Po Pu

Po P’u

 

(second name, Po Jen Fu). Born circa 1226; died circa 1312. Chinese dramatist and poet.

In a gesture of fidelity to the Sung dynasty (in which his father was a dignitary under one of the emperors), he refused to serve the Mongols (Yüan dynasty) and occupied himself with his literary work. Of 16 plays written in the tsachü genre, three have been preserved. The most important is the historical tragedy Rain in the Plane Trees, in which the love of Emperor Hsüan Tsung and his concubine Yang Kueifei is portrayed. The comedy The Horseman at the Wall is concerned with the question of the right of the young to a certain freedom in choosing a partner in life.

WORKS

In Yuan ch’ü hsiuan, vol. 1. Peking, 1955.

REFERENCE

T’an Cheng-pi. Yuan ch’ü liu ta chia liuochuan. Shanghai, 1957.