The special thing about ancient Chinese poetry is that there were five different types of ancient poetry. They are 詩, 詞, 歌, 曲 and 賦.
Shi 詩
Shi poems are composed of couplets. They are poems of two more coupled lines. The two lines of a couplet usually rhyme and match rhythmically and complement each other tonally. Modern Mandarin only has five tones, but ancient languages usually had more, so the tonal rhythms are generally lost.
Ci 詞
Ci poetry can be described as poems that have patterns of syllables and tonal patterns. In making a Ci poetry, a poet chooses words that fit a specific pattern. These patterns may have once been part of a song or something else, but the music has been lost. There are various patterns and techniques that provided effective settings for various effects or moods.
Ge 歌
The word "ge" means song. Ge poems are the words to a song that can be sung. There were folk songs as well as songs composed by the literate and educated composers.
Qu 曲
When the Mongols conquered China and established the Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368), they brought with them their own style of music and forms of entertainment. They especially liked to watch shadow puppet theaters that were puppet plays of little manipulated figurines and puppets illuminated by a lamp so that the shadows fell against a screen. It is thought that the form of operatic drama of the Yuan Dynasty imitated their shadow play theaters. The style of music and song in the operas was called Yuan Qu / Mongol Music. The songs from the operas and popular songs were a poetic style called Qu that was also popular in later eras.
Fu 賦
A fifth major style of poetry is called "Fu." These were descriptive poems that contained both prose and couplets. These were popular about 1,500 years to 2,000 years ago. Often poets included rare or unusual written characters from preceding eras in their poems for more meaning
Shi 詩
Shi poems are composed of couplets. They are poems of two more coupled lines. The two lines of a couplet usually rhyme and match rhythmically and complement each other tonally. Modern Mandarin only has five tones, but ancient languages usually had more, so the tonal rhythms are generally lost.
Ci 詞
Ci poetry can be described as poems that have patterns of syllables and tonal patterns. In making a Ci poetry, a poet chooses words that fit a specific pattern. These patterns may have once been part of a song or something else, but the music has been lost. There are various patterns and techniques that provided effective settings for various effects or moods.
Ge 歌
The word "ge" means song. Ge poems are the words to a song that can be sung. There were folk songs as well as songs composed by the literate and educated composers.
Qu 曲
When the Mongols conquered China and established the Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368), they brought with them their own style of music and forms of entertainment. They especially liked to watch shadow puppet theaters that were puppet plays of little manipulated figurines and puppets illuminated by a lamp so that the shadows fell against a screen. It is thought that the form of operatic drama of the Yuan Dynasty imitated their shadow play theaters. The style of music and song in the operas was called Yuan Qu / Mongol Music. The songs from the operas and popular songs were a poetic style called Qu that was also popular in later eras.
Fu 賦
A fifth major style of poetry is called "Fu." These were descriptive poems that contained both prose and couplets. These were popular about 1,500 years to 2,000 years ago. Often poets included rare or unusual written characters from preceding eras in their poems for more meaning