The Shambhala Anthology of Chinese Poetry

Description

In traditional Chinese culture, the written word and the true and educated appreciation of the power and beauty of it, was prized with an almost religious reverence. Poetry held a place that was unrivalled by any other single talent, ability, or practical accomplishment as a source of prestige and affluence, and even of political power. In this rich, comprehensive collection of classical Chinese poetry, preeminent translator and scholar of Chinese, J. P. Seaton introduces the reader to the main styles of Chinese poetry and the major poets, from the classic, "Shih Ching" (The Book of Songs), which dates from 1766 BCE, to the twentieth century. Seaton's translations are fresh and vivid, and his commentaries are interesting and accessible. The poets include: Liu Pang; Hsiang Yu; Tu Fu; Ch'ien Ch'I; Wang fan-chih; Han Shan; Chiao Jan; Chiao Tao; Wei Ying-wu; Li Po; Wang Chien; Liu Yu-shi; Ch'u Yuan; Po Chu-yi; Liu Tsung-yuan; Li Ho; Liu Yung; Po P'u; Yuan Mei; Fan Tseng-hsiang; Ku Yen-wu; and many others.

J P Seaton is Professor pf Chinese at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, where he has served since 1968. He is the translator of numerous books, and his poetry translations have been widely anthologised. He also colaborated with Ursula K Le Guin on her translation of the Taoist classic Tao Te Ching

"Mindful of Robert Frost's famous maxim, 'Poetry is what is lost in translation,' Seaton yet risks the loss for the sake of opening doors otherwise closed to readers lacking Chinese. . . . The essays as well as the translations make the book a fine gateway to China's long poetic tradition."-Booklist "Jerome Seaton is the finest living translator and explicator of Chinese poetry; beyond a genius for interpretation and impeccable scholarship. Seaton has that quality that can magically transcend intuition and learning: he is a poet."-Carolyn Kizer, author of Cool, Calm, and Collected: Poems 1960-2000 "Luckily for his readers, J. P. Seaton is also a considerable poet who wears his erudition lightly in his lively commentary to this great sweep of Chinese poetry."-John Balaban, translator, Spring Essence: The Poetry of Ho Xuan Huong "J. P. Seaton's luminous translations are accurate in presenting the meaning and order of words and images from the original while revealing the true spirit of these poets."-Sam Hamill, author of Almost Paradise: New and Selected Poems and Translations "This anthology, with its inviting introduction, represents the lifework of the translator and a heritage of scholarship. It is a great gift to the language and poetry of our time."-W. S. Merwin, author of Migration: New and Selected Poems