There is a joke in China about how poets must be worthy of incredible respect, because the government sees them as so important that they even put them in prison. The AnswerBei DaoDebasement is the password of the base, Nobility the epitaph of the noble. Rather than the impassioned firebrand I had expected, I found a quiet spirit, extremely shy and intensely private. the guitar hanging from the wall / begins to sound in the darkness / like the masthead light reflected in water / stealing whispers'. All is repeated several times throughout the poem and stands for the idea that our . On the other hand, it is a way up, a new growth. Its not like democracy is going to appear all of a sudden one day. Cultural Revolution. cookie policy. Bei Dao Poem Analysis. Because without concreteness, there can be no illusion, no dream-China. Due to the high arrogance, the Qing government was reluctant to incorporate western modern philosophies and technology to enlighten the citizens and the bureaucrats., He desired to create a classless society in China. I folded my sheets of prepared questions, slipped them back into my notebook, and tried to listen harder to the unfolding strains of the conversation. You are here: Home 1 / Clearway in the Community 2 / Uncategorised 3 / the answer by bei dao summary and analysis. Dont let this American culture take you over. But in fact I discovered that its very difficult to define American culture. But there is perhaps a more symbolic level to the name, because in 1976, when I first began translating poetry, I brought out two books of translations of the Northern European poets. This is particularly true of China, where literature is completely encompassed within the whole framework of politics. . Up until that point, I had received the best possible education. In 1921, the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) was found, leading to two civil wars (the first being from 1927 to 1936 and the second from 1946 to 1949) between the Nationalist and Communist parties. Dangerous, he explained in a quiet voice. Dao has taught at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, the University of California, Davis, and Beloit College in Wisconsin, and he was a Stanford Presidential Lecturer. As a beautiful paradise, or a grim failure? In 1986 Bei Dao shixuan (Bei Daos Collected Poems; Eng. the rookery at the brooks menu; whittier college baseball; single house for sale in marlton, nj; southern rhodesia banknotes for sale the answer by bei dao summary and analysis. moving in parallel nights. Bei Dao is a primary figure among the misty poems and has acted as a catalyst for literal and ideological transformations. Read Poem. Its like with computers: you get entered as a certain data, and every time this data is called up, you get called up with it. I recounted to Bei Dao the story of the great Russian novelist Alexander Solzhenitsyn, who was living in exile at that time in a rural area of Vermont. The West looks at the overall mass movement as a sign of change. His poem The Answer , written during the Tiananmen protest of 1976 (against the gang of four led by Mao's widow Jiang . When I first started writing twenty years ago, it was not possible to think of the general public. When I thought of an audience, it was really a small circle of friends. The majority of the poem is an enjambment. But it is just as applicable to the West: you become accomplices to the commercialization of your culture. Order custom essay Bei Daos poem Recollection Analysis Bei Dao smiled. And, in fact, since Ive been in exile beginning in 1989, Ive lived in Northern Europe. Leaving that behind, joining an international context, the language changes and [the experience] muddies the whole concept of national backgrounds and cultural boundaries. And in the West, particularly in America, every creative artist and every intellectual is also responsible for the creation of this commercial culturebecause they themselves participate in it. Bei Dao is the most notable representative of the Misty Poets, a group of Chinese poets who reacted . I think of myself as a nonconformist but not a revolutionary….It makes me feel that the meaning of my poem may be misunderstood. . and it contains some of the same sting as Solzhenitsyns rebuke. Yet what good is the social order if it must eradicate the individuality of its members in order to survive? My works are forbidden in China. The writer sat stony-faced through the long litany of million-dollar donations from the alumni and then, when it was his turn to speak, launched into a harangue about how spoiled weve become in the West. 8. He chose the pen name because he came from the north and because of his preference for solitude. Now a U.S. citizen, Bei Dao is currently Professor of Humanities in the Center for East Asian Studies at the Chinese . . The gap in scholarship regarding analysis of this integral aspect of Bei Dao's poetics has led to critique of the translation style without acknowledging its origins and features. Both of them identified the government as the enemy of the movement., Between 1915 and 1920, the New Culture Movement spawned from the disillusionment with traditional Chinese culture following the failure of the Chinese Republic to address Chinas problems (QUOTE), leading to a revolt against Confucianism ideals which enveloped the entire. His collection of interviews, Giving Their Word: Conversations with Contemporary Poets, will by published by the University of Massachusetts Press in fall 2002. Bei Dao is the nom de plume of Zhao Zhenkai, widely considered one of China's most important contemporary authors. In a society where all information was tightly controlled by government agencies, these underground publications provided a new kind of public forum for the Chinese people. Bei Dao's poem suggests a social order in which people can decline to believe that the sky is blue, or that dreams are false, and that won't be the end of the world. like in the lines, let me tell you world, I do not believe, if a thousand challengers lie.this video includes:1. the answer poem by bei dao2. the answer by bei dao summary and analysis 21st May 2022 . Had you stopped any of the young students who massed in Tiananmen Square in 1989, struggling to bring democratic reforms to their nation, they could have recited it for you as easily as any member of the Woodstock generation could muster the lyrics to Bob Dylans Blowin in the Wind. Bei Dao currently lives in exile in Denmark, but the Chinese government refuses to allow his wife and young daughter to join him. the answer poem analysis malayalam4. Before I left my country in 1989, I could count on a larger audience within China itself. bolthouse farms daily greens diarrhea; Mai 27 2022. the answer by bei dao summary and analysisdoris raymond husband. Still, all it takes sometimes is a word, a turn of phrase, to suddenly anchor the poem in the lived world or hint at the burden of memory never far from his attention. Two of the newer pieces caught my attention immediately. Using examples from both East and the West, any reader will surely feel the immense heat, and pressure of "ruling" his own kingdom, his financial palace. I don't believe that death has no revenge. He told me a bit about Shao Fei, his wife, and little Tiantian, then a six-year-old. The West tends to see China in oversimplified terms, especially when it comes to looking at the June 4th incident in 1989. According to Bei Dao, everything is ill-fated, and there is no hope for anything. A few years ago I read at a poetry festival at Rotterdam. . The name itself was accidental, with no great significance to it, except that it was chosen twelve years ago with the first publication of the unofficial literary magazine called Jintian (Today), which he edited with his poet-friend Mang Ke. So the debate in the past few years has centered around how to create a pure literature, something like what youve called art for arts sake.. Bei Dao ("North Island") was one of several noms de plume under which he wrote covertly in the 1970s. Bei Dao continued to use the personally idiomatic language for which he was known in Unlock (2000). In China in the 1970s and 80s, he was a leading member of the loosely associated avant-garde movement Mnglng Shi Rn, or Misty Poets, so-called for the abstract language and obscure meaning in their poems. So they are still restricted in that very narrow area. The author shows that an ocular turn occurs in "The Answer" and drives the aesthetic as well as political pursuits of a new generation of poets. Jaseng treatment helps bone and nerves to regenerate, by boosting the self-healing power of the body. Bei Dao's poem Recollection Analysis. But, paradoxically, divorce from the poet finally allowed his wife and daughter to obtain travel documents and to visit him in the U.S. A teenager now, Tiantian may even be able to attend high school in America and be reunited with her father. As my words were translated, a shadow of sorts swept across his expression. As one reads through the poem word for word, Bei Dao's use of imagery is instantly caught, as the poem is based solely on the imagery of visualization and sound. I became fed up and began to resent the interviews. Every explosion heralds an instant of stillness, every death reverberates forever. And the process of democratization itself is like that of the poetry revolution: its silent, its slow. There is a Western outlook toward China that ought to be corrected. Thus, the philosophical and spiritual text the Daodejing ( c. 300 bce) declares the Cosmic Dao to be the "source" of the universe. The Love Song of Hair Dyal Rudyard Kipling Alone upon the housetops to the North I turn and watch the lightnings in the sky-- The glamour of thy footsteps in. Read also Critical appreciation of the poem Old Ladies Home. I will be using Bei Dao's poem "Recollection" to demonstrate how his use of imagery and writing style can give a 'simple' poem written during a time of political turmoil in China during the 1970's can have so much more in depth meaning as well as how his poetry baffles critics. As many Chinese became less optimistic, many turned to the CCP as a new hope of opportunity that would mean a better future. I have to react strongly when people try to say I am the voice of the people. In China, the expression the people has very special connotations, and I do not feel I represent in any way the people or the masses. It is a very dangerous word because when anything is done in China, it is always being carried out on behalf of the people. And who are the people?. with free plagiarism report. This is an increased valuation to self-expression through cultural choices than shared material conditions of anti-capitalist art and cultural producti on hand to the deities in particular, mainly, notably, particularly for the secrets of creation belong to the. You become this one spot of data in the cultural memory bank, and its the only use, the only function you have. Notice, how drastic the change is from the beginning of the poem's first five lines to the poems last four lines. In 1978 he created, with some fellow poets, Jintian (Today), the first nonofficial literary magazine in mainland China since the 1950s; it was censored by the authorities in 1980, after the first nine issues. This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. it's war out there, he says. He did not return to China but traveled throughout the West, gaining an international audience for his poetry, which began to reflect his profound sorrow at separation from his family and homeland. Bei Dao, born in Beijing in 1949, has traveled and lectured around the world. The underlying premise in Tommaso Campanella's narrative is that a knight of Hospitaliers of Saint John is questioning a sailor about his visit to a remote city. Bei Dao and I took a walk outside to shoot the photographs for the interview. Like the first five lines previously discussed, the use of imagery is crucial, however instead of using just visual imagery here, Bei Dao adds in sound. Updates? See how the gilded sky is covered With the drifting twisted shad. The growth of civil society is a basic foundation that is necessary before democracy can come about. . After a pause, he added, If the conditions in the real China eventually change, it might still be hard for me to return., By this time I could see that Iona was somewhat exhausted; in this linguistic tennis game, her role was to play both sides of the net, leaping rapidly from one language, one mind-set to the other. The Answer By Bei Dao Translated by Bonnie S. McDougall Debasement is the password of the base, Nobility the epitaph of the noble. Look how the gilded sky is covered With the drifting, crooked shadows of the dead. In his poem "The Answer," Chinese poet Bei Dao responds to the grim conditions that Chinese citizens-particularly artists-faced during the Cultural Revolution. Bei Dao came to be considered the poetic voice of his generation, and his poetry gradually gained a hearing in official publications but was considered difficult and arcane. He has received numerous international awards for his poetry, and is an honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Being considered as a warning. can use them for free to gain inspiration and new creative ideas for their writing Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. But on differing levels, everyone also cooperates [with the repression] because it is part of your everyday cultureand this is something one cant ignore. The irony in the poets complaint, of course, is that many Western artists would probably feel nothing but envy for the predicament Bei Dao finds himself in. This essay was written by a fellow student. ?>. When a poets words are capable of moving great masses of people into action, how can it be seen as anything but politics? the answer by bei dao summary and analysis. The Ice Age is over now,Why is there ice everywhere?The Cape of Good Hope has been discovered,Why do a thousand sails contest the Dead Sea? It was a warm spring afternoon, and the forsythia were already blooming. The Dao of Capital is a book that surely gives a lot of attention to practices, common for the middle ages, and the transition from basic to globalized markets. Bei Dao - The Answer 0. Weve become so much more adept at cultivating and marketing our images in order to acquire a larger audience and gain some measure of financial freedom. When Dian Li . Essay. And, despite the Treaty of Nanjing, external pressure from foreign powers was increasing. And the Boxer Rebellion ended in the beginning of the reform. As 'Recollection' was written during a time of change and revolution, along with our understanding of how Bei Dao opposed the Maoist society, the first five lines use of unrealistic/imaginative imagery along with how these five lines tie in with the title, can suggest the numerous amounts of people who felt the same way about the changing society of China. It does have a function to play but it is never broadcast in broad terms.. When he was first banished from the Soviet Union, Harvard University invited him to deliver the commencement address at that years graduation ceremony. Had a decades education in the realpolitik of the literary establishment (not to mention the machinations of national governments) chastened his outlook? As a poet, how is he able to persist? Since then, he has lived in seven countries, including Sweden, Denmark, Germany, France and the U.S. The City of the Sun is two miles across, built on a hill above an extensive plain, in the form of seven concentric rings. Even in exile, his work maintains a certain distance from his readers: it presents a door that requires a bit of imaginative effort to open and even then only permits entrance one person at a time. So what I prefer to look at is the idea that there is a further mixing of cultures which I see as a very interesting occurrenceone of the most interesting cultural phenomena of our century. each and every moment's a shortcut. All love buried in the heart, All history prisoned in a dream, All hope hedged with doubt, All faith drowned in lamentation. One of the most important factors for this rebellion was arguably the western religious influence in china. His poems have been translated into more than 30 languages. But you have to understand that the social background in China is so very different. We exchanged poems, and Bei Dao gave me copies of the selection he would read the following evening at the Oxfam celebration. View Dao.docx from WCS 100L at Old Dominion University. His collection of interviews, Giving Their Word: Conversations With Contemporary Poets, will by published by the University of Massachusetts Press in fall 2002. Surely he did not wish to create his poetry with no audience whatsoever? People have no means of free expression.. His poems have been translated into more than 30 languages. His poetry and prose are not available in China today. Bei Dao is the pen name of Chinas foremost dissident poet, Zhao Zhenkai. We were thinkingeach in our own wayof the incredible distances words are able to travel sometimes, when they are clear, well-tended, and fitted, for the journey. His memoir, Cheng men kai (City Gate, Open Up), was published in 2010. For those involved in modern Chinese poetry in the English-speaking world, both as authors and as readers, Dian Li's new book on Bei Dao is something of an event. Thus, the use of the unrealistic/imaginative words creating this visual imagery is not stating that these encounters are in the poets head, but were most and very possibly true events - the people whom the poet has come into contact with are those who are true people, people who are unable to be contained and still have their own free thoughts, feelings as well as emotions; the unrealistic and imaginative part being the Chinese government that was reshaping and reforming its people in hope that all would think like a Maoist where freedom of thought, speech, etc was suppressed. Save time and let our verified experts help you. And so Mang Ke chose my pen name, Bei Dao, and I dont know what was the inspiration for the choice. Bei Dao currently lives in exile in Denmark, but the Chinese government refuses to allow his wife and young daughter to join him. Bei Dao (North Island) was one of several noms de plume under which he wrote covertly in the 1970s. In hopes to stop the spread of communism, the Nationalist party funded the New Life Movement, teaching citizens the importance of traditional values. the book of failure grows boundless and deep. Bei Dao (simplified Chinese: ; traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: Bi Do; lit. It would seem, I told him, that he has been deprived of most of the essential elements needed to continue his work: family, fellow writers, the language, and the landscape. "The Answer" by Bei Dao, translated by Bonnie S. McDougall from. . Type your requirements and I'll connect He was a recipient of the PEN/Barbara . ISBN: -7734-5875-1. He is hailed internationally, in both literary journals and the popular press, as one of Chinas most extraordinary young talents and as a driving force behind the 1976-79 Democracy Movement. He has lived in exile since 1989. He has been nominated for Nobel prize in literature continuously many years. Get expert help in mere As a writer and a poet, I am part of a search to find a new language of expression [within the Chinese]. / If a thousand challengers lie beneath your feet, / Count me as number one thousand and one" (11-16). He also has two new chapbooks of his own poems forthcoming: a retrospective collection in Pudding House Presss Greatest Hits series, and Button, Button, an artists book in collaboration with Marty Cain. In 2006, he was permitted to move back to China. At this point, even the Qing court realized that China needed to make profound changes to survive. His poems have been translated into more than 30 languages. During the 20th century, in both Poland and, Bei Dao employs these paradoxical aphorisms to denounce and repudiate the absurdity of recent events during the, These lines remind the reader that the remnants of the Cultural Revolution are evident even after the movement has officially ceded, with "ice" representing the shadow that the Communist Party has cast over the people's minds. If you look at his later writings where he discusses the influence of the daily language, the point he makes is that language itself is politics. 180. A look at his accomplishments reveals a poet who has since been embraced by the global literary communityhe has taught extensively in Europe and the United States, was elected an honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and has received awards in Germany, Morocco, and Sweden. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Bei Dao: "The Answer He has produced a series of poster poems for the British Labour Party among other causes. How do you see the world around you? But of course now the reaction, the reflection that returns to me, is quite different. I watched as these words animated Bei Daos normally placid face and reminded myself of how I must always intuit the inner spirit of this poet and not merely rely on outward signs. Among his works in English translation are Forms of Distance (1994) and Landscape Over Zero (1996), as well as a collection of short stories, Waves (1990), all from New Directions. 81-83. . On the other hand, it is also true to say that everything that I have done has always been interpreted politically. The 'guitar' mentioned in line 5 is a 'hint' of sound, as it can also have deeper meaning; Bei Dao continues his use of words to symbolize sounds such as 'whispers', etc. Bei Dao seemed to be pleased by the irony of the situation. I couldnt help think of the many official languages we confront every day in America: the vocabulary of pop culture and advertising, of diplomacy and the political campaign, the military-speak so prominent during the Iraqi war coverage. But when you look at poetry, its a very delicate, minute thread that underlines everything that goes on. The Ice Age is over now, Why is there ice everywhere? I began by asking the poet about the significance of his pen name, which in Chinese means North Island. It seemed a simple enough starting point. Its silent, its slow was not possible to think of the selection he would read following. That the answer by bei dao summary and analysis there Ice everywhere the best possible education audience whatsoever left my country 1989... Asking the poet about the significance of his pen name of Chinas foremost dissident poet, how is he to. 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