Yangtse River
- Poetry of Wen Tianxiang

《扬子江》

- Last updated: 2024-04-10 11:38:53

中文原文

几日随风北海游，回从扬子大江头。

臣心一片磁针石，不指南方不肯休。

English Translation

Few days' touring north sea with favorable wind,

Back again at the start of great

My loyal heart to His Majesty is like a compass,

It will never stop if not pointing at the south.

By Wen Tianxiang

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.

List of Chinese poets