"Singing in Dis/Harmony" in Times of Chaos: Poetic Exchange between Xu Can and Chen Zhilin During the Ming-Qing Transition

Abstract

”Singing in harmony” [changhe 唱和], responding to another person's poem in accordance with certain formal and thematic rules, has been an important social function and primary channel of poetic production throughout Chinese literary history. Through a parallel or intertextual reading of Xu Can's (ca. 1610-1677+) and Chen Zhilin's (1605-1666) exchanged poetry during the Ming-Qing transition, I demonstrate the two interactive dimensions of their conjugal communication: First, that Xu Can, not withstanding her role as a ”traditional” wife, did not refrain from expressing her feelings and opinions about politics, historical change, and the official career of her husband. Second, the husband-wife changhe practice helped bring forth Chen Zhilin's political statement, a ”turncoat's” voice we rarely hear in Chinese history. I argue that this conjugal relationship as reflected in their poetry was characterized by a degree of intellectual compatibility and mutual engagement scarcely to be found elsewhere. In addition, because women like Xu Can went beyond conventional gender roles to embody what they perceived as high values in reaction to the political turmoil created by dynastic transition, their decision accorded them and their works a special place in Chinese history.