China is a country of poetry, and Tang poetry is the peak of China's classical poetry. In the history of more than 300 years in the Tang Dynasty, countless poets emerged, such as Wang Wei, Li Bai, Du Fu, Bai Juyi and Li Shangyin. , and they are famous poets who are famous in history and shine for generations to come. It is countless well-known great poets and obscure little poets that together constitute the starry sky scene of Tang poetry, which eclipses poets and poetry circles after thousands of years. What caused this unprecedented scene of Tang poetry? The first is the policy of selecting scholars by poetry in Tang Dynasty. Cheng Tang adopted the Sui system and implemented the imperial examination system. This provides favorable conditions for the liberation of talents. There were many imperial examinations in the Tang Dynasty, the most important of which was the Jinshi Examination. Ordinary bureaucrats, no matter how high their positions are, will regret it all their lives if they fail the Jinshi exam. A very important part of the examination of Jinshi is the examination of poetry creation. In order to become a scholar, all teachers have put a lot of effort into poetry. In this way, it will inevitably promote the development and improvement of poetry art objectively. Because the quality of poetry writing is related to a person's political future, poetry has been widely valued by the society. From feudal emperors to down-and-out literati, from dignitaries to people who drive cars and sell pulp, they are all proud of being able to write poems. Emperor Taizong, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, Tang Dezong and other emperors were all lovers of poetry. They not only often write their own poems, but also often encourage others to write poems and vigorously promote those who can write poems. What is good in the world is bad in the world. Encouraged by the emperors, all walks of life participated in poetry creation, forming an atmosphere of widely talking about and writing poems, and also creating a huge team of poets. In this case, everyone is proud of being able to write poetry and ashamed of not being able to write poetry. Therefore, prostitutes can recite poems to improve their social status. All kinds of phenomena that attach importance to poetry creation are directly related to the policy of selecting scholars by poetry.

Secondly, when poetry developed into the Tang Dynasty, it was time to blossom and bear fruit. Since The Book of Songs, China's classical poetry has experienced a long process of development and has accumulated rich artistic experience. Poets have a deep understanding of all aspects involved in poetry. Especially since the Wei and Jin Dynasties, with the repeated prosperity of poetry, the in-depth discussion on melody and other issues in theory provided poets in the Tang Dynasty with various poetic artistic experiences for reference. In particular, the appearance of "Yongming Style" in the Southern Dynasties made full preparations for metrical poetry. It is precisely because the poets in the Tang Dynasty absorbed the poetic heritage of their predecessors and created it, which finally led to the unprecedented prosperity of poetry. Standing on the shoulders of their predecessors, the Tang people finally stood higher and saw farther than their predecessors, so their world was more exciting.

Thirdly, we should also see the role of the powerful national strength in the Tang Dynasty in the prosperity of poetry. The national strength of the Tang Dynasty was unparalleled in the world at that time. This not only provided the necessary guarantee for the life of the Tang people, but also enhanced people's self-confidence and cohesion. The heroic works full of idealism in the early Tang Dynasty are the embodiment of people's confidence in the country and individuals. The grandeur of Tang poetry is also the result of strong national strength. History cannot repeat the Tang Dynasty, and of course it is impossible to reproduce the glory of Tang poetry.

Since the Song Dynasty, when people look at the development of Tang poetry, they always remember to divide the development of Tang poetry into stages, so there is such a saying as "Three Tang Dynasties and Four Tang Dynasties". Since the theory of four Tang Dynasties was put forward in Ming Dynasty, people generally recognized the authority of this theory. And authority is based on reason. The Four-Tang Theory divides the development of Tang poetry into four periods: the early Tang Dynasty, the prosperous Tang Dynasty, the middle Tang Dynasty and the late Tang Dynasty, which is reasonable because it truly outlines the characteristics of the development of Tang poetry in different periods.

The early Tang Dynasty, that is, before Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty, was the primary stage of the development of Tang poetry. On the one hand, the palace poems in the Southern Dynasties occupy a dominant position in the poetic world, from Emperor Taizong to Shangguan Yi, all of which are gorgeous and charming works; On the other hand, the prelude of poetry reform has quietly opened. The reform of poetry in the early Tang Dynasty was mainly carried out in two aspects: a group of lower-class poets, represented by Si Jie, realized from their own experiences that poetry creation must express true feelings, so they advocated "Yu Zhou Tower" and wrote lyric works such as Love, Listening to Cicada by Political Prisoners, Joining the Army, and Farewell to Du DuDu for Shu. The upper-class poets, represented by Shen Quanqi, Song and Shangguan Yi, developed and perfected the poetic law in the meticulous carving of poetic art, finally completed the finalization of the poetic law, and developed palace-style poems in form. So there were no great poets in the early Tang Dynasty, but there were outstanding poetry reformers.

The prosperous Tang Dynasty, that is, from Xuanzong to Tang Daizong, was a period of high prosperity of Tang poetry. The poets in the prosperous Tang Dynasty combined the reform achievements of the poets in the early Tang Dynasty in content and form, and completed the combination of content and form. Poetry creation shines brilliantly, and famous poets such as Wang Wei, Meng Haoran, Gao Shi, Cen Can, Wang Changling, Wang Zhihuan, Li Bai and Du Fu have emerged. Whether writing pastoral landscapes, describing frontier life, or expressing social life, they all try their best to form distinctive personality characteristics. They sang "Prosperous Tang Dynasty" with different voices-a spirit full of ideals, high spirits and enthusiasm. These poets are great poets of this era, and because they stand at the peak of the times, they have become great poets of the whole history. Li Bai and Du Fu, in particular, have become unattainable models for future generations.

The middle Tang Dynasty, that is, the period from Tang Daizong to Tang Wenzong, was also the glorious period of Tang poetry. The "Anshi Rebellion" caused the Tang Dynasty to turn from prosperity to decline, and its national strength declined, but poetry did not decline. Outstanding poets in this period, such as Bai Juyi, Han Yu, Liu Zongyuan, Liu Yuxi and Yuan Zhen, are still heroic and not inferior to poets in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. Therefore, some people in the academic circles think that the achievements of poetry in the middle Tang Dynasty even surpassed those in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. The greatest feature of poetry in this period is that there are many factions, and the poet's personal style is extremely prominent.

From the beginning of "Ten Talents in Dali Period" to the later Han Meng School of Poetry, they all have distinct personal styles.

The late Tang Dynasty, that is, from Tang Wenzong to the death of Tang Dynasty, is the sunset period of Tang poetry. The poem "to see the sun, for all his glory, Buried by the Coming Night" written by Li Shangyin, a representative poet of this period, is a portrayal of poetry in this period. There was no ideal in this period, only sadness, sentimentality and floweriness, which constituted the main characteristics of poetry in this period. The representative poets Li Shangyin, Du Mu and Wen are just swan's swan songs.