Listen to this articlecháng zhōu cí pài 常州词派
Changzhou School of Commentary on Ci Poetry
清代中期以后影响最大的词学流派，以常州文人张惠言（1761-1802）为首。张惠言编辑《词选》，认为词继承了《诗经》的风雅比兴传统，强调词“深美闳约”、“意内言外”等审美特征，推尊词体，大大提升了词的文学地位。其后，周济（1781—1839）继承发扬了张惠言的词论，编辑《宋四家词选》等，提出“夫词，非寄托不入，专寄托不出”、“浑化”等理论。谭献（1832—1901）、陈廷焯（1853—1892）、况周颐（1859—1926）算是常州词派的第三代，其代表作品《复堂词话》《白雨斋词话》《蕙风词话》等，进一步丰富了品词、作词的方法。常州词派的最大贡献是在理论上阐发了词所具有的载道、言志之价值，使其成为与经典诗文并列的文体。
This term refers to the most influential school of poetic criticism of the mid-Qing Dynasty named after its leader Zhang Huiyan (1761-1802), a scholar from Changzhou. He compiled the Anthology of Ci, containing 116 ci poems by 44 poets from the Tang, Five Dynasties, and Song periods. His aesthetic criteria for ci poetry included portraying rich emotional content in concise language, and the painting of mood and feeling through subtle associations beyond the words themselves. Thanks to his commentaries, the literary status of the ci form was considerably elevated. Zhou Ji (1781-1839), who came after Zhang, not only continued in the same practice and theory but also expanded on his ideas and compiled the Selected Poems of Four Poets of the Song Dynasty. Zhou proposed a number of theories about writing ci: for beginners, to acquire the technique of ci writing, it is essential to learn to express their feelings through material references; but to achieve the true depth of the form, material references must not be contrived, and the emotions they represent should both infer yet transcend them. Another theory was “blending.” Tan Xian (1832-1901), Chen Tingzhuo (1853-1892), Kuang Zhouyi (1859-1926) were the third generation of this literary school. Their works Writings on Ci by Futang, Remarks on Lyrics from the White Rain Studio, Notes and Commentaries on Ci by Huifeng further enriched and refined the art of writing and critiquing ci poetry. The most important contribution of the Changzhou School was to demonstrate from a theoretical angle the value of the ci form in expressing philosophical thoughts as well as ambitions and aspirations. This placed it on a par with other classical poetic forms.
引例 Citations：
◎词之为技小矣。然考之于昔，南北分宗，征之于今，江浙别派，是亦有故焉。吾郡自皋文、子居两先生开辟榛莽，以《国风》、《离骚》之旨趣，铸温、韦、周、辛之面目，一时作者竟出，晋卿集其成。（周济《存审轩词自序》）
（词作为一种技艺，不算重要。然而考察词史，有以北宋词为宗的，有以南宋词为宗的，用今日情形验证，常州（江苏）、浙江发展出两大流派，也是有历史原因的。自从同乡人张惠言、恽敬两位先生开辟词学新路以来，用《诗经·国风》《离骚》的意旨趣味，重创温庭筠、韦庄、周邦彦、辛弃疾等人的艺术面貌，一时之间词人竞相出现，其中董士锡集合了各家优点。）
Ci itself is not a very important poetic technique, however historically it can be traced to both the Northern and Southern Song dynasties, so it is logical that today, there should be two major schools: the Changzhou School (in Jiangsu) and the Zhejiang School. Since Zhang Huiyan and Yun Jing, who came from the same prefecture as me, opened up new paths for ci writing by proposing The Book of Songs and Li Sao as literary references for ci, ci writing has regained the artistic features of the poetry of Wen Tingjun, Wei Zhuang, Zhou Bangyan, and Xin Qiji. Many other ci poets have appeared. The best examples of the various styles have been compiled by Dong Shixi. (Zhou Ji: Introduction to Collection of Ci from Cunshen Studio)
◎金针度，《词辨》止庵精。截断众流穷正变，一灯乐苑此长明，推演四家评。（朱祖谋《望江南》）
（教给别人方法，周济的《词辨》很精当。把众多杂乱的观点一并截断，穷究词体的正源和变化，犹如一盏明灯永久照亮了词苑，这应该归功于周济《宋四家词选》的词评。）
Zhou Ji’s Critique of Ci is a fine work of instruction. In it he clears up many confused notions, and probes into the origins and evolution of ci. Thanks to the commentaries in his Selected Poems of Four Poets of the Song Dynasty, he has shed a bright light into the world of ci composition. (Zhu Zumou: To the Tune of Wang Jiang Nan)
