This document provides biographical information about the Chinese poet Bei Dao and summarizes one of his poems. It notes that Bei Dao, whose real name is Zhao Zhenkai, was born in 1949 in Beijing and is considered one of China's most important contemporary authors. His poem "All" is summarized as using repetition to convey darker, more negative themes about the realities of life, with a sad and dark tone.

1. ALL
by Bei Dao

2. POET
Zhao Zhenkai, better known as
his pen name Bei Dao
(“Northern Island”), was born in
Beijing, China on August 2, 1949.
He is considered one of the
China’s most important
contemporary authors. His
writings are acclaimed for their
eloquence and subtlety. He was
the leading member of the
“Misty Poets”. They call
themselves this because of their
poem’s abstract and abstruse
meanings.

3. ALL
Bei Dao
All is fated,
all cloudy,
all an endless beginning,
all a search for what vanishes,
all joys grave,
all griefs tearless,
every speech a repetition,
every meeting a first encounter,
all love buried in the heart,
all history prisoned in a dream,
All hope hedged with doubt,
All faith drowned in lamentation,
Every explosion heralds an instant stillness,
every death reverberates forever
(translated by: Donald Finkel and Xueliang Chen)

4. THEME
-Negatives of life
-Harsher realities of life
TONE
-It is a dark toned poem.
-Sad
SOUND DEVICES
-Repetition