Deer Enclosure
- Poetry of Wang Wei

《木兰柴》
Deer Enclosure by Wang Wei
English Translation

Autumn hills gather the day's last gleam;

Birds chase after their flock, a fleeting dream.

Colors shimmer, now clear, now softly blend;

Evening mist floats without start or end.

This poem is a celebrated work from Wang Wei's Wang River Collection, a series of twenty poems, composed during his mature creative period while living in retreat at Wangchuan.


中文原文( Chinese )

秋山敛余照,飞鸟逐前侣。

彩翠时分明,夕岚无处所。

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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