LI HO

born 791, China died 817, Ch'ang-ku Pinyin Li He brilliant Chinese poet whose untimely death at the age of 26 ended what might have become one of China's greatest poetic careers. Literary legend describes Li Ho as a man of kuei-ts'ai (devilish talent) who composed his haunting verses by jotting down single lines on small slips of paper while on horseback, dropping the slips into an embroidered black bag, and assembling a finished poem each evening. Composing verse from the early age of seven, Li Ho promised to do well on the literary examinations necessary for an official career. Unfortunately, the poet was excluded from the examinations by a minor technicality; his resulting disappointment was said to have triggered the poor health that led to his death a few years later. Li Ho's verse is characterized by its vivid imagery, odd diction, striking juxtapositions, and unrelieved pessimism.