphasizes the expression of subjective feelings. In the blending of emotion with scenic description, this poetry expresses personal life experiences that make us the “artistic conception”’ sought of in Chinese poetry. This poetry has present and pictorial qualities that express in words often descriptively elusive natural images, whilst at the same time containing deeper sentiments that transcend the bounds of written expression.