An Analysis of Volition and Self-Identity Construction in Ai Qing’s Poem

Abstract

The Chinese poet Ai Qing (pen name of Jiang Zhenghan) advocated expressing one’s innermost thoughts directly through poetry, and his poems often used straightforward language to convey strong volition. This article examines Ai Qing’s poetry from the perspectives of form and the process of imagination, using Coleridge's theory of imagination and Ai Qing’s own poetic philosophy. It seeks to explore the volition embodied in Ai Qing’s poetry and how he constructs his own identity through poetry. In terms of form, Ai Qing adhered to “the prose beauty of poetry,” expressing the hope to break free from constraints, liberate thoughts, and assert personal will. Through the unconventional imagination process in his poems, Ai Qing reveals the unconscious self-agent of the poet to speak for the people and an active perspective on the interplay between the poet’s self-agent and the external world. It is the combination of poetic form and the creative process of imagination that constructs Ai Qing’s identity as a national poet yearning for freedom, revolution, and yet filled with a sense of concern.