Chinese Poem

A Chinese Poem is a poem in a Chinese language.

• Context:
  • …
• Example(s):
  • "The River Merchant's Wife: A Letter" written by Li Bai.
  • …
• See: Cantonese Poem, Manadarin Poem, Chinese Poet.

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References

2023

• chat
  • Q: write some examples of chinese poetry in iambic pentameter
  • A: Iambic pentameter is a specific meter used in poetry and it's mainly used in Western poetry, it is not common in Chinese poetry, which has its own unique metrical patterns. Chinese poetry is traditionally written in lines of five or seven characters, the most common being the five-character line, and the seven-character line. These lines are often used in specific forms of poetry, like the "quatrain" which is a four-line poem.

    That being said, It's possible to translate Chinese poetry into iambic pentameter, but the translation may not be able to fully convey the original meaning and feeling of the poem. Here is an example of a famous Chinese poem written by Li Bai translated into iambic pentameter:

    • The River Merchant's Wife: A Letter

      Leaving be-hind my boat moored at the foot of Ching-po,
      I watch the riv-er and the hills dis-ap-pear in mist.
      My heart aches as I think of our part-ing,
      And the tears soak my sleeves.

  • But as you can see the poetry lose its original meaning, its beauty and its structure. The original Chinese poetry relies on the meaning and the sound of each word, the rhyme and the tonal pattern of the poem, which are difficult to replicate in English or another language.

2023

• chat
  • Q: What is the following poem? Write it in the original.
    Leaving be-hind my boat moored at the foot of Ching-po, I watch the riv-er and the hills dis-ap-pear in mist. My heart aches as I think of our part-ing, And the tears soak my sleeves.
  • A: The poem you provided is a translation of a famous Chinese poem called "The River Merchant's Wife: A Letter" written by Li Bai, but it is not the original Chinese version. The original poem is written in Classical Chinese, which is a literary language that is not spoken, and it's not possible to write it in a way that can be understood as poetry in English.

    The original poem goes something like this:

江南水乡，水乡月明中。
江南水乡，水乡月明中。
江南水乡，水乡月明中。
江南水乡，水乡月明中。
江南水乡，水乡月明中。

• • It is difficult to translate the poem without losing its original meaning, beauty and structure. The poem relies heavily on the meaning and sound of each word, the rhyme, and the tonal pattern. It is also important to note that the poem is written in Classical Chinese which is not spoken language but used for literature and poetry.

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