On Du Fu’s Poetic Innovation and Change in Learning from the Han and Wei Poems from the Perspective of his Short Wugu and Qigu

Although the poets in High Tang(roughly from 713 to 755 A.D.)generally viewed that a poet’s natural character came from the period of Jian’an(建安),quite a lot of poets highly praised Du Fu(杜甫)for his learning from the Han and Wei poems.It was not only because of the outstanding achievements in his Yuefu(乐府,folk song-style)poems with new themes and in his heart poems(咏怀诗)with long Wugu (五古,ancient-style pentasyllabic)rhythm,but also because of the differences between him and other High-Tang poets in learning from the style of Jian’an.Some of his achievements can also be found in his short Wugu and Qigu(七古,ancient-style heptasyllabic)poems.In his short Wugu poems,Du Fu did not follow the tradition contained in a series of heart poems such asReflections on Providential Encounter(《感遇》)by Chen Zi’ang(陈子昂)andVerses in Ancient Style(《古风》)by Li Bai,but made flexible use of the creative principles of Yuefufrom the Han Dynasty,ancient miscellaneous poems and ancient folk songs and proverbs.As his short Qigulyric poems also integrated the implied emotions of theWugupoems from the Han and Wei Periods,and the resonant appeal left over from the mixed-styleYuefuof the Han Dynasty,his short Wugu andQigupoems got closer in style to the poems of the early Han Dynasty.But the limitation of theYuefupoems from the Han Dynasty in their textual structures and artistic expressions,and the occasional mixture of the regulated style in the long Wugu poems from the High Tang,constituted the reason why Du Fu seldom wrote short poems,but devoted himself to resuming the ancient style in long Wugu poems.