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Yang Wanli

Type Figure Region Southern Song Time 1127–1206 Also known as Yang Chengzhai、Tingxiu

Yang Wanli (1127–1206) was a Southern Song poet, style name Tingxiu, sobriquet Chengzhai, from Jishui in Jiangxi;…

Timeline

  1. 1127–1180Jishui · Jishui CountyA native of Jishui, he passed the jinshi examination in 1154 and served in many posts. In the 1170s his poetic style changed; abandoning the obscure habits of the Jiangxi School, he created the Chengzhai style, noted for natural flow and humor, and exchanged poems with Fan Chengda, Lu You and others.
  2. 1181–1196Lin'an · Lin'an PrefectureIn the 1180s he held important posts in Guangdong, Fujian and elsewhere; he was prefect of Jiankang in 1191 and Lin'an in 1192, taking part in court politics. He was still at the temporary capital around the Shaoxi abdication in 1194, retired in 1196, and his poetic fame rivalled Lu You's, with the Chengzhai style influencing later generations.
  3. 1197–1206Jishui · Jishui CountyAfter retiring in 1196 he returned to Jishui and continued writing poetry without pause from 1197 to 1206, the Chengzhai style reaching full maturity. He died in 1206 at the age of eighty; his disciples compiled his poems as the Chengzhai Collection, and he was counted with Lu You, Fan Chengda and You Mao as the Four Great Masters of the Restoration.

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