A Quatrain II
- Poetry of Du Fu
Against blue water birds appear more white;
On green hills red flowers seem to burn.
Again I see spring pass out of sight.
O when will come the day of my return?
This poem belongs to the same series as the previous poem and was composed in the spring of 766 CE, the first year of the Dali era under Emperor Daizong, while Du Fu was residing in Kuizhou (present-day Fengjie, Chongqing). Unlike the brief period of peace in Chengdu, the poet was again adrift, with little hope of returning north. Though the landscape of Kuizhou was majestic and grand, it remained for him a "land of exile." When the most intense spring beauty collided abruptly with the most profound homesickness, it gave birth to this short poem—its colors as dazzling as an oil painting, its emotion as heavy as carved stone. It stands as a timeless model of using joyous scenery to express sorrow.
江碧鸟逾白，山青花欲燃。
今春看又过，何日是归年。
- Why Chinese poems is so special?
- The most distinctive features of Chinese poetry are: concision- many poems are only four lines, and few are much longer than eight; ambiguity- number, tense and parts of speech are often undetermined, creating particularly rich interpretative possibilities; and structure- most poems follow quite strict formal patterns which have beauty in themselves as well as highlighting meaningful contrasts.
- How to read a Chinese poem?
- Like an English poem, but more so. Everything is there for a reason, so try to find that reason. Think about all the possible connotations, and be aware of the different possibilities of number and tense. Look for contrasts: within lines, between the lines of each couplet and between successive couplets. Above all, don't worry about what the poet meant- find your meaning.