Translation of the ancient Chinese prose "Wind is not like catkins"

Meaning: It's not as good as style to blow catkins all over the sky.

Source: Ode to Snow by Liu Yiqing, a Southern Dynasty writer.

Excerpt from the original:

Xie An held a family reunion on a cold snowy day, explaining poetry with his son and nephew. Soon, it snowed heavily, and the guardian said happily, "What kind of snow is this?" ? "Xie Lang, his brother's eldest son, said," The air in the air is almost comparable. "."His eldest brother's daughter said, "Catkin can dance with the wind better than the wind." . "Guardian of the empire laughed. She is the daughter of Xie An, the daughter of Xie An, and the wife of the left-wing general Wang Ningzhi.

Translation:

Xie An held a family gathering on a cold snowy night to explain poetry with his sons and nephews. Soon, it snowed heavily. The teacher said happily, "What is this snow like?"

Hu Er, his brother's eldest son, said, "This is almost comparable to sprinkling salt in the air." His brother's daughter said: it's not as good as style to blow catkins all over the sky. "A teacher laughed. She is the daughter of Xie An's eldest brother Xie Wuyi and the wife of General Zuo.

The extended material Yong Xue began with an impromptu conversation between Xie An and his sons and nephews in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. It simply outlines the scene of Xie's children singing poems and chanting snow in a snowy day, and shows the relaxed and harmonious picture of ancient family cultural life. The article appreciates Xie Daowen's literary talent through expression description and identity supplement, which has been passed down through the ages and become a much-told story.

"Mrs. Xie got together on a cold snowy day and told the children the meaning of the paper." The first sentence of the article explains the background of chanting snow. Just fifteen words, covering a lot. The Xie family in the Eastern Jin Dynasty is a well-known home of poetry, ceremony and tassels, and its leader is Xie Taifu, that is, Xie An. In such a family, if you can't go out on a snowy day, you can "talk about the meaning of paper."

The convener and spokesman are naturally Xie An, and the audience is "children". Time, place, people and events are all mentioned. Then write the main event and sing the snow. In fact, it is the speaker who tests the audience. Why is the speaker so elegant?

It turns out that the weather has changed: "Suddenly it snows". There was snow earlier, but it was not big, and now it has become a vortex of goose feather and heavy snow. This made the speaker feel very happy, so "Gong Xinran said:' What is snow like?' Brother Hu said,' The difference between sprinkling salt and air can be simulated.'

Brother and daughter said,' If catkins are not caused by the wind.' There may be many answers, but the author only recorded two: one is "sprinkling salt in the air" as Xie Lang said; The other is what Xie Daowen said: "Catkin is due to the wind".

The speaker did not evaluate the pros and cons of these two answers, but just smiled, which was very intriguing. The author did not express his position, but added the identity of Xie Daowen at the end, "That is, the eldest brother has no concubine, and the wife of the left general Wang Ningzhi is also." This is a powerful hint that he appreciates and praises Xie Daowen's talents and writes that Xie Daowen is "praising talents".

Why is Xie Daowen's ci better? Metaphor pays attention to shape: large groups of snowflakes fall rustling, and the wind flies all over the sky. A mass of catkins, similar to goose feather and heavy snow, will also fly all over the sky because of the wind. There is a saying in the ancient poem that "the catkin pond is a faint wind". The flying snow and catkins caused by the wind give people a feeling of lightness, elegance and elegance.

Using the metaphor of "catkins because of the wind" to describe "abundant snow" can be described as similar in shape but similar in spirit. Salt and snowflakes are different in shape and weight, so "salt scattered in the air" can't fly with the wind even when the wind is light.

It is not appropriate to use it as a metaphor for "sending charcoal in the snow". Metaphor is more spiritual: salt is scattered in the air, falling heavily, and it is too late to hide. What about appreciation? No sense of beauty. Compared with catkins, the sense of stagnation is swept away, and the wind is flying all over the sky. It's nature. Moreover, the catkin flying season is when bloom is warm in spring, so it is more poetic to write the cold scenery in winter in the scenery of bloom in spring.