David Andrew Knight, “Plain Becomes Patterned: Li Deyu and the White Lotus”
Discussant: Yiren Zheng (EALC)
Friday, November 11, 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. in CEAS 319 (1155 E 60th St)
We are delighted to host David Andrew Knight next Friday, 11/1, in co-sponsorship with the East Asia Transregional Histories workshop. Below is a brief abstract of the work:
This paper is part of a larger project that situates the fu賦 poetry of the ninth century minister Li Deyu 李德裕 (787-850) within the context of his life. Through the focal point of a fu poem about a white lotus flower written by Li Deyu, one of the most powerful men of his day, I will demonstrate how this poem captures a retrievable moment of poetic creation. I have discovered that Li Deyu’s fu poem on the white lotus is a literary recreation of his encounter with the fifteen year old Xu Pan who was soon to become his concubine. By analyzing a key stanza in the poem, I will illuminate the links between Li’s literary life and his real life.
The paper is available at this link. If you have not received the password for the post, or if you have concerns about accessibility, please feel free to contact Alex Murphy at murphya1@uchicago.edu.
