Seeing Off a Friend Exiled to Wuxi
- Poetry of Han Hong
《送客贬五溪》
English Translation
Southward you go, with gibbons’ cries your mournful escort—
as I turn back, autumn grasses blur beneath my tears.
In frozen dusk, snow falls upon the empty hills;
in that desolate land, how few the homes to take you in.
This poem was composed during the Mid-Tang period, a time of political turmoil when many scholar-officials faced exile. The subject of this farewell poem was banished to the remote Wuxi region west of the Xiang River, a desolate area inhabited mainly by ethnic minorities. Through the imagery of parting, Han Hong expresses sympathy for his friend's unjust exile while revealing the hardships and helplessness of officials relegated to frontier regions.
中文原文( Chinese )
南过猿声一逐臣，回看秋草泪沾巾。
寒天暮雪空山里，几处蛮家是主人。
- 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.