A Study of Chan Ping and his Poetry for Children

• Main Authors: Chiu-jung Li, 李秋蓉
• Other Authors: Ting-kuo Cheng
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2003
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/22431520011558308329

碩士 === 國立雲林科技大學 === 漢學資料整理研究所碩士班 === 91 === Chan Ping is the pen name of Chan, Yi-chuan. He is a famous writer renowned for his poetry for children. Born in 1921 at the Chuo-lan village (now Chuo-lan town) of Miao-li County, Chan’s literary career started as early as 1935 when he was studying in Taichung First Senior High School. At that time he has read many literary works and showed talents in writing Haiku. In 1942 Chan headed to Japan to study pharmacy in Meiji Pharmaceutical Professional School following his father’s order. The experience of studying abroad brought new perspectives to Chan’s writing. Chan was also able to study both materia medica and literature in Japan. Chan made himself known as a poet after some of Chan’s poems were published in Waka kusa through the recommendation of Japanese poet HoliGuchi DaiGaku. In 1944, Chan successfully obtained the pharmacist certificate and thereafter returned to his hometown. In 1948 he joined “Yin Ling Hui (Silver Bell Association).” However, Chan lost his identity as a writer as Japanese was banned after Taiwan was returned to (Nationalist) China. It wasn’t until fifteen years later, after much effort to overcome the language barrier, that Chan regained his presence in the literary circle. In 1964, Chan and some friends, including Chen Chien-wu, established “Li (Bamboo Hat) Poetry Society” and started the poetry magazine named “Li (Bamboo Hat).” This is the first local poetry society established in Taiwan after World War II. Chan’s poems are sophisticate and depict his rational observation of the society, so he was regarded as the forerunner of Modernism in Taiwan. He was also the first poet that created the skill of writing poems by using a lot of images. His wrote poetry, children’s poetry, play script, essays, and short novels. The opera Xu Xian and Lady White Snake, that he collaborated with Kuo Chi-yuan, was the first modern opera written in Taiwan. Out of the ten books he wrote, three are collections of poetry for children—Sun, Butterfly and Flower; Grey Hair and Childlike Mind; An Anthology of Chan Ping’s Poetry for Children. This thesis is a study of Chan Ping and his poetry for children through methods such as textual analysis, review of literature and documents, interviews, and aesthetic interpretations. The themes and motifs of Chan’s poetry for children include personal reflections, scientific knowledge, natural environment, and fantasy world. Out of his sincere concerns for the people and places around him, Chan depicts the truth, the goodness, and the beautiful through his poems. In his children’s poetry, he adopts refined artistic style presented by language, symbolism, images, and rhythm to depict his love to family and the environment. Starting his writing career using Japanese as his media, and then crossed the language barrier after the WW II, Chan has devoted himself to writing for over sixty years. His major contributions are the innovative experiment on various skills for writing the modern poetry and his effort to made poetry popular. His consistent effort and the writings that he accumulated through the years played a crucial role in the development of poetry in Taiwan as he was able to create new poetic forms based on traditional heritage.