In some of Li Mengyang's poems, he praised the quality of businessmen who are good at making profits, which is related to their family situation. After Hongzhi was a scholar for six years (1493), he was strong as an official, dared to be an enemy of the official emperor, and even went to prison several times. The most shocking thing in this world is that he wrote to Emperor Xiaozong, recounting the crimes of Zhang Heling, the father of the queen, and almost died. After he got out of prison, he met Zhang in the street. He also severely scolded him and shot Zhang's two teeth with a whip, which shows his personality. There is also an "empty set".
Li Mengyang severely hit the Song people. He believes that the root of "no poetry" and "scrapping ancient prose" in Song Dynasty is Neo-Confucianism: "Song people are in charge of reason, so they are thin and thin, and everything is shoveled. He also teaches people to write poetry, and people no longer know poetry. " On the other hand, Li Mengyang's most admired objects in literature are natural and vivid folk songs, which reveal people's true feelings. Not only did he advocate that "true poetry is among the people", but some people learned poetry from him, and he even taught people the popular street song Zuonan Branch (a poem and joke in Kaixian County, Li See). For his own poems, he also criticized: "The poems given to him are not true. The Prince (Uncle Wu) said that scholars and students rhyme and speak, and if they talk too much, they will lose." (Preface to Poetry) Here, the whole tradition of literati poetry has been questioned, showing the desire to explore a new direction of poetry-although he has not made much achievements in this respect.
However, it is totally untrue to look at Li Mengyang's above viewpoint in opposition to his "retro" theory, or even to think that it is a manifestation of his "admitting mistakes". Because the "retro" theory itself also includes the emphasis on true feelings, and Li Mengyang's poems are really influenced by folk songs. For example, in his collection, there are two nursery rhymes rewritten by him; His long lines and other poems are also written in the style of folk songs and simple language. However, the emotional expression and language of folk songs are not easy to integrate with the literati literary tradition. "Retro" is mainly in terms of the literati literary tradition, but it can't reach the frankness and innocence of folk songs after all.
The significance of the literary retro movement led by Li Mengyang lies in cutting off contact with the mainstream of Song Wenhua, especially Neo-Confucianism, and pursuing the so-called "Gog". Li Mengyang said: "No one who pursues the past does not have his body first." In their view, all kinds of poems are always the most perfect. There is a certain prejudice against the ancients, but it also has its reasonable components: when a literary style comes into being, it is not necessarily exquisite, but it is always full of vitality and spiritual strength-this is what "Ge" refers to first. Therefore, in terms of poetry, Li Mengyang advocates that the ancient style should follow the example of the Han and Wei Dynasties, and the modern style should follow the example of the prosperous Tang Dynasty; In prose, Qin and Han Dynasties are the most respected. "Ge" is the pursuit of the overall aesthetic characteristics of literature. In addition, Li Mengyang also attached importance to "sound"-mainly referring to the harmony and perfection of poetic tone. In addition, he also put forward some subtle writing methods, such as "talk to any book again" and "those who are sparse before must be dense, and those who are half wide must be thin; Real people must be empty, and those who fold the scenery must have two meanings. " And so on. To sum up, these are collectively called "laws". At that time, this emphasis on the aesthetic characteristics and artistic skills of literature played an important role in promoting the independence of literature and decoupling it from Tao (for example, Song Lian and others emphasized the integration of literature and Tao, and condemned the exploration of literary forms and skills in order to maintain the exclusive position of Tao).
However, although he said, "In my opinion, talk about the things of today's people and ignore their words" (refuting any essay), it shows that he does not advocate rigid polar simulation of the ancients, and the so-called "big and small ancient laws" actually have great negative effects. Thought and emotion are the most active factors in literature, which need constant adjustment and change of literary language form. Emphasizing "ancient law" and summarizing a set of schemes in vocabulary, image, tone and structure will inevitably become a formal package. Many of Li Mengyang's poems really give people a sense of deja vu. Therefore, from his ally He Jingming, he criticized his literary thought and creation. However, it is undeniable that the retro movement initiated by Li Mengyang effectively reversed the literary atmosphere at that time. For example, the summary of Sikuquanshu said: "With the scholars, their bodies changed." Since then, Song and Wang's theories of "the unity of literature and Taoism" and "Taige style" have been out of control. Even in the late Ming Dynasty, the contribution and position of Li Mengyang and He Jingming to the development of literature were still affirmed by many writers. For example, in Yuan Hongdao's poem "Answer to Li Ziyou", there is a saying that "the grass is ignorant, and Li and Er Ya are good teachers", which is full of praise. In the past, some literary history works evaluated Li Hehe as the opposite of the new literary trend of thought in the late Ming Dynasty, which was inappropriate.
Many poems, such as the soldier's journey, the battlefield song of General Shi, the journey to the palace, etc. , are deep feelings, vigorous and depressed, obviously influenced by the old Du Fu's poetic style. In this kind of works, there is sometimes a sense of disillusionment with the feudal political order. such as
Bolangsha: "Red pine nuts, where are they? You won't see a dog cooked in the morning and a tiger tied up at night. " "Self-recording": "The world is not against, whoever steals the hook will punish the thief." Some of his excellent works are magnificent, and we can see what the meaning of "Guge" he pursues is. For example, the poem "Looking at Autumn" says: The Yellow River flows around the wall of the Han Palace, and there are several rows of autumn geese on the river. The soldiers crossed the moat and the general drew an arrow from his bow. The ship passed the long ancient ferry crossing the dust, and the soldiers were forced to sit on it. The moon is high in the sky, which makes the battlefield sad. I heard how brave the North is, but who is Guo Fenyang today?
Some of Li Mengyang's other poems express profound and sincere feelings, which are rare in previous poems. For example, there is a saying in The Colon that mourns the death of his wife: "Good words are unpleasant to the ear, and my concubine is angrier than your husband." It's hard to talk in the middle of the intestine, and it's hard to know whether it's alive or dead. "Different from the general" mourning "poems that beautify the life of husband and wife, this poem writes the estrangement between husband and wife's life through the tone of his wife, truly describes women's emotional demands and regrets, and has flashed the new spirit of late Ming literature.
Li Mengyang's prose also established a new paradigm at that time. Such as "Mr Meishan epitaph":
In the autumn of Zheng De's sixteenth year, May Zi Shan came. Plum saw his stout figure and shook his hand with joy, saying, "Meishan is fat and evil?" Meishan smiled and said, "I can cure it." Yue: "More capable?" Yue: "Those who can shape a family will flow." Yue: "More capable?" Yue: "Can poetry."
Li Zi laughed and punched him on the back and said, "Are you the demon of Amon?"? Don't be a poet for a few years, be a doctor for a few years, be a family for a few years! "
Plum has a distinguished guest and invites Meishan. Guest wine, Meishan wine. Deep cup, poor twilight. Meishan was drunk and played a song every time she pressed the bed. Her voice was melodious and intense. Already, laughing and teasing; The guests also laughed, sang songs and got drunk. Plum punched him on the back again and said, "After such a long separation, you can drink and sing evil!" " At the beginning, the guests looked down on Meishan, so they valued it. ……
Not to mention the writing of this article on a lovely businessman and romantic life, compared with the "biography" that filled the literary world at that time, it has already exuded a fresh breath. From the perspective of artistic expression, it is also very different from the rigid description procedure and flat and procrastinating language style of "Tiger Style". Li Mengyang's description of this former friend is not like the usual empty epitaph or resume, but a detailed and vivid description of Mr. Meishan's departure, return, banquet and other events. The description of actions such as "shaking his hand" and "hitting his back" and the extensive use of dialogue made Mr. Meishan's voice and expression smile. In addition, the language is rich and the syntax is compact. The emergence of works that attach so much importance to literariness in epitaphs shows that a new literary view is taking shape. The influence of Li Mengyang's literary creation lasted for quite a long time. According to, He, and others, they were all familiar with the words of Mengyang at first. He Jingming (1483— 152 1) Zhongmou, whose real name is Dafu, is from Xinyang, Henan. Yu Hongzhi is a scholar and works in Beijing. Together with Li Mengyang and others, he advocated literary retro, and became one of the representatives of the "First Seven Scholars". There is "The Great Collection".
He Jingming and Li Mengyang had an argument on the issue of literary retro. They wrote to each other and held their own opinions. Generally speaking, there is no difference between him and Li in their basic position of advocating retro, and some of their remarks are also extreme, such as the so-called "Ten Miscellaneous Words" that "Qin has no classics, Han has no coquettish, Tang has no fu, and Song has no poetry". However, unlike Li Mengyang, He Jingming did not advocate "ancient methods", but put forward "building a raft ashore" (on poetry with Kong Li), emphasizing learning from the past as a means and originality as the purpose. This difference is related to the difference between beggars' gangs and their aesthetic tastes. He Jingming's creative style tends to be elegant and aesthetic all the way, and it is unacceptable for him to stick to the "ancient law" and pursue the "style" of ancient people.
Exposing political reality and expressing a strong tendency to interfere with current affairs are also important parts of He Jingming's creation. This also shows new thinking. For example, in his Ode to the East Gate, he wrote a short couple who had a "debate" when they were on the verge of starvation. The husband advised his wife to find another way to live. The wife would rather starve to death with him than become a "dirty person" who did not "obey". Her husband severely reprimanded her:
The word ancient! Life and death matter, why bother? Better die a slave than a king;
Better to be buried in a coffin than to be born in a shed. Life is still a certain period, and death is a long rot. Sleeping in the grave, how can beauty make up!
Then the husband dried his tears and never looked back. Here is the author's self-description of his own views, which is aimed at the anti-human dogma of Song Confucianism that "starvation is small and dishonor is big". He put forward that survival itself is the first, and the right to life cannot be deprived by ugly moral dogma. In the era of advocating chastity in Ming Dynasty, this work undoubtedly has profound significance, which reflects the important trend of social thoughts in the middle of Ming Dynasty.
Due to the rejection of stale ideas and cultural traditions, Li and Zhejiang people can get rid of the limitations of traditional literati and pay attention to and express things full of vitality from a broad real life. At this point, He Jing obviously accepted the view that "true poetry is among the people". His Song of Tianjin Fish Beating the Market, taking the riverside fish market as the scene, depicts the lively scene of boats buying fish goods and restaurants selling fish, which is quite lively. In addition, Luo Nv Qu, written by Zheng Dechu when he was sent to the South in the early years, is also a masterpiece. Poetry cloud:
Luo is fifteen years old and boasts a good complexion. Mountain leaves are mixed with mountain flowers, and the bun is used as jewelry. Men and women have many occupations. Yesterday, I heard that the woman was at home. Yellow silk is bought in the market and dyed into cloth. Skirts, tops and sleeves are all very long, showing their feet without hesitation. Walking halfway up the mountain at night, where is the lusheng? I sing arm in arm. This song is full of romance. Move lang Qing, and lang pi. Give birth to a daughter, grow into a man, and share a room three years later.
The author depicts the girl image in Man Fang with appreciation and distinctive style. From Luo's dress and daily life to her sympathy for the combination of Lang's freedom and beauty, youth and freedom are revealed. This kind of poetry has undoubtedly brought fresh vitality to the poetry circle that has been devastated by the Tiger style for a long time. The spiritual meaning of this poem, which is not bound by traditional morality, stems from an older cultural tradition, such as the free combination of men and women in the Book of Songs. This poem also reflects some substantial things in the literature of He Jingming and others.