Qiū Chí jí 丘遲集
Collected Works of Qiu Chi (Reconstructed) by 丘遲 (撰)
About the work
A reconstructed collection (jíyìběn 輯佚本) of the literary writings of Qiū Chí 丘遲 (464–508 CE), Liáng 梁 literary official and epistolary master. Organized in two juǎn, the fragments include the first-person signature “丘遲頓首” (line 1194 of the source file) and are cited in the Wénxuǎn 文選 juǎn 43, the Liángshū biography (Liángshū juǎn 27, “Chén Bózhī zhuàn” 陳伯之傳), Nán shǐ 南史 juǎn 61, and lèishū compilations. The collection contains Qiu Chi’s most celebrated work: the 〈與陳伯之書〉 (Letter to Chen Bozhi), one of the finest examples of parallel prose in the Chinese tradition.
Tiyao
No tiyao found in source. This text is an extra-catalog reconstruction not included in the Sìkù quánshū 四庫全書.
Abstract
Qiū Chí 丘遲 (464–508 CE; zì Xīfàn 希範; CBDB id 439086, b. 464 d. 508) was a Liáng literary official from Wúxīng 吳興 Wūchéng 烏程. He served as Jiāngjūn jì shì cānjūn 將軍記事參軍 and held various court positions. His biography is in Liángshū juǎn 33 and Nán shǐ juǎn 72.
His 〈與陳伯之書〉 — a letter urging the general Chén Bózhī 陳伯之 (who had defected to Northern Wei) to return to the Southern court — is a masterpiece of persuasive parallel prose. The famous passage evoking the beauty of spring in the south (“暮春三月，江南草長，雜花生樹，群鶯亂飛” — In late spring, the third month, the grasses grow tall in the south of the Yangtze; flowers mix among the trees, flocks of orioles fly chaotically) became one of the most quoted passages of Six Dynasties prose. It is preserved in Wénxuǎn juǎn 43. The Suíshū Jīngjízhì records a Qiū Chí jí in nine juǎn. Zhāng Pǔ 張溥 included a Qiū Xīfàn jí 丘希範集 in the Hàn Wèi Liùcháo bǎisān jiā jí 漢魏六朝百三家集.
Translations and research
- Knechtges, David R. Wen Xuan, or Selections of Refined Literature. Vol. 3. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1996. (Translation of the letter to Chen Bozhi.)
- Knechtges, David R., and Taiping Chang, eds. Ancient and Early Medieval Chinese Literature: A Reference Guide. Leiden: Brill, 2010–2014. Entry on Qiu Chi.
Links
- Wikipedia: Qiu Chi