Question

Last night the wind was strong and rain was fine,

Sound sleep did not dispel the aftertaste of wine.

I ask the maid who's rolling up the screen,

"The same crab apple tree," she says, "is seen."

"Don't you know, Don't you know,

The red should languish and the green must grow?'

This is one of Li Qingzhao's first ci, which was written when she was a young girl. It showed her observations (觀察) of changes in nature and her love for life.

Li described an early morning scene in her ci. She woke up in the morning and asked her maid (侍女) how the flowers looked after one night of wind and rain. The maid did not care too much about the flowers. She simply said the flowers looked the same. But Li corrected her, saying that red flowers would fall and green leaves would become thicker.

Li used dialogue to write this ci. The dialogue brought out different characteristics (性格) in both of the speakers. The maid was slow and careless, while the poet was quick and sensitive (敏感的). The dialogue makes the ci more lively.

Li Qingzhao (1084-1155), was a leader of the Wanyue School (婉約派) of ci during the Song Dynasty. She had many ideas about ci. She believed that it was very different from shi. Shi tended to provide people with ideals (理想) and education, while ci was used to describe people's feelings.

1.How was the weather "last night" according to Li Qingzhao's ci?

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2.What did the ci show?

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3.Did the maid see the difference in flowers after the rain?

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4.What was Li Qingzhao like?

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5.How was ci different from shi in Li's opinion?

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Answer 1