A Study of the Funeral Songs in the Wen hsuan

Ikkai Tomoyoshi

doi:10.14989/176739

There are generally two theories regarding the first appearance of wan-ko 挽歌 or funeral songs in Chinese literature, some scholars tracing them back to the yü-pin 虞殯 song mentioned in the Tso chuan (Duke Ai 11), others to the two songs sung by the followers of T'ien Heng 田横 at the beginning of the Han dynasty. These two songs, entitled "The Dew on the Garlic Leaf" 薤露 and "The Graveyard" 蒿里, were set to music by Li Y en-nien 李延年 in the time of Emperor Wu of the Han and were included among the yüeh-fu songs of the period. The oldest song which bears the title wan-ko, however, is that by Miu Hsi 繆襲 of the Wei dynasty included in the Wen hsüan, ch. 28, which also includes three poems with this title by Lu Chi of the Chin dynasty and one by T'ao Yüan ming. (The collected works of T'ao Yüan-ming also include two other poems entitled wan-ko.) These funeral songs in the Wen hsüan have certain characteristics which distinguish them from the other funeral songs of the same and succeeding eras. One is that all seem originally to have been parts of sets of songs made up of three songs each. In general the first song dealt with the carrying of the coffin from the house, the second with the journey to the graveyard, and the third with the interment, though the content of T'ao Yüan-ming's songs does not follow this neat division. Another is that, while other funeral songs lament the death of a specific person, these songs deal with the death of human beings in general. In them the poet himself speaks for the deceased person, a device not found in other funeral songs. The present study attempts to trace the development of the funeral song genre from its beginnings through the period of the Six Dynasties, paying particular attention to the songs of this type by T'ao Yüan-ming.

A Study of the Funeral Songs in the Wen hsuan

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