Gu Shaofang (birth date unknown; died in 1593) was a Ming official and poet. His courtesy name was Shifu (實甫), also written Shifu (寔甫), and his literary name was Xuehai (學海); he was a native of Kunshan County in Suzhou Prefecture, with household registration in Taicang Prefecture. He was still living around 1592, the twentieth year of the Wanli reign.
Life
Gu Zhangzhi (1523–1586) was his father; his great-grandfather was Gu Jian, his grandfather Gu Ji, his mother was Wang, and his stepmother was Sun. His younger brothers were Gu Shaokui (顧紹夔), Gu Shaofu (顧紹芾), and Gu Shaofen (顧紹芬). He married Zhou and later Lu, and had two sons, Gu Tongde and Gu Tongying; the latter lived from 1585 to 1626.
His examination career included the statuses of shengyuan, xianggong juren, and jinshi. In the fourth year of the Wanli reign (1576), he placed sixteenth in the Yingtian provincial examination in the bingzi cohort; in the fifth year (1577), he passed the dingchou jinshi examination, ranking twentieth in the third category. The ranks are also given as 70 for xianggong juren and 16 for shengyuan.
After becoming a jinshi, he was selected as a Hanlin Academy shujishi. In the ninth month of Wanli 7 he was appointed a Hanlin Academy jiantao; in the tenth month of Wanli 12 he was restored to his former post, and in the twelfth month became a compiler for the Da Ming Huidian. In the sixth month of Wanli 18 he was promoted to Left Zanshan of the Left Spring Quarter, concurrently a Hanlin Academy compiler; in the eighth month he became an official responsible for displaying texts at the Classics Banquet, and in the first month of Wanli 19 a daily lecturer. In the fourth month he reported illness and was permitted to return home for recuperation; on the twenty-second day of the second month of Wanli 21 he died of illness and, because he had served as a daily lecturer, received a special grant for sacrificial rites and burial.
Poetry and works
He was described as filial, fraternal, upright, and incorruptible; he excelled in poetry, especially regulated verse (wulu), and his style was close to that of Meng Haoran. Zhu Yizun likewise described his style as close to Meng Haoran's. His works included the Bao'an ji (《寶庵集》), also written with 菴 (《寶菴集》); its extent is variously given as twenty-four juan plus an appendix or eight juan.
Literary exchanges
In his literary and social exchanges, he wrote prefaces for works by Qu Jingchun, Yu Yunwen, and Xu Shen; a tomb inscription for Cao Sanyang; sacrificial texts and a spirit-way stele; and a biography of his father, Gu Zhangzhi. He exchanged letters with Xu Xuemo, Wang Shizhen, Wang Xijue, and Tu Long, and presented poetry and prose to Xu Xuemo, Li Chengliang, and Zhu Heng.
References
- CBDB Gu Shaofang (34260)
- 搜韵 顧紹芳 (55151)
- 法鼓佛教人名规范数据库 顧紹芳 (A009847)
- Wikidata Gu Shaofang (Q45425116)