Throughout history, civilizations have used poetry to record their history, convey their values, and honor their warriors. Poetry often highlights the emotions and intensity of a moment, thereby enabling the state of any given culture to be illustrated. Be that as it may, the Book of Songs, the Book of Odes or Classic of Poetry, is a collection of poems that dates back to 1000-600 B.C.E., during the reign of the Zhou Dynasty. These three hundred and five poems help to illuminate the lives of the people who lived during that era, and help to convey the history and significance of that time. This highly regarded text has influenced thousands of individuals, including Confucius, a distinguished philosopher, who encouraged his son and followers
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With that being said, these poems are extremely influential and have played a vital role in depicting and placing commentary on the events that transpired in that period. After reading the Classic of Poetry one could learn about not only ancient civilizations, but human societies in general. By reading the Book of Songs, one could learn about how people in traditional Chinese viewed relationships between men and women. Also, it is important to mention that in the Odes, women are given a clear voice and their roles are easily identifiable as lovers, daughters, wives, and mothers. The poems that revolve around these relationships are often touching and reflect an overall understanding that society had of young people in liaisons. In the poem, “Zhongzi, Please,” the reader is witness to the follies of young love. It states, “… Don’t break the willows planted there. It’s not that I care so much for them, but I dread my father and mother; Zhongzi may be in my thoughts, but what my mother and father said— that too may be held in dread” (1327). This part of the poem enables readers to get direct insight to relationships that occurred in ancient societies. This poem shows the reader that …show more content…
In the poem, “Huge Rat,” the reader can easily identify that citizens are complaining about taxes and having their money taken away from them. The poem states, “Huge rat, huge rat, eat my millet no more, for three years I’ve fed you, yet you pay me no heed” (1328). This statement is suggesting that for a time span that ranged over three years, the citizens were getting nothing back from the government and or tax collectors. One could conclude that the speaker of this poem is a peasant that is fed up with its uncaring government. From reading this poem, one could surmise that governments in ancient societies could be tyrannical and impose heavy taxes on its citizens. In modern day society, citizens still pay taxes and because of this many individuals often get frustrated with the government due to the amount of money that they have to pay. This poem ultimately protests against injustice and depicts how it was to be an ordinary citizen that needed to pay taxes and receive nothing in return for their
With that being said, these poems are extremely influential and have played a vital role in depicting and placing commentary on the events that transpired in that period. After reading the Classic of Poetry one could learn about not only ancient civilizations, but human societies in general. By reading the Book of Songs, one could learn about how people in traditional Chinese viewed relationships between men and women. Also, it is important to mention that in the Odes, women are given a clear voice and their roles are easily identifiable as lovers, daughters, wives, and mothers. The poems that revolve around these relationships are often touching and reflect an overall understanding that society had of young people in liaisons. In the poem, “Zhongzi, Please,” the reader is witness to the follies of young love. It states, “… Don’t break the willows planted there. It’s not that I care so much for them, but I dread my father and mother; Zhongzi may be in my thoughts, but what my mother and father said— that too may be held in dread” (1327). This part of the poem enables readers to get direct insight to relationships that occurred in ancient societies. This poem shows the reader that …show more content…
In the poem, “Huge Rat,” the reader can easily identify that citizens are complaining about taxes and having their money taken away from them. The poem states, “Huge rat, huge rat, eat my millet no more, for three years I’ve fed you, yet you pay me no heed” (1328). This statement is suggesting that for a time span that ranged over three years, the citizens were getting nothing back from the government and or tax collectors. One could conclude that the speaker of this poem is a peasant that is fed up with its uncaring government. From reading this poem, one could surmise that governments in ancient societies could be tyrannical and impose heavy taxes on its citizens. In modern day society, citizens still pay taxes and because of this many individuals often get frustrated with the government due to the amount of money that they have to pay. This poem ultimately protests against injustice and depicts how it was to be an ordinary citizen that needed to pay taxes and receive nothing in return for their