Chinese Poems

by Arthur Waley

Scores of great poems in incomparable translations by noted British sinologist: "16 Songs of Courtship," "Hymn for the Fallen," "Fighting South of the Ramparts," "Ballad of Mulan," more, plus many poems by the great Po Chu-I, including "After Passing the Examination," and "Last Poem." Splendid introduction to Chinese poetry.

Genres: Poetry, Chinese Literature, China

214 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1946

About the author

Arthur David Waley was an esteemed English orientalist and sinologist, renowned for his translations of Chinese and Japanese poetry. He received numerous honours, including the Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1952, the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry in 1953, and was invested as a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) in 1956.
Waley was largely self-taught, and his translations brought Chinese and Japanese classical literature to a broad Western audience. He translated works such as A Hundred and Seventy Chinese Poems (1918), The Tale of Genji (1925–26), and Monkey (1942), making significant contributions to the understanding of East Asian literary traditions in the West. Despite his extensive knowledge, Waley never visited China or Japan, nor did he speak Mandarin or Japanese, focusing solely on written texts.
Born in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, he attended Rugby School and briefly studied Classics at Cambridge University before leaving due to vision problems. In 1913, he became Assistant Keeper of Oriental Prints and Manuscripts at the British Museum, where he taught himself Classical Chinese and Japanese. Waley was also active during WWII, working for the Ministry of Information and running the Japanese Censorship Section.
He maintained a close personal relationship with dancer and orientalist Beryl de Zoete, though they never married. Waley passed away in 1966, shortly after marrying poet Alison Grant Robinson. His work left an indelible mark on the field of translation and introduced the high literary cultures of China and Japan to the English-speaking world. His translations continue to be highly regarded and widely published, influencing generations of readers and scholars.

Reviews

[Bob Newman · Rating 5 out of 5]

"To transcend the bonds of the world"

Back in 1961-62, as a college student, I took a year long course in Chinese literature and have never regretted it. Prof. Shaddick introduced us to novels, poetry, short stories, and philosophy written over a period of nearly three thousand years. At the time, I had almost no knowledge of the world's literature beyond America, Shakespeare, and Japanese haiku. Though I enjoyed all parts of the course, the poetry of the Tang dynasty impressed me the most. I found it beautiful, philosophical, and clever at an age when these things impress most. In my life since those long ago days, I admit that poetry has not played a strong role. I have reviewed only one other book of poems, that too Chinese. Recently, I took out this book of Arthur Waley's, one that I had bought way back then, and reread it. The universality of human emotion struck me all the more forcefully, thanks to 53 years of living since my undergraduate days. Waley's translations struck me as more poetic than those of A.C. Graham, but I readily admit that to be a subjective judgement. Well, is poetry supposed to be some kind of objective science ?

There are poems from various eras of Chinese history here, up to the 17th century. The most impressive section of the book, however, is that which features the poems of Po Chu-i (772-846 A.D.) who served alternately as civil service administrator and political exile throughout his career, constantly writing poetry. When the poems are connected to periods and events in his life, they become even more poignant; the man becomes even more real. The book as a whole contains numerous poems of great beauty, summoning up all the human emotions of sadness, joy, bitterness, love, nostalgia, homesickness, and worldweariness. Let's face it, I'm neither a poet, nor a great reviewer of poetry books, but if CHINESE POEMS doesn't move you in some way, I'll eat my hat.

[Lysergius · Rating 4 out of 5]

The shorter poems are preferable. Something to be said for concision. These are somehow emotionless they are subjective, but objective at the same time. Fascinating reading these over my life time. Understanding grows very slowly, organically, like a plant. One day...

[Marian · Rating 3 out of 5]

And because the sight of an exiled bird wounded an exile's heart,
I payed your ransom and set you free, and you flew away to the clouds.

Chinese Poems (1989) spans a mammoth amount of time: from circa 900 BC to the mid-1600s. The anthology begins with selections from the famous Book of Songs and later contains a large portion of works by 8th-century poet and governor Bai Juyi; the remainder of the poems are by various authors, including some anonymous ones. Romance, war, loneliness, and love of nature are all prevalent themes, and the clash of universal values versus traditional barriers creates ongoing tension.

I found this poetry book to be an uneven collection, but now and then there were some gems where the voice of the author cuts through the dense imagery and brings you down to earth. I was moved by “A Peacock Flew” (3rd-5th century AD), a tale of doomed love, even as I was frustrated by what seemed to me needless despair on the part of its characters. I felt for the man who, of war, observed sadly, “That a young man should ever come home again / Seemed about as likely as that the sky should fall” (Wang Chien, 8th century AD). As poignant was this scene from Bai Juyi’s “The Flower Market” (p. 122):

There happened to be an old farm labourer
Who came by chance that way.
He bowed his head and sighed a deep sigh;
But this sigh nobody understood.
He was thinking, ‘A cluster of deep-red flowers
Would pay the taxes of ten poor houses.’

Nothing could better illustrate the divide between prosperity and poverty, alluded to A History of East Asia.

Something I’d also learned in that history book is that, as with many other countries, rebellion was not an uncommon occurrence in China’s history. “A Protest in the Sixth Year of Ch’ien Fu” (AD 879) speaks to injustice and discontent simmering under poor leadership (p. 176):

Do not let me hear you talking together
About titles and promotions;
For a single general’s reputation
Is made out of ten thousand corpses

[Dane Cobain · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is interesting, and whilst it’s not necessarily a collectors‘ item, I’m glad it’s part of my collection. Published by Allen & Unwin in London in 1949, it features a large collection of Chinese poetry that has been translated into English by Wiley. With translations, it’s tricky to tell how much of the credit to give to the translator and how much to give to the traditional authors, but I will say that this is a book that Wiley should have been proud of.

The best thing about this is that my copy is pretty old, which makes it a beautiful artefact to hold, as well as to read. I can’t even remember where I got this, and I’m not sure if it’s still in print, but if you’re a fan of traditional poetry styles and/or unique books, then I’d recommend trying to track down a copy. You won’t get me to give up mine, though – I’ve re-read it a couple of times, and whilst I probably won’t read it again in the future, it was well worth it. Turns out that Chinese poets had a lot of talent, and you’d be missing out if you didn’t read it.

[TJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classical Chinese poetry is astounding; that said, get the print book. The Kindle "version" is quite incomplete and a badly done scan that is often unreadable.

[Peter Strauss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much of the poetry of from Asia's past is wonderously liquid. Waley is the renowned and prolific translator of the art form. I read all of these books I can find.

[Catie · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The ties of flesh and blood only bind us to a load of grief and sorrow."