"Sow a grain of millet in spring, and harvest ten thousand grains in autumn."
The poem "Sow a grain of millet in spring, and harvest ten thousand grains in autumn." comes from "Compassion" by Li Shen, a poet of the Tang Dynasty. Farmers"
Compassion for Farmers
Author: Li Shen Year: Tang Dynasty
Sow a grain of millet in spring and harvest ten thousand grains in autumn.
There is no idle land in the world, and farmers are still starving to death.
Appreciation:
This is a poem that exposes social injustice and sympathizes with the suffering of farmers. It focuses on the cruel exploitation of farmers in the old society.
The first and second sentences "Plant one grain of millet in spring and harvest ten thousand grains in autumn." The words "plant in spring" and "harvest in autumn" summarize the labor of farmers. From "a grain of millet" to "ten thousand seeds", the scene of a good harvest is vividly written. The third sentence, "There is no idle field in the world," further states that all the land in the country has been cultivated, and no field is idle. The semantics of this sentence and the previous two sentences complement each other, and then show the scene of a fruitful and golden harvest. The hard work of the working people has created such huge wealth. In the year of good harvest, they should have enough food and clothing, right? Unexpectedly, the ending sentence is "The farmer is still starving to death." This is really shocking! The word "Jew" is thought-provoking: Who deprived the farmers of the fruits of their labor and put them to death? The three words "I am still starving to death" extremely profoundly expose social injustice and embody the poet's strong indignation and sincere sympathy.