Chapter Nine Poetry and Prose of the Early and the High Tang

Abstract

The Tang dynasty, founded in 618, developed in the subsequent years into a powerful empire in Chinese history. Gao Bing of the Ming dynasty divided the history of the development and evolution of Tang poetry into four stages: the Early Tang, the High Tang, the Mid-Tang and the Late Tang. In the Early and High Tang dynasty, in particular, Confucianism was not attached more importance than Taoism and Buddhism by either men of letters or with the rulers at the top. In the Early Tang, the rulers assumed a liberal attitude toward literature and arts. This chapter also discusses three pairs of different couplets which are exquisitely antithetical in the High Tang poetry. In literary history, the poetry of the Early and the High Tang period continued exploring the many and various possibilities contained in the poetry of the Six Dynasties, and achieved great improvements. Keywords:Early Tang poetry; High Tang poetry; Prose; Six Dynasties; Tang dynasty