The T'ang Dynasty (618–907) is considered the Golden Age of Poetry. In particular, three Tang courtesans: Li Ye, Yu Xuanji, and Xue Tao, express in their poetry the powerful nature of the Tang patriarchy held in the precepts of Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, and civil law. Each Tang poetess contributes self-dialogue through her poetry that reflects her strength of character, deep sensibility, love of nature, and spiritual quest for the Goddess, The Queen Mother of the West (Hsi Wang Mu). Although the T'ang poetess is often numbed by the constraints of Chinese philosophy, religion, and civil human bondage, through her poetry the poetess finds her way back to her original self, allowing the rebirth of her soul.

This dissertation explores two questions: What does depth psychology contibute to an understanding of T'ang courtesan poetry? What in Tang courtesan poetry contributes to an understanding of depth psychology? The work is an interdisciplinary approach. Chapter 1 introduces the method of hermeneutics as the route not only to understanding the poetry by analyzing and conceptualizing but to regarding the poetry as a voice we must hear, and through hearing (rather than seeing), understand. Chapter 2 focuses on the historical traditions of Chinese classical poetry. Chapter 3 presents the goddesses, Nü Kua and Hsi Wang Mu, and their spiritual impact on Tang women's poetry. Chapter 4 concerns Carl Gustav Jung and his psychological ideas relevant to Richard Wilhelm's translations of The Secret of the Golden Flower and the I Ching. Chapter 5 inquires into the psychological life of the modern Chinese woman comparable to the life of the Tang courtesan-poetess. Chapter 6 concludes with modern Chinese women's poetry, the concept of marginality, and the probing of the self as the poems resemble those of Tang women's poetry. Ultimately, as we listen in to the voices of Li Ye, Yu Xuanji, and Xue Tao, the poetry speaks for itself.