A
曲牌 of Yuan-dynasty sanqu, the sung verse that came after ci. The piece by
马致远 lines up images with hardly a verb:
枯藤老树昏鸦，
小桥流水人家，
古道西风瘦马。
夕阳西下，
断肠人在天涯 'withered vines, old trees, crows at dusk; a little bridge, flowing water, a few homes; an old road, west wind, a thin horse. The sun sets in the west, and a heartbroken man is at the end of the world.' Later critics praised it as the model for every poem of autumn longing.
