author
Yi Jia
-200–-168
A major voice of the early Han dynasty, this writer and statesman is remembered for sharp political essays and emotionally powerful poetry. His work helped shape early Chinese prose and the tradition of fu rhapsody.
1 Audiobook
賈誼新書
by Yi Jia
About the author
Born in Luoyang around 200 BCE, Jia Yi was a Chinese essayist, poet, and politician of the Western Han dynasty. He gained notice at a young age for his learning and talent, and he served in government during a formative period in early imperial China.
He is especially known for his essay commonly translated as Disquisition on Finding Fault with Qin, a famous reflection on why the Qin dynasty collapsed. He is also remembered as one of the earliest important writers of fu, the richly descriptive rhapsodic form that became a major part of Chinese literature.
Alongside his political writing, Jia Yi's surviving poems and prose show both intellectual force and personal feeling. That mix of public concern and literary skill is a big reason he remains one of the best-known writers of early Han China.