January 19, 2001

East Meets West in a Search for a Chinese Poet

By PAUL MOONEY

In 1737, an obscure Chinese scholar named Shi Zhenlin wrote his memoirs -- a collection of rambling jottings describing his friends and travels in China. He could hardly have imagined that, more than two centuries later, his Random Notes From Xiqing would spark an intense academic debate.

His work probably wouldn't have attracted much attention, except for one thing: It included haunting poems written by a beautiful and talented peasant woman named Shuangqing (pronounced