Drinking maketh the man

Gao Shi recalls a millennium-old legend to let the world know he wants a job

A Vision of Spring on my Farm

Gao Shi

.

I go out and what do I see?

Spring has covered the earth.

If only I had friends who understand me,

So I wasn't left like Li Shiqi,

Who tried to show his loyalty,

But was turned away from the military

For being much too scholarly,

So to prove his mettle, he

Rejected all sobriety,

And declared himself to be:

A Gaoyang drinker ready to serve!

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Li Shiqi, remembered as the “drinker of Gaoyang,” tried to join the army of Liu Bang, who was fighting to overthrow the Qin Dynasty and establish the Han (end of the 3rd century BCE). Liu rejected him for being an overeducated bureaucrat; upon which Li demanded a second interview, calling himself the “drinker of Gaoyang” (Gaoyang is the name of the town where he lived). The phrase entered the language, meaning a bold and determined supporter of the king.

Gao Shi (704-765) here puts the legend of Li Shiqi to work to let the world know that he’s had enough of kicking his heels on the family farm. He would do anything for a position in the administration.

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高适  田家春望

出门何所见，春色满平芜。

可叹无知己，高阳一酒徒。