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Luo Binwang

Type Figure Region China Time c. 640–684 Also known as Guanguang

Luo Binwang (c. 640–684), a Tang dynasty poet and one of the Four Masters of the Early Tang, known for "Ode to the Goose" and his denunciation of Wu …

Timeline

  1. c. 640–660Yiwu, Wuzhou · ZhejiangLuo Binwang was born in Yiwu, Wuzhou, and could compose poetry at age seven, writing "Ode to the Goose" which has been passed down through the ages. Renowned for his literary talent, he was counted with Lu Zhaolin, Wang Bo, and Yang Jiong as the Four Masters of the Early Tang, contributing to reversing the frivolous poetic style of the Six Dynasties.
  2. 661–678Chang'an · ShaanxiLuo Binwang successively held posts including Censor and Linhai County Magistrate, and was imprisoned over an affair; in prison he wrote "Ode to the Cicada in Prison," using the cicada as a metaphor for himself to express his lofty aspirations and feelings about his life, becoming a celebrated piece of nature poetry.
  3. 684Yangzhou · JiangsuIn 684 Luo Binwang joined Xu Jingye's uprising in Yangzhou against Wu Zetian's regency, drafting the "Denunciation of Wu Zhao" to condemn the Wu clan. After the defeat, Luo Binwang's fate became unknown—one account says he was killed, another that he escaped—becoming a famous unsolved mystery in literary history.

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