Classical Prose
洛神赋（节选）
曹植
其形也，翩若惊鸿，婉若游龙。
荣曜秋菊，华茂春松。
髣髴兮若轻云之蔽月，飘飖兮若流风之回雪。
远而望之，皎若太阳升朝霞；
迫而察之，灼若芙蕖出渌波。
秾纤得衷，修短合度。
肩若削成，腰如约素。
延颈秀项，皓质呈露。
芳泽无加，铅华弗御。
云髻峨峨，修眉联娟。
丹唇外朗，皓齿内鲜。
明眸善睐，靥辅承权。
瑰姿艳逸，仪静体闲。
柔情绰态，媚于语言。
奇服旷世，骨像应图。
披罗衣之璀粲兮，珥瑶碧之华琚。
戴金翠之首饰，缀明珠以耀躯。
践远游之文履，曳雾绡之轻裾。
微幽兰之芳蔼兮，步踟蹰于山隅。
于是忽焉纵体，以遨以嬉。
左倚采旄，右荫桂旗。
攘皓腕于神浒兮，采湍濑之玄芝。
Translation
Her form — light as a startled swan, graceful as a swimming dragon. Radiant as autumn chrysanthemum, luxuriant as spring pine. Shadowy, as if the light cloud veils the moon; drifting, as if the swirling wind returns the snow. Seen from afar, she is dazzling as the sun rising through morning clouds. Examined closely, she is brilliant as a lotus emerging from green waves. Neither too plump nor too slender; her height and proportion are precisely right. Her shoulders are as if carved; her waist is like a white silk cord. Her neck is long and graceful, revealing luminous skin. No fragrance or cosmetic is needed to adorn her. Cloud-like hair rises high; long brows are delicately arched. Her red lips are bright; her white teeth are clear. Her sparkling eyes are skilled at glancing; the dimples at her cheeks bear the imprint of beauty. Her form is exquisite and enchanting; her bearing is quiet and composed. She is soft in feeling and generous in manner, charming in speech. Her extraordinary garments are unmatched in the world; her bone structure matches the finest paintings. She wears a splendid silk gown and jasper pendants at her ears. Her hair is adorned with gold and kingfisher ornaments; pearls glitter across her body. On her feet are embroidered traveling shoes, and she trails a light skirt of misty silk. A subtle fragrance of orchid emanates from her as she hesitates gracefully at the mountain's edge. Suddenly she relaxes her body, roaming and playing at ease. To the left she leans against a colored banner; to the right she is shaded by a cassia flag. At the sacred shore she rolls up her white sleeves, gathering dark mushrooms from the rushing rapids.
Analysis
The Rhapsody on the Goddess of the Luo River is Cao Zhi's most famous prose work and arguably the most celebrated description of feminine beauty in Chinese literature. Cao Zhi wrote that he composed it after passing the Luo River, inspired by Song Yu's rhapsodies on goddesses. The excerpt included here focuses on the direct physical description of the goddess. The opening line — 'Her form — light as a startled swan, graceful as a swimming dragon' — is one of the most quoted lines in Chinese poetry, establishing a standard for describing feminine grace that later writers would follow for centuries. 'Shadowy, as if the light cloud veils the moon; drifting, as if the swirling wind returns the snow' creates two of the most memorable images in classical Chinese writing: the goddess is never entirely revealed; she appears and disappears, like moonlight through clouds, like snowflakes in the wind. Cao Zhi uses compound vision — 'Seen from afar, she is dazzling as the sun rising through morning clouds. Examined closely, she is brilliant as a lotus emerging from green waves' — showing the goddess from two distances, creating depth. The physical description moves from general proportion to individual features: shoulders, waist, neck, skin, hair, eyebrows, lips, teeth, eyes, cheek dimples. The final section describes her attire and movement — splendid garments, jewels, a gauze skirt trailing like mist, the fragrance of orchids — and ends with her graceful hesitation at the water's edge, gathering dark mushrooms. The influence of this work on later Chinese literature is immense — it set the vocabulary, imagery, and emotional register for describing feminine beauty in virtually every subsequent literary form.
About the Author
Cao Zhi, courtesy name Zijian, was a poet and writer of the Three Kingdoms period, son of Cao Cao and younger brother of Cao Pi. He was one of the leading figures of Jian'an literature and is grouped with his father and brother as one of the 'Three Caos.' Cao Zhi was exceptionally talented and was initially favored by his father, but after losing the succession struggle to Cao Pi, he spent the rest of his life under suspicion and restriction. His works are known for ornate diction and deep emotion. Major works include 'Rhapsody on the Goddess of the Luo River,' 'The Seven-Step Poem,' 'Song of the White Horse,' and 'Presented to the White Horse King Biao.'