謝靈運為劉宋時代山水詩的奠定詩人，其模山範水的方式，一改玄言詩之粗陳山水，而以逼真化的寫實方式為之，並且其所偏好描摹者，乃深山大壑之景物。本文以謝氏之生平及性格為進路，解釋其山水詩中之景物呈顯此種特徵之因，認為：謝氏因不得志於朝廷，於是強調仕隱對立的觀念，此使「跡」之所在具有顯現價值高下的作用，於是其遊之「跡」在與「道」並生之山林，便反襯出朝廷之失德。而對於「跡」的重視，其人真實在山林之中的身影，便必須有以突出，這可為謝詩以逼真化的書寫方式描摹山水，提出一項解釋。並且，在「跡」意識的籠罩下，謝靈運所隱、所遊之「跡」，甚且到達人所未至之絕境，這在謝詩中也就具有了獨特的象徵意義，象徵著謝靈運是人所未能至的「第一人」。「第一人」而未能有與其相稱的位遇，其貶斥、對抗朝廷之意自也寓於其中。

Xie Ling-Yun was the founder of landscape poetry. He changed the roughly-writing pattern of landscape of metaphysic poetry into the realism pattern. Besides the descriptive quality of his landscape poetry, the landscape that locate far from one could reach was his favorite also. This paper discusses the formation of Xie's landscape poetry by examining his biography and character to understand the reason that shaping the features of his landscape poetry. According to his biography, Xie's ambition of polity was defeated by the emperor so he emphasized the conception of official-hermit confrontation to show the emperor was not legitimate. His practice, based on the traditional conception of 'Tao', had to happen in real traveling and sightseeing in the landscape to make believe. For achieved this aim, thus the descriptive quality of his landscape poetry was demanded. Furthermore, reaching the places that no one had ever been could show the symbolic meaning that he was the 'first man'. Since the 'first man' could not get the official position what he should get, the mistake was made by the emperor without doubt.