"July" is a masterpiece in "The Book of Songs" and "Bin Feng". Bin is located in the area of ??Xunyi and Bin County in present-day Shaanxi Province. It was developed when Gong Liu, the ancestor of the Zhou Dynasty, led his people to move here from Tai (southwest of Wugong, Shaanxi Province today). "Bin Feng" is a local poem from this area. The seven chapters were all produced in the Western Zhou Dynasty and are the earliest poems in "Guo Feng". Zhou Dynasty is a nation that attaches great importance to agriculture, and most of Bin's poems have the local flavor of farming. "Hanshu Geography" said: "In the past, Ji was granted the title of Zhu, Gong Liu was in Bin, the king moved to Qi, King Wen made ferment, and King Wu governed Hao. Their people had the legacy of the previous kings, good at farming, and engaged in their own business, so "Bin Shi" "The farmers and mulberry trees are well prepared for food and clothing." This passage helps us understand "July". But the main reason why this poem has always been valued is not that it embodies the characteristics of "Bin Shi", but that it uses a continuous picture to concretely and comprehensively depict the life and labor of our country's serfs three thousand years ago, truly reflecting the Zhou Dynasty The essential characteristics of class antagonism in slave society. "July" is a vivid historical picture with great cognitive value. "July" is the longest poem in "Guo Feng" and adopts the structure of a long scroll painting to express specific rich content. The whole poem has eighty-eight lines and is divided into eight chapters. In chronological order, it describes the serfs' heavy labor and miserable life without food and clothing throughout the year month by month. The whole poem has the same chapter structure, so that the content of each chapter is focused, the expression techniques are different, vivid, colorful and orderly, showing ingenuity in simplicity. The whole poem can be divided into two parts. The first four chapters describe the serfs' work in farming and hunting, the last three chapters describe the serfs' chores, and the fifth chapter is the transition between the two parts. Labor is used throughout the poem, and the lives of serfs and farmers are contrasted and reflected in three aspects: clothing, food, and housing. In the first chapter, about farming, the poet first highlights the miserable life of the serfs before farming in spring. The description of the severe winter in the two sentences "On the first day of the day, the hair grows, and on the second day, the chestnuts stand" was written based on the feelings of the serfs. To the single-clothed and hungry serfs, the screaming north wind sounded like a whip slapping on them; the cold air bit into the bones and bones, chilling the heart. "How can you die without clothes and brown" was the indignant cry of the serfs under such circumstances, which shows how unbearable the long winter was for them. Just after winter, they began busy farm work: repairing farm tools, working in the fields, and women and children busily delivering meals to the fields. The concluding sentence "Tian Zhen is very happy" is a vivid pen. The poet depicts the field official as a silhouette in the spring plowing picture; he has achieved the most realistic appearance: the smile of the field official shows that the serfs are under close surveillance. The situation of working intensely like an ox or a horse. The second chapter describes the female serfs picking mulberries, which highlights the sad psychology of the female slaves "almost dying with the young master". The understanding of the phrase "almost all relatives will return together" has always been controversial. One theory is that it reflects the concubine system implemented by the rulers of various countries during the Spring and Autumn Period, that is, when a woman marries, her nephew with the same surname and slaves must marry with her. The poem is written to say that the young girl might be taken away by the young master as a dowry when picking mulberries. One theory is that the slave girl was afraid of being taken away by a male master. No matter which statement is made, it shows that serfs did not have personal freedom and reflected the strict personal subordination relationship between agricultural rights and serf owners in the Western Zhou Dynasty. In this chapter, the poet uses gorgeous spring scenery to reflect the sad psychology of the female slaves. The spring is bright, the mulberry forest is green, and the orioles are singing in the forest. The female slaves are holding deep baskets and walking through the paths among the mulberries. While picking mulberries nervously, they are also worried about being snatched away. The strong contrast between the beautiful spring scenery and the gloomy sad mood reflects the tragic fate of the female slaves. The third chapter is about weaving. The poet describes the entire labor process from pruning mulberry trees to weaving and dyeing cloth. The closely linked work highlights the intensity and continuity of labor, giving people a sense of breathlessness. And the labor of many serfs was just "for the prince's clothing"! Chapter three is about hunting. The poet changed his technique and did not describe the hardships of hunting by the serfs, but highlighted the exploitation of the fruits of their labor. Just after the autumn harvest, a small hunt was held in November. The serfs shot foxes and raccoons, and took the animal skins to make fur coats for the princes. Then they hunted on a large scale to obtain wild animals and add delicious food to the young master. It should be noted that "one day is in raccoon dog" is performed under the condition of "one day is in the same direction", and "two days are in harmony" is performed in the case of "two days are in line". When the serfs "had no clothes and no brown, how could they die at the old age", they braved the wind and snow to "make fur coats for the princes" and "offer pigeons to the prince". The narratives in each chapter of "July" seem to be disconnected, with emphasis and repetition. This structure gradually complements each other and constantly emphasizes, allowing readers to gradually form a complete impression of the whole. This four-chapter poem was written from the end of the previous year to the end of the next year, recreating the scene of serfs engaged in farming, mulberry fields, and hunting. Chapter 5 plays a transitional role, writing about serfs building houses for themselves. Farmers in the Zhou Dynasty lived in temporary straw sheds in the fields during busy farming periods, and only returned to the village to live in the winter leisure time. The beginning of the fifth chapter uses the activities of insects, especially crickets, to vividly express the changes in seasons. The cold is approaching, and crickets are constantly migrating from the fields to under the eaves, to the room, and to under the bed. When the weather gets cold, the serfs have to go back to their houses. The first chapter of the poem describes that the serfs had "no clothes and no brown". This chapter describes the poor and shabby living conditions of the serfs. Their preparations for the winter include plugging up the holes in the walls to smoke out rats, plugging up the north windows, and plastering the broken doors with mud. . That's all they can do, that's all they have to survive the winter. The four sentences "The sky is suffocating and smoking rats, and they are forced into Yihu" and "To change the year, I enter this room" describe the tragic situation of the serfs living there. The word "consult" in "consult my wife" contains the emotion of dissatisfaction with the current situation in the sadness.
In the second half of the poem, it is written that in addition to farming and hunting, serfs had to perform various kinds of labor for their serf owners. This part follows the previous description of the serfs' clothing and residence, and then writes about the poor quality of their food. Chapter 6 writes about the huge difference in life between serfs and serf owners through the sharp contrast in food. The serfs were busy making sure their masters could eat well. They picked fresh fruits for the serf masters to enjoy, boiled beans and sunflowers to adjust the taste for the slave masters, beat dates and harvested rice to brew fine wine for the serf masters to drink to extend their lives, while they could only use Ailanthus ailanthus. Burning coriander to make ends meet. In this chapter of the poem, the serfs have a clear understanding of reality in conscious contrast, and the calm narrative has a cold rational tone. Chapter 7: After the farm work is completed, the serfs still have to repair the house for the serf master - cut the thatch, tie the straw rope, and repair the roof one by one. Words such as "Zi'er", "Xiao'er" and "Ji Qi" show that the serfs worked hard for the serf owners without a chance to breathe. They hurriedly finished the work and were ready to plow the ground and sow. They were the permanent members of the serf owners. Tools that never stop being used. The last chapter is written during the severe winter, when the serfs store ice for their masters to prevent heatstroke and prepare for the year-end banquet. At the banquet, the serfs who had worked hard for a year raised their glasses to wish the serf owners who enslaved them a long life. This extremely incongruous scene in the solemn court truly reflected that the serfs were not only empowered to vote economically and politically, but they were also mentally prepared. ravaged. "July" has a clear structure and uses the pain of serfs as a clue. Through the interweaving of time and space, it concretely shows the life of ancient serfs from both vertical and horizontal aspects. It has the characteristics of being both simple and large-capacity. . The poem mainly expresses the plight of serfs, describing their overloaded labor and almost desperate life. From a time perspective, it describes the labor, clothing, food, and housing of the serfs for twelve months of the year. This vertical change in time shows that the serfs lived such a cyclical and never-ending life like cattle and horses every year. . From a spatial perspective, the places where serfs worked were shown one after another: fields, mulberry forests, weaving rooms, dyeing rooms, grain fields, orchards, wine rooms, palaces, hunting grounds, ice... This constantly changing space illustrates the The arduous and stressful nature of their labor has reached an unbearable level. This picture of life intertwined with time changes as longitude and space transfer as latitude shows the oppression and exploitation suffered by serfs in economic, political, personal and other aspects. The picture not only expresses the main content of farming and weaving work, but also includes field scenery, stars, frost and dew, insects and vegetation, food, clothing, housing, customs, etc., which reflects the social life of the time concretely, vividly and from multiple angles. The social perspective has a certain sense of historical depth and is of great cognitive value. "July" has a simple and plain style that has lost all its glory. The whole poem is like a serf singing in a low voice about his miserable life. He casually narrated the pressure of life that has accumulated in his chest for a long time: endless labor, a life without food and clothing, the fear of no personal freedom, and the bitterness of being ravaged mentally. . Every word, every scene, every thing, every emotion, all overflowed from his chest, so naturally and smoothly, without thinking or exaggeration. Here, there is no tense atmosphere of struggle, no angry-looking protest gesture, only the facts of life soaked in the blood and tears of serfs. The poet has a clear tendency to narrate facts. This kind of real life has iron power and indisputable logic. It irrefutably proves the cruelty and irrationality of the slave society. It also reveals the hazy awakening and dissatisfaction of the serfs. . This simple and plain feature gives the poem a deeply moving power.