San 1

Catherine San
Mrs. Hope and Mrs. Lucarelli
Unit 1: Religion and Philosophy
November 2015

The River Merchants Wife: A Letter Analysis

The River Merchants Wife: A Letter, written by Li Po, is a lyrical and reflective poem
which reveals that true love is a withstanding process. It focuses on a wife and is directed to her
husband, a river merchant. As her husband is away, the woman contemplates her marriage and
realizes her loneliness and aging. The authors embellished language demonstrates strong
examples of shifts, theme, and Confucian teachings.
The River Merchants Wife: A Letter is a good illustration of Confucian teachings. The
philosopher taught matrimonial piety. The poem is about the struggle of developing a true
relationship. It is about a woman who originally had a difficult time adjusting to her marriage.
The poem expresses deep emotions of love and loneliness. The trials of her relationship began on
her wedding day and first year of marriage. The woman was timid and awkward around her
husband. She remained silent, even though she was called to, a thousand times, (Li Po 10)
However, she overcomes this complicated period and is able to become relaxed. Confucius
taught compassion and respect in all relationships. The husbands responsibility is to provide a
living for the family. As we see in the poem, he went far into the river Ku-t-en. Since he is a
river merchant, we can interpret that he is working to provide for his home.
The River Merchants Wife: A Letter also demonstrates many strong shifts. For example,
the writer does not speak in a consistent verb tense. Throughout the text, the wife flashes back to
several occasions. The verb tense shifts from the past tense to the present tense. Her tone also
changes in the course of the poem. For example, her tone is reflective when recalling her past. In
lines 7-10, the words illustrate her wedding day. Here, the poem shifts to a slight negative
undertone. The wife recalls her apprehensive mood on her wedding day. Lowering my head, I
looked at the wall. / Called to, a thousand times, I never looked back. (Li Po 9-10) Based on her
actions of staying silent, she was unsure of her love. She behaved as if she did not want to be

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there. The third stanza shifts to a positive tone. At this time, she begins to care for her
relationship with the merchant. At fifteen I stopped scowling, / I desired my dust to be mingled
with yours / Forever and forever and forever. (Li Po 11-14) The first line is straightforward,
saying that she stopped scowling and became content. Her words suggest a positive and
passionate atmosphere. Towards the middle of the poem, the wife describes feelings of loneliness
and heartache. Her tone and attitude become depressed. She paints a dejected scene through the
phrases sorrowful noises and dragged your feet. The poem remains gloomy by revealing the
wifes feelings of aging alone. The paired butterflies are already yellow with August / Over the
grass in the West garden; / They hurt me. I grow older. (Li Po 23-25) She refers to the paired
butterflies and the month of August. This shows that they are spending time together, unlike her
and her husband. Nevertheless, the poems tone shifts back to a somewhat hopeful one. The
woman speaks directly to her husband. Lines 26-28 proclaim, If you are coming down through
the narrows of the river Kiang, / Please let me know beforehand, / And I will come out to meet
you / As for as Ch-f-Sa. (Li Po 26-29) This reveals commitment to her husband. She also
becomes more optimistic that she will see him again.
Lastly, the poem also demonstrates theme. The moral of this poem is about love and how
true relationships take time to develop. The composition begins with several memories
contributing to the wifes marriage. For instance, it took an entire year for the woman to truly
love for her relationship. In fact, the second half of the poem mainly focuses on the wifes
feelings of missing her husband. This proves that The River Merchants Wife: A Letter teaches
that genuine love takes time to mature. However, this long process will be worth it in the end.
The literary piece also teaches that real love can withstand anything. Although, her husband has
been absent for five months, the wife does not give up on their relationship. She becomes
hopeful for his return.
In conclusion, The River Merchants Wife: A Letter is a wonderful example of several
literary techniques. It is a good demonstration of the Confucian based teaching of relationships,
as well as shifts in verb tense and speaker's tone. Thirdly, the poem emphasizes the overall
theme, which is about the strength of genuine devotion and love. Although they both take time to
develop and mature, love and devotion can withstand anything.