Viewing the Cutting of Wheat Author: Bai Juyi (Tang Dynasty) The Tian family has few leisure months, but in May people are twice as busy. At night, the south wind blows, and the wheat is covered with yellow. Women and aunts carry baskets of food, children carry pots of pulp, and go to the salary fields with them. Young men and women are in Nangang. The weather is full of rustic heat, and the sky is burning on my back. I am exhausted and don’t know the heat, but it’s a pity that the summer is long. There is also a poor woman with a child beside her, holding an earring in her right hand and a basket hanging on her left arm. Hearing his words of care makes those who hear them feel sad. When all the taxes on the family fields are exhausted, this is left to satisfy the hunger. What merit do I have now? I never did farming or mulberry farming. The salary of an official is three hundred stones, and there is a surplus of food every year. I feel ashamed when I think about this, and I will never forget it.
The poet associated the pain of farmers' life with the comfort of his own life, felt ashamed, and could not calm down for a long time. This lyrical text is the essence of the whole poem. It is the product of the author's sentiments and reflects the poet's deep sympathy for the working people. Bai Juyi wrote allegorical poems with the purpose of "singing songs can cure people's diseases and hope that the emperor will know about them". In this poem, he used his own personal feelings to make a sharp contrast between the peasants and himself as a court official, hoping that the "Emperor" would gain some insights. The technique was clever and euphemistic, and it can be said that he had good intentions.
Reference materials
Afanti ancient poetry: /poem/poetry-word/dynasty/%E5%94%90%E4%BB%A3/page/1/?&xingshi =%E8%AF%97/poem/poetry-word/dynasty/%E5%94%90%E4%BB%A3/page/1/?&xingshi=%E8%AF%97/poem/poetry-word/dynasty /%E5%94%90%E4%BB%A3/page/1/?&xingshi=%E8%AF%97