The ancient poem "Tian Family" is as follows:
The father plows the plains and goes to the fields, while the son goes to the fields in the mountains of Luo.
In June, the crops have not yet shown, and the officials have already built warehouses.
Translation and annotations:
Translation: My father is plowing the fields in the mountains, and my son is clearing wasteland at the foot of the mountains. It is already June, and the rice in the fields has not yet tasseled, and the official tax warehouse is Already repaired and awaiting collection. Note ①斸: big hoe, used as a verb here. It means digging. ②He: Grain seedlings, especially rice seedlings. ③ Show: The grains sprout and flowers bloom.
Appreciation:
Among the numerous poems of compassion for farmers in the middle and late Tang Dynasty, the most short and concise works are Li Shen's "Two Poems of Compassion for Farmers", followed by Nie Yizhong's "Tian Jia" 》. At first glance, the content of this poem is plain, the language is clear, and the words are simple. There is almost nothing mysterious about it, but it can achieve great effects with the least words.
It seems very readable, and this is by no means accidental. The main form of exploitation for farmers in the feudal era was land rent. In the troubled times like the late Tang Dynasty, the feudal country.
Author introduction:
Nie Yizhong, courtesy name Tanzhi, was from Hedong, some say he was from Henan. In the twelfth year of Xiantong (871), he was promoted to the rank of Huayin Wei. When he arrived, he had nothing left except his music and books. The language of his poems is simple, and his words are simple and sad. Many poems deeply exposed the brutal exploitation of the people by the feudal ruling class, and expressed deep sympathy for the suffering of the vast number of farmers.
His representative works include "Ode to the Tian Family", "Two Poems to the Tian Family", "Dan Ge", "Early Departure from the Ancient City of Yebei", "Miscellaneous Resentments", etc. Among them, "Ode to the Tian Family" and "Two Poems to the Tian Family" " (Part One) is the most widely circulated ("Tian Family's Two Poems" (Part Two) is mostly recognized by later generations as Li Shen's work, so I won't mention it).