The Emperor has sent for Lady Kuo Kuo. In the morning, riding toward the palace-gate, Disdainful of the paint that might have marred her beauty, To meet him she smooths her two moth-tiny eyebrows.
Original Poem:
「集灵台 二」
虢国夫人承主恩，平明骑马入宫门。
却嫌脂粉污颜色，淡扫蛾眉朝至尊。
Interpretation:
This poem is divided into 1 and 2, both of which satirize the exclusive favor of Yang Yuhuan’s sisters.
This is the second of the poems. This poem satirizes the arrogance and flirtation of the Lady Kuo Kuo. Legend has it that Xuanzong and the Lady Kuo Kuoo had an affair with each other.
On the surface, this seems to indicate that she is different from those concubines and courtesans who are heavily made up and fawning for favor, and that she does not care to be in the company of these vulgar people. The “supreme being” is particularly favored. For her, no powder and lightly swept eyebrows is a kind of makeup without makeup, a more intentional than heavy makeup to flatter and invite the favor of the action.
This typical detail vividly and profoundly shows the psychology of Lady Kuo Kuo, who boasts of her beauty and deliberately invites favor, but tries her best to conceal it, revealing this noblewoman’s calculating character and inner frivolity, written with great personality. The poet describes this character without obvious depreciation or irony, but only selects meaningful details and narrates them without moving. The poet’s attitude seems to be quite objective, but it contains a bone-deep irony inside. The artistic effect of this kind of polite and ironic writing is often more effective than the straightforward cynicism.
Zhang Hu
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Zhang Hu (张祜, 785-849 A.D.) was a poet from Qinghe in the Tang Dynasty, he wrote more than a thousand poems in total. In his early years, he lived in Gusu, but in the middle of Changqing, he was not recommended by Linghu Chu. He was rejected by Yuan Zhen, so he went to Huainan and lived in seclusion in Danyang Qu’a. During his life, Zhang Hu made remarkable achievements in poetry. Zhang Hu was named after his poem “Three thousand miles from his homeland, twenty years in the deep palace”, and his 349 poems are included in The Complete Tang Poems.
Poem translator:
Kiang Kanghu
