In the late 1950s and early 1960s, a new folksong movement sprang up in poetry circles and developed traditional folksongs. Pofitical lyric poetry emerged as an independent art form in the 1960s. Guo Xiaochuan and He Jingzhi were both excellent political lyric poets.

Another marked achievement during this period was the long narrative poem. For example, Guo Xiaochuan's "Deep, Deep Valley" and "Trilogy of a General" enjoyed high renown in poetry circles for their innovative form and profound ideological views.

Having remained silent for ten years, Chinese poetry circles flourished again in the period after the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), with freer and less rigid poetry in various forms and styles. At the beginning of this new period, poetry ruminating on history built on the tradition of realism. At the same time, in the fast-changing late 1970s and early 1980s, a group of young poets came of age including Shu Ting, Gu Cheng, and J iang He. Their poems expressed unusual and often obscure emotions, and were therefore called "Misty Poetry."

In the mid and late 1980s, a new poetry school called the "Third Generation" appeared among Chinese poetry circles.