Biography
Liu Yuxi was a Chinese poet, philosopher, and essayist, active during the Tang Dynasty. He was an associate of Bai Juyi and was known for his folk-style poems. Most famously, he is known for his poem Lou Shi Ming 陋室銘, "Inscription of a crude house". It describes living in a simple dwelling, following a life that is rich in character, refined in culture and learning.Liu Yuxi came from Henan Province, from Luoyang. He was an official who passed the highest imperial examinations when he was twenty and he worked alongside the poet Liu Zongyuan. Later, he was demoted for political reasons and sent to work for nine years in a minor position in Langzhou in Hunan Province. Though he was later recalled to the capital, he continued to have political problems, offending officials with his satirical writing, and finding himself again exiled to various postings around the country, though he ending his life working in a good position as President of the Board of Rites. He was considered an important poet in his day, and wrote poetry that showed an interest in adapting folk songs to poetry (as in the "Bamboo Branch Song" included in the Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry) along with very strong political poems. His repeated exile was a direct result of the political views evinced in his poetry.
