The Pity of Spring: A Southern Topos Reimagined by Wang Bo and Li Bai

Abstract

“The pity of spring in my heart,” an enigmatic phrase in the conclusion to the ancient Chu poem “Summons to the Soul,” became an important topos of poetic composition during the Tang. The early Tang poet Wang Bo and the High Tang poet Li Bai both employed it in their writings, embellishing on the phrase as a way of expressing their conflicted feelings about travel, the South, and life itself. The process of elaboration and refinement of the phrase is a revealing case study in the development of Tang poetry.