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Li Mengyang (李夢陽; 1473–1529) was a poet and philosopher of the
Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...
. He was a founder of the Archaist movement (復古).


Early life

Li Mengyang was born into a military family in
Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...
. Around the time of his birth, Li's inebriate granduncle lost the family's properties in a bet, resulting in the family becoming very poor. However, Li's father became an official and the family moved to
Kaifeng Kaifeng ( zh, s=开封, p=Kāifēng) is a prefecture-level city in east-Zhongyuan, central Henan province, China. It is one of the Historical capitals of China, Eight Ancient Capitals of China, having been the capital eight times in history, and ...
. Li Mengyang attempted the
Henan Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...
provincial examination in 1489, but failed. The following year he married Zuo Shi (左氏), great-great-granddaughter of prince
Zhu Su Zhu Su (8 October 1361 – 2 September 1425) was a medical scientist, botanist, author of '' Jiuhuang Bencao'', and a prince of the Ming dynasty. He was the fifth son of the Hongwu Emperor and Empress Ma. In 1370, he was made the Prince of Wu, a ...
, and they had a son together. They moved to
Qingyang Qingyang may refer to: * Qingyang, Chengdu (成都市青羊区), a central urban district of Chengdu, Sichuan, China * Qingyang, Anhui (安徽省青阳县), a county in Anhui, China * Qingyang, Gansu (甘肃省庆阳市), a city in Gansu, China * ...
and Li passed the Shaanxi provincial examination at
Xi'an Xi'an is the list of capitals in China, capital of the Chinese province of Shaanxi. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong plain, the city is the third-most populous city in Western China after Chongqing and Chengdu, as well as the most populou ...
in 1492. He would stay there for another five years, teaching and studying.


Time in Beijing and first imprisonment

Li moved to
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
in 1498. There he joined the literary circle of
Li Dongyang Li Dongyang (, 1447–1516) was a Chinese historian, poet, and politician during the Ming dynasty. Born in Beijing, it is said Li began writing since 4 years old. He was invited by the Jingtai Emperor to the court for testing and requested his ...
(no relation), where he enthusiastically participated. He received an appointment as a secretary in the Ministry of Revenue. After an assignment in Tongzhou, he was sent to
Yulin, Shaanxi Yulin ( zh, s=榆林 , p=Yúlín , ‘’’local pronunciation: �y³⁵ˌljʌŋ��’’) is a prefecture-level city in the Shaanbei region of Shaanxi province, China, bordering Inner Mongolia to the north, Shanxi to the east, and Ningxia to th ...
. It was there in 1501 that he discovered a massive tax evasion scheme involving merchants and imperial relatives. When Li tried to expose the fraud, he incurred the wrath of many who accused him of corruption and Li was removed from office. He was later exonerated and returned to his post. Li was assigned to various other missions, but spent the rest of his time at the capital. He became a leading member of a group of poets known as the (前七子). In 1505, he sent a long letter to the
Hongzhi Emperor The Hongzhi Emperor (30 July 1470 – 9 June 1505), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Xiaozong of Ming, personal name Zhu Youcheng, was the tenth emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1487 to 1505. He succeeded his father, the Ch ...
describing eleven abuses requiring attention, including warnings regarding the brothers of the empress. Enraged, the brothers (Zhang Heling 張鶴齡 and Zhang Yanling 張延齡) and the empress urged the emperor to punish Li. Li was imprisoned, but later fined and released when he explained that he referred to the Zhang family, not the empress herself. Later that year, the
Zhengde Emperor The Zhengde Emperor (26 October 149120 April 1521), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Wuzong of Ming, personal name Zhu Houzhao, was the 11th List of emperors of the Ming dynasty, emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1505 to 1 ...
took the throne and Li received a promotion to deputy director of a bureau. He received another promotion a year later to acting director. In October 1506, when (韓文), Minister of Revenue, and most other high officials joined forces to attack Liu Jin and other powerful eunuchs for manipulating the emperor, Li Mengyang drafted the grivance letter. However, they failed and Liu Jin had them dismissed and punished. Li was demoted and left Beijing.


Return to Kaifeng and second imprisonment

Li Mengyang returned to Kaifeng to stay at his elder brother's farm near the
Yellow River The Yellow River, also known as Huanghe, is the second-longest river in China and the List of rivers by length, sixth-longest river system on Earth, with an estimated length of and a Drainage basin, watershed of . Beginning in the Bayan H ...
. He spent a year there, teaching and writing. Among his writings during this time were poems criticizing Liu Jin's court. When Liu Jin heard about this, he was enraged. He had Li Mengyang arrested, brought back to the capital in chains, and imprisoned. Li managed to get his friend
Kang Hai Kang Hai (康海; 1475–1541) was a poet, dramatist, and prose writer of Ming dynasty China. One of the Seven Early Masters (前七子), his works are still studied today. Early life Kang Hai was born in Wugong County, Shaanxi. His great-great ...
(康海) to advocate for him and Li was released. In 1510, the powerful eunuch Liu Jin fell from favor with the emperor and was executed. Li Mengyang was commended for opposing Liu, and he was reinstated in 1511 as deputy bureau director. Then, he was promoted another time to surveillance vice commissioner of
Jiangxi ; Gan: ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = , translit_lang1_type3 = , translit_lang1_info3 = , image_map = Jiangxi in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_caption = Location ...
in charge of education.


Time in Jiangxi and third imprisonment

In Jiangxi, Li made great strides in improving education. He encouraged students to study classical literature and to maintain their dignity in dealing with officials. He restored the White Deer Academy and ordered the establishment of local schools throughout the province. Li's students refused to kneel in the presence of local functionaries, and Li was criticized for this. Later, in 1514 some of his students had a fight with the guards of a prince. Li defended his students and had the guards flogged. When the prince got word of this, Li was reported to the imperial clan and an investigation followed. Li was to face trial, but imperial officials knew that thousands of students were ready to fight for Li in
Nanchang Nanchang is the capital of Jiangxi, China. Located in the north-central part of the province and in the hinterland of Poyang Lake Plain, it is bounded on the west by the Jiuling Mountains, and on the east by Poyang Lake. Because of its strate ...
, so the trial was held at 130 miles east. When Li arrived late for his trial, he was thrown in prison. Even though he was exonerated in the trial, Li was removed from his position. After his release in June, Li and his family stayed for a short time in
Xiangyang Xiangyang is the second-largest prefecture-level city by population in northwestern Hubei province, China. It was known as Xiangfan from 1950 to 2010. The Han River (Hanshui), Han River runs through Xiangyang's centre and divides the city n ...
before returning to Kaifeng.


Retirement and fourth imprisonment

In 1516, Li Mengyang's wife died. He wrote three poems eulogizing her, which were put to music by a local master and published. Other poets including
Yang Yiqing Yang Yiqing (24 December 1454 – 5 September 1530), courtesy name Yingning, art name Sui'an, was a Chinese scholar-official, military general, and writer during the Ming dynasty. He held influential positions during the reigns of the Zhengde and ...
(楊一清) asked Li to edit their works. In 1521, an imperial censor accused Li of having connections with a
Zhu Chenhao Zhu Chenhao (1 July 1476 – 13 January 1521), art name Weitian, was a prince of the Ming dynasty, being a fifth-generation descendant of Zhu Quan, the seventeenth son of the founder and first emperor of the dynasty, the Hongwu Emperor. In 1499, ...
, a rebel prince, who had attempted to start a rebellion in 1519. Li Mengyang was once again imprisoned, and later exonerated in September 1522, but stripped of his official status.


Legacy and death

Li's son, Li Zhi (李枝) did very well in imperial examinations and became a high official. Li Mengyang died in Kaifeng in 1529, and he was buried next to his wife. Li had published several works over his life, and a number of posthumous editions were published. He remained a popular hero as a fighter against political corruption. Author Chang Wei Ong says Li Mengyang established "a theory and a vocabulary for building a concordant world based on a self that was defined through ''qing''", breaking through the orthodoxy.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Li, Mengyang 1473 births 1529 deaths 15th-century Chinese philosophers 16th-century Chinese male writers 16th-century Chinese philosophers Chinese male poets Ming dynasty government officials Ming dynasty poets People from Qingyang People from Tongzhou Philosophers from Beijing Philosophers from Gansu Philosophers from Henan Philosophers from Jiangxi Philosophers from Shaanxi Poets from Beijing Poets from Gansu Poets from Henan Poets from Jiangxi Poets from Shaanxi Political office-holders in Beijing Political office-holders in Jiangxi Political office-holders in Shaanxi Writers from Kaifeng Writers from Yulin, Shaanxi