A Poetic Juxtaposition: The Rules of Landscape Painting and the Poetic Practice of Xie Ling-yun.
This paper will discuss the representation of the natural landscape in Xie Ling-yun's poem "Visiting the Southern Pavilion". It will be shown, through a comparative analysis of Chinese texts on landscape painting, that Xie Ling-yun's poem plays with, and is juxtaposed against, the generic rules of landscape painting. The poetic landscape, which appears to be a celebration of the beauty of summer, is actually a reflection upon mortality and suffering. From this perspective, Xie Ling-yun's poem may be seen to have philosophical depth lacking in most landscape painting. 6 pgs. 11 f/c. 2b.