Pride of Fishermen
- Poetry of Fan Zhongyan

《渔家傲》

- Last updated: 2024-03-15 17:32:49

Pride of Fishermen by Fan Zhongyan
中文原文

塞下秋来风景异，衡阳雁去无留意。

四面边声连角起，千嶂里，长烟落日孤城闭。

浊酒一杯家万里，燕然未勒归无计。

羌管悠悠霜满地，人不寐，将军白发征夫泪。

English Translation

When autumn comes to the frontier,the scene looks drear,

South-bound wild geese won't stay

E'en for a day.

An uproar rises with horns blowing far and near.

Walled in by peaks,smoke rises straight

At sunset over isolate town with fastened gate.


I hold a cup of wine,yet home is faraway,

The Northwest is not won and I'm obliged to stay.

At the flutes'doleful sound

Over frost-covered ground,

None fall asleep,

The general's hair turns white and soliders weep.

Fen Zhongyan (989-1052)was vice-premier end commanding general stationed on the northwest frontier from 1040 to 1043.This lyric describes the border scene and depicts the poet's nostalgia.

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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.

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