Li Shangyin (李商隱 Lǐ Shāngyǐn, also known as 李義山, Li Yishan) (between 810 and 813- 858), was a Chinese poet of the late Tang dynasty, born in Henei (now Qinyang, Henan Province). Along with Li He(李贺), he was much admired and "rediscovered" in the 20th century by the young Chinese writers for the imagist quality of his poems. He is particularly famous for his tantalizing "no title" (無題) poems. Events October 1 - A man with a sword makes an attempt on emperor Nicephorus Is life. ... Events June 22 - Byzantine Emperor Michael I is defeated in a war against the Bulgarians. ... Events Patriarch Ignatius is imprisoned and (December 25) deposed to be succeeded by patriarch Photius I. Louis the German invades West Francia, hoping to secure Aquitaine from his brother Charles the Bald, but fails. ... A poet is some one who writes poetry. ... For the band, see Tang Dynasty (band). ... Not to be confused with the unrelated provinces of Hainan and Hunan Henan (Chinese: 河南; pinyin: Hénán; Wade-Giles: Ho-nan), is a province of the Peoples Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. ... Li He (李賀 790-816), with the courtesy name of Changji (長吉), is a short-lived Chinese poet of the late Tang Dynasty, famous for his unconventional and imaginative style. ... Ezra Pound, one of the prime movers of Imagism. ...

Li had a moderately successful career in the imperial civil service, although he never obtained a high position, either because of factional disputes, or because of his association with Liu Fen (刘蕡), a prominent opponent of the eunuchs. A civil servant or public servant is a civilian career public sector employee working for a government department or agency. ... A eunuch is an infertile human male whose testicles have either been removed (deliberately or by accident) or are otherwise non-functional. ...

Li was a typical Late Tang poet: his works are sensuous, dense and allusive. The latter quality makes adequate translation extremely difficult. The political, biographical or philosophical implications supposed to be contained in some of his poems have been a subject of debate for many centuries in China.

His most famous and cryptic poem is called "Jin Se" (錦瑟) (the title is only taken from the first two characters of the poem, thus also a "no title" poem), which consists of 56 characters and a string of images. His "no title" poems are regarded as "pure poetry" by some modern critics.

Although more famous for his sensuous poems, Li indeed wrote in many styles. He can be either satirical, humorous or sentimental. Moreover, some ancient critics hold that he is the only poet who, in some of his poems, succeeds in imitating the masculine quality of Du Fu's works. Satire is a literary technique of writing or art which principally ridicules its subject (individuals, organizations, states) often as an intended means of provoking or preventing change. ... This article discusses humour in terms of comedy and laughter. ... Du Fu or Tu Fu (712–770) was a prominent Chinese poet during the Tang Dynasty. ...

External links

• two dozens poems of Li Shangyin in traditional Chinese and Bynner's English translation.
• Biography, Chinese texts and translations.