Chinese poem illustration: 南园十三首·其五 13 Songs of South Field . Fifth by Li He
Full video also available at Bilibili: 南园十三首 其五
One of the leading poet in mid-Tang period, with the title of Poetry of Ghost(诗鬼), Li He led a short and rather simple life of 27 years, while created a unique style of poetry: extremely refined wording that never used by others, romantic imagination and very subtle meaning that hard to be deciphered. He has a huge influence to the latecomers till today as one of the few poets adorable by Chairman Mao(毛泽东).
This poem is an alternative to his typical poems, very plain and straightforward. The poem is the sort of “How many roads must a man walk down. Before you call him a man?” poem. He was an gifted early bird on poem , appreciated by the prestigious scholar of the time Han Yu(韩愈), with the royal blood in his vessel , all these normally mean a great future for him, until the day he was set up that he could never go to the Imperial Exam in his lifetime, he could never fulfil his life dream any more.
This poem was written when he back from the Imperial Exam, trying to calm down himself. With great madness and fury, he wrote this poem straightforward and such powerful.
南园十三首·其五
李贺
男儿何不带吴钩，
收取关山五十州。
请君暂上凌烟阁，
若个书生万户侯？
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