Qu Yuan's profile

Qu Yuan (about 339 BC-about 278 BC) was a poet and politician of the State of Chu in the Warring States Period, and the founder and representative author of The Songs of Chu. In the 20th century, he was selected as a world cultural celebrity and widely commemorated.

Qu Yuan's Life Experience The material for recording Qu Yuan's life experience is Biography of Qu Yuan in Historical Records, which is earlier and more specific. Before Sima Qian, Jia Yi was relegated to Changsha and paid tribute to Qu Yuan when passing through Xiangshui. This paper quotes some chapters in Qu Yuan's Lisao and Nine Chapters, and recounts Qu Yuan's thoughts and experiences, which are completely consistent with those in Historical Records. At the same time, Sima Qian wrote Seven-character Poetry, and Zhuang (who was afraid of illness and medical treatment in the Eastern Han Dynasty) wrote Mourning Time, all of which imitated Qu Yuan's works. Qu Yuan's thoughts and experiences described in this paper are also close to those described in Historical Records, so Qu Yuan's deeds contained in Historical Records are basically credible. Of course, there are occasional misstatements or historical errors in biographies.

There is no basis for a few scholars in modern times to doubt the existence of Qu Yuan.

"Biography of Qu Yuan" said that Qu Yuan's name was flat and his word was original. In Lisao, it claims to have a proper name and a balanced word, which is the transliteration of the former. "Regularity" and "spiritual equality" are the extended meanings of the words Pingheyuan.

Regarding the date of Qu Yuan's birth, Li Sao said: "She brought chastity to Meng Xi, but Geng Yin and I surrendered." There are different explanations for this, which can be roughly divided into two parts: first, Wang Yi said that he thought "Sheti" was the provincial name of "Sheti Pavilion", and Qu Yuan was born in "Tai Sui was in Yin, the first month began in spring, and the day of Geng Yin", that is, the year of Yin was in Yin; Secondly, Zhu said that he thought "the object" was the name of the constellation in the sky, and did not specify the year. These two sentences only say that Qu Yuan was born on the silver moon and silver day, and the exact year is unknown. Among the two theories, Wang Yi's theory is more popular, but due to the different calendars, the conclusions are not the same. Pu Jiangqing speculated that Qu Yuan was born on the 14th day of the first month of Chu Weiwang (339 BC), and this conclusion is more detailed.

Qu Yuan's ancestor is Zhuan Xu Levin, who belongs to Xia nationality. According to Records of the Historian Chu Family, Ji Lian, the sixth generation of Lai's family, was the founder of Chu people's pioneering work, and both were surnames. In Zhou Chengwang, Xiong Yi, the great-grandson of Ji Lian, was sealed in Chu, lived in Danyang (now Zigui, Hubei) and spread to Xiongtong (Yizuoda), that is, Chu Wuwang. His son was defective and his fief was given to Qu, so his descendants took Qu as their surname, so Qu was a branch of Chu's surname. Since the Spring and Autumn Period, Qu's family has always occupied an important position in the history of Chu. Mo Ao, a senior official, held the posts of Qu Zhong, Qu Wan, Qu Dang, Qu Zhi, Qu Jian and Qu Sheng, most of which were handed down from generation to generation.

Qu Yuan's father, called Bo Yong in Li Sao, may also be an alias. In addition, it is said that Qu Yuan has a sister.

It is difficult to determine where Qu Yuan's surname is now. Qu Yuan's hometown can only be inferred from various theories after the Han Dynasty, among which Danyang Zigui has the most legends. Danyang is the place where Chu began to seal the country. Li Daoyuan's Notes on Water Classics and Notes on River Water quoted Yiduji of Yuan Dynasty as saying: "Zigui is the birthplace of Xiong Yi, the hometown of Qu Yuan, and the original farmland houses exist today." "There is Qu Yuan's old family in dozens of miles northeast of Zigui County. Although the weir is full, it is still called the original family. One hundred and sixty miles north of the county seat, there is Qu Yuan's former residence, with stone as the foundation of the house, called Lepingli. There is a female temple 60 miles northeast of the home, and the stone of broken clothes still exists. " This is the most specific statement about Qu Yuan's hometown since the Han and Wei Dynasties.

Qu Yuan's Political Activities Qu Yuan was an important politician of Chu State during the Warring States Period. He spent his whole life in fierce and complicated political struggles. Understanding his political experience is an important prerequisite for studying Qu Yuan's thoughts and literary achievements.

Since Qu Xian was appointed as Mo Ao, this position was almost entirely inherited by Qu's descendants. Its position is second only to Lingyin. Biography of Qu Yuan says that Qu Yuan is left-handed in Chu Huaiwang. According to the existing historical data, we can know that only Qu Yuan and Chun Shen Jun served as Chu Zuotu during the Warring States Period. Chun Shen Jun was promoted to Lingyin Left Disciple, which was the same as Mo Ao in the old Chu system. Judging from Qu Yuan's responsibilities in domestic and foreign affairs in Biography of Qu Yuan, the picture on the left is also equivalent to Mo Ao, probably Mo Ao in the Spring and Autumn Period. Qu Yuan and Wang Huai are cousins. He is a left disciple and an important minister according to his clan.

Qu Yuan's political activities are recorded in Biography of Qu Yuan and confirmed by Qu Yuan's works, which mainly include: assisting Wang Huai's internal affairs, discussing state affairs, entertaining guests, drafting constitutional orders and reforming laws; In diplomacy, he took part in the struggle between the United Front and the State of Qin, and twice went to the State of Qi.

Qu Yuan's political activities were related to the historical changes at that time. During the Spring and Autumn Period, the ruling system of the Zhou Dynasty could no longer meet the requirements of the development of the social situation, and the vassal States had taken themselves as the center and competed for hegemony. The situation of Chu is similar to that of other countries in the Central Plains. Due to favorable geographical and political conditions, it has developed into a new big country. During the Warring States period, various vassal states successively carried out reforms to varying degrees, and after long-term merger, a new situation in which seven heroes coexisted was formed, among which Qin and Chu were the strongest.

Qu Yuan helped Chu Huaiwang when the Seven Heroes fought bravely. At first, Qu Yuan was trusted and reused by Chu Huaiwang, asking him to "make it a constitutional order", that is, to preside over the drafting and promulgation of state decrees. "Constitutional order" involves the implementation of political reform. When Chu mourned the king, there was a precedent of Wuqi's political reform. In the early days of Wang Huai, he also wanted to do something, and he once won the position of trade union chairman. Therefore, Qu Yuan hoped to be updated as much as possible, and he was once supported by Wang Huai. However, the political reform in Chu was not thorough enough, and the political power was mainly in the hands of nobles, who opposed the political reform in order to maintain their personal status.

At that time, the court officials of Chu gathered together, and there were Shangguan doctors in the same column as Qu Yuan. He was jealous and argued with Qu Yuan. The constitutional order drafted by Qu Yuan is uncertain. Doctor Shangguan wanted to accept it, but Qu Yuan refused. He slandered Chu Huaiwang and said, "It is well known that the King of Chu made a decree to bend. Every time I give the order, I cut it flat. I don't think I can do it. " Wang Huaiyong was timid and groggy, and he was angry with Qu Yuan because he didn't distinguish right from wrong. The fundamental reason why Qu Yuan was alienated was that his reform plan violated the interests of the nobles and was vilified by the old nobles.

Qu yuan's struggle with the old aristocratic groups is also manifested in foreign policy. Qu Yuan analyzed the situation at that time and insisted on the strategy of uniting Qi against Qin, which was a correct strategy beneficial to Chu. Chu Huaiwang took his advice and sent him to Qi. After Qu Yuan was alienated, the State of Qin sent Zhang Yi to Chu to lure Chu Huaiwang with land. Short-sighted Chu Huaiwang changed his foreign policy and adopted the policy of "absolute loyalty to Qin". As a result, Chu suffered great losses politically and diplomatically. Wang Huai was very angry and rushed to send troops to attack the State of Qin. Without the support of Qi, it was defeated by Qin and lost the land of Hanzhong. The situation was critical, and Qu Yuan was once sent to Qi again by Chu Huaiwang in an attempt to repair the friendship between the two countries. But it didn't take long for Zhao Haoqi of Qin to ask for marriage with Qin Chu, and wanted to see the king of Chu. Qu Yuan remonstrated: "Qin, a country of tigers and wolves, is not credible, it is better to have no business!" However, Zilan, the son of Chu Huaiwang, advised Chu Huaiwang to go to the State of Qin and said, "Why refuse Qin Huan?" Chu Huaiwang finally went to the State of Qin, was detained there, and finally died. At that time, Qu Yuan had been expelled from the imperial court and exiled to the north of the Han Dynasty.

After his death, the eldest son succeeded to the throne and married his disciple Lan. At that time, Chu people accused Zilan of persuading Wang Huai to enter the Qin Dynasty, so Qu Yuan was widely sympathized. However, Zilan didn't think too much, but instigated Shangguan doctor to slander Qu Yuan to Xiang Wang. A great anger, and exiled qu yuan to Jiangnan. About this time, after Ying Du arrived in Bao Zhuang, he had to return to his hometown and emigrate. I wandered around Yuan and Xiang for about nine years. He is far from his old country and has no position. He just bemoaned the affairs of the country and family. So, he slowly followed the Yuanjiang River and headed for Changsha. Qu Yuan could not return to Chu, nor could he travel far for wisdom. At this time, he was "released to sing by the Zehe River, with haggard color and withered description". Finally, in desperation, he threw himself into the Miluo River to show his loyalty and patriotism.

Apart from being a leftist, Qu Yuan once held the post of "Doctor San Lv". San Lv is the residence of Zhao, Qu and Jing, the imperial clan of Chu. Dr. San Lv should be the public doctor of Jin, Lu and other countries since the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. His position was to manage clan affairs and educate aristocratic children, which was equivalent to that of Zong Zheng in Han Dynasty. As a doctor in San Lv, Qu Yuan shoulders the heavy responsibility of educating clans. This is clearly stated in Li Sao: "I am both a nine-flowered orchid and a hundred-acre tree. I am a foreigner and a car. I am a hybrid of Du Heng and local chronicles. I hope I will cut it when I am ready. " He made a lot of efforts to cultivate reserve talents, but the result was "turned into incense and turned into hair". A group of people he worked so hard to cultivate became hostile forces against himself, which made him feel great pain.

Qu Yuan's thought and creation are profound. He is familiar with astronomy, geography, the system of rites and music, the ups and downs of previous generations and some important historical legends. I also know the history of many major countries and some important people since the Spring and Autumn Period. The former king of Chu is especially good at pioneering history. In this vast field, he summed up many principles of governing the country and put forward profound opinions. In Qu Yuan's works, there are strong thoughts and feelings of worrying about the country and the people and being loyal to the monarch and governing the country.

The content of his political ideal is "American politics", that is, the politics of sages. He believes that only sages can change the political and social reality of Chu and make Chu strong. He warmly praised the ancient sages such as Yao, Shun, Yu, Tang, Hou Ji, Wen Wang, He and Chu san huang, and warmly praised the ancient sages such as Chu Yi Yin, Zhou Gong, Ning Qi, Jie Zi, Bigan, Bo Yi, Shu Qi, Wu Zixu and Wen Zi. He also used comparative methods to talk about some evil monarchs, such as Jie, Zhou, Yi, Han Zhuo and Zhu. He wants to illustrate the importance of sages through comparison and the danger of Chu without sages, all of which are aimed at reality. "Geng Jie" (Lisao), which means aboveboard, is Qu Yuan's highest requirement for the monarch. The so-called virtuous ministers take Iraq, Fu, Lu and Ning as models, not nobles as objects. This is the significance of advocating meritocracy and opposing cronyism. Qu Yuan often uses the words loyalty, loyalty and faith when talking about virtuous officials. Qu Yuan himself, under the control of loyalty to the monarch and patriotism, dared to stick to the truth and not bow to evil forces: "I am also kind at heart, although I have never regretted my narrow escape." (Li Sao) The virtue of "loyalty" of ancient sages was fully manifested in him.

Another basic content of Qu Yuan's "beautiful politics" is people-oriented thought. This is clearly expressed in his works. He talked about the problem of "man" many times in Li Sao, Nine Chapters and other works. "God is selfless, and it is wrong to look at people's morality." The husband is just a saint's Mao Xing Xi, and he has to use this soil to "look ahead and look after others" ("Li Sao"); "I would like to get up and run around, I want to visit people, especially from the town" (Chapter 9). In fact, this is the development of the ancient idea that "Heaven is for the people, and Heaven listens to the people" (quoted from Mengzi Wanzhang). The so-called sage and sage, the so-called good politics, depends on whether it can solve people's livelihood problems and bring people a happy environment.

According to Liu Xiang and Liu Xin's collation and Wang Yi's annotation, there are 25 works of Qu Yuan, namely Li Sao 1, Tian Wen 1, Jiu Ge1,Nine Chapters 9 and Travel Far. According to Sima Qian in Biography of Qu Yuan in Historical Records, there are 1 evocation. Some scholars believe that Zhao Da is also the work of Qu Yuan. However, some people suspect that the chapters behind Journey and some chapters in Nine Chapters were not written by Qu Yuan. Generally speaking, Li Sao, Tian Wen and Jiu Ge can be regarded as the representatives of three types of Qu Yuan's works. Nine Chapters, Journey, Buju, Fisherman, Evocation of Soul, and Da Zhao can be classified as Li Sao in content and style, and most of them are well documented and meaningful, focusing on expressing the author's inner feelings. Li Sao is a magnificent poem created by Qu Yuan with his own ideals, experiences, pains, enthusiasm and even his whole life. It shines with bright personality and is the focus of all Qu Yuan's creations. Tian Wen is a poem written by Qu Yuan according to myths and legends, which embodies the author's academic attainments and views on history and nature. "Nine Songs" is Qu Yuan's music for offering sacrifices to the gods in Chu. It is full of life breath in the expression of characters' feelings and the description of environmental atmosphere. However, it is the expression of generations or gods, rather than the author's self-lyric, which shows more traces of the literary tradition of southern Chu. Li Sao and Nine Songs constitute the basic style of Qu Yuan's works.

Qu Yuan's works are closely related to myths. Many illusory contents are developed from myths. Qu Yuan is also a poet who pays attention to reality. His works reflect various contradictions in the real society, especially the dark politics of Chu.

The style of Qu Yuan's works is obviously different from the Book of Songs. This is related to the differences in folk customs between the Yangtze River Basin and the Yellow River Basin. At that time, the north had entered the patriarchal society, and Chu still had the legacy of clan society, which was tough and lively, and was not bound by etiquette. Therefore, the expression of love between men and women and patriotism is so straightforward, and the materials used are so rich that everything can run to the bottom of the pen. Write about the love between man and God, crazy people, ancient historical legends, and traveling with ghosts and gods. All gods have ordinary human nature among the people, and God is just a person beyond ordinary people. They make their works look bright, full of emotion and unrestrained. This kind of works shows different characteristics from northern literature.

From the institutional point of view, Qu Yuan's previous poems, whether the Book of Songs or southern folk songs, were mostly short stories, and Qu Yuan developed into a long and huge system. Li Sao alone has more than 2,400 words. In terms of expression techniques, Qu Yuan skillfully combined Fu, Bi and Xing, and made extensive use of the Bi Xing technique of "vanilla beauty" to vividly express abstract morality, consciousness and complex realistic relations.

In terms of language form, Qu Yuan's works have broken through the four-sentence pattern in The Book of Songs, with each sentence ranging from five, six, seven, eight and nine characters, as well as three sentences and cross sentences. Grammar is uneven and flexible. The word "Xi" and function words such as "Zhi", "Yu", "Hu" and "Er" are often used at the end of sentences to coordinate syllables and produce cadence, singing and sighing effects. In a word, his works are very creative from content to form.

Qu Yuan's works had a greater influence after the Chu people established Guanzhong, the capital of the Han Dynasty. With the continuous study and development of Songs of the South, the literature in the north has gradually become Chu. The new five-character poems and seven-character poems are all related to Chu Sao. Fu writers in Han Dynasty were all influenced by Chu Ci. After the Han Dynasty, works of "Shao Sao" appeared in all previous dynasties. The author often uses Qu Yuan's poems to express his own obstacles, and even uses Qu Yuan's experience as a metaphor, which is the direct development of Qu Yuan's literature. In addition, there are poems, songs, lyrics, songs, dramas, Qin lyrics, Daqu, scripts and so on. Take the life story of Qu Yuan as the theme, such as The Portrait of Qu Yuan, Nine Songs, Nine Tweens, etc. It is also difficult to count. Therefore, Lu Xun called Qu Yuan's works "outstanding" and "influenced later articles even more than' 300'" (Outline of China Literature History).