중국 고전시에 나타난 水仙花 이미지

Abstract

This article was written to study the various symbols of the daffodils in ancient Chinese poetry. Daffodils have various common names including daffodil, narcissus, and jonquil are used to describe all or some of the genus in western. Daffodils grow from pale brown-skinned spherical bulbs with pronounced necks. The leafless stems, appearing from early to late spring, each flower has a central bell-, bowl-, or disc-shaped corona surrounded by a ring of six floral leaves called the perianth. There are two kinds of daffodils in China, and the flower was received full of love by many people. The various symbols of the daffodils in ancient Chinese poetry are summarized as that :The first, the daffodils have legend about the spirit of water like Xiang river(湘夫人), Han river(漢女), Mi-fei(宓妃) etc. Due to the legend, the daffodils have numinous imagery by all people, and have represented the nobility in expression of Chinese poetry. The second, the daffodils have maintained the purest beauty like white snow in itself, it means that the daffodils full of expression of beauty and dignity, and the poetry of daffodils are generally expressed the symbol of clearness, elegant, noble, highbrow. The third, the daffodils also have attribute of cold hardness and strength, so the poems of daffodils are very often means of the expression of patience and integrity. Since the flower have endured intense cold through winter and blooms in early spring, it has also become a symbol of patience and integrity. The poets often express as the symbol of noble mind and honor, and the poets took off their hat to daffodils’ perseverance, and can get powerful feelings of endurance by composing the poems about his own lonely conditions and emotion.