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Concept
Cí (poetry)
Summary
Cí (pronounced ci2; ), also known as chángduǎnjù () and shīyú (), is a type of lyric poetry in the tradition of Classical Chinese poetry that also draws upon folk traditions. Cí use various poetic meters derived from a base set of fixed pattern forms, using fixed-rhythm, fixed-tone, and line-lengths varying according that of the model examples. The rhythmic and tonal pattern of the cí are based upon certain, definitive musical song tunes (cípái), and in many cases the name of the musical tune is given in the title of a cí piece, in a form such as "after (the tune of)...." The underlying songs are generally lost or uncertain.
Typically, the number of characters in each line and the arrangement of tones were determined by one of around 800 set patterns, each associated with a particular title, called cípái (詞牌). Originally, they were written to be sung to a tune of that title, with a set rhythm, rhyme, and tempo. Therefore, the title may have nothing to do with its content. Indeed, several cí often shared the same title. The titles did not refer to the content, but rather their shared rhythmic and tonal patterns. Some cí would have a "subtitle" or a commentary, sometimes as long as a paragraph, indicating the content. Sometimes, for the sake of clarity, a cí is listed under its title, followed by its first line.
Cí often express feelings of desire, frequently in an adopted persona; however, such great exponents of the form as Chen Weisong () and Su Shi () used cí poetry to address a wide range of topics.
Although the oldest surviving textual examples of cí are from 8th century CE Dunhuang manuscripts, beginning in the poetry of the Liang dynasty, the ci followed the tradition of the Shi Jing and the yuefu: they were lyrics which developed from anonymous popular songs into a sophisticated literary genre. In the case of the cí form, some of its fixed-rhythm patterns have been influenced by music and poetry of Central Asia and elsewhere.
The ci form developed during the late Tang dynasty.
Official source
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