"Comparison" is a poem by Wen Yiduo about family life. The so-called "comparison" means comparing oneself with others to see what the advantages and disadvantages of each other are.
First, let’s compare the “livelihood” issue. The poet sees that other families are experiencing springtime, birds are chirping, and flowers are blooming, which is a good time for prosperity, but for himself, "there is only a spring of bitter rain and miserable wind", and he is full of sorrow all day long. Considering Wen Yiduo’s situation at the time, it is not difficult for us to understand this reality. After returning to China in 1925, the poet had a series of misfortunes. First, he had many conflicts with Liu Baizhao, the principal of Beijing Art College. As he said in a letter to Liang Shiqiu: "I have been very depressed recently. Being the dean is not for me. It’s really difficult for me to stop my career.” And because he was busy with administrative work that he was not good at, he had to put aside his favorite poetry. Generally speaking, for people like Wen Yiduo who attach great importance to their personal careers. For him, this aspect of joy, anger, sorrow, and joy is bound to be brought into family life, and it becomes an important criterion for him to measure and judge the quality of family life. Therefore, in his view, his life is "always dim and dim." "Liu Xingyan" is boring, depressing and lifeless.
Then there is the comparison about wives. Wen Yiduo's wife is a calm and gentle country girl. Although she has also studied in a normal school, she is definitely silent in front of Wen Yiduo, a great professor and poet. It is difficult to have more different languages. "My dear, she doesn't like to talk", maybe it's not that she really doesn't like to talk, it's just that she really doesn't know what to say in front of his dazzling husband. "Bringing me cigarettes and tea every night in the study" is naturally a warm scene, but as a couple, especially with the needs of an emotional artist like Wen Yiduo, it is not enough to be considerate. He also desires There is something else, something from the spirit and soul. As early as in the poem "Red Beans", Wen Yiduo revealed his worries about his future family life:
A stone engraved with insect seal and bird seal script
A demonic stone,
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It is the sharpening stone for my saber,
It is also the rock in the river of my love,
My lover!
This is the boundary stone between us again!
Now, when this worry has become a reality, what else can Wen Yiduo say? Looking at "the lights in other people's homes are like splashing molten silver", bitterness comes to my heart quietly. It's really a unique feeling in my heart...
In the above two meanings of "comparison", Wen Yiduo Their family life and married life are obviously at a disadvantage, which makes people feel a little sour.
However, as I write this, the tone of the poem gradually changes.
"Others sleep on the green hills to rest,/we also walk into the underworld together." This means that no matter how many regrets there are in reality, a couple will grow old together and both of them will have no choice but to die. , we have achieved a high degree of agreement on this life goal, and all other couples will not be able to escape it. In the ultimate sense of life, all differences under "comparison" are insignificant. However, this “undifferentiated” equality based on the ultimate concern of life “is still a bit forced after all, because people cannot live forever in the logic of ultimate concern, and life is all real and physical. Therefore, the poet made a new "comparison": "The swallows in other people's houses can't find a home, / fly to our eaves and scold the fallen flowers." In other words, although other people's "homes" are luxurious, with feasting and dancing, they are full of singing and dancing. New problems have also arisen, that is, it is too "modern" and too unpredictable, and has lost its natural and simple character, so that swallows, the auspicious birds of nature, have also disappeared. At this time, our Although the "home" is simple, poor, and does not have so many modern tastes, it still retains the characteristics of integrating with nature, so it eventually attracts "swallows in other people's halls", "swallows in front of the former Wang Xie hall, flying into the ordinary" "Everyone's home", no matter what, this is a great joy! So, "Are we any worse than others?" "Of course it's not bad! The poem first suppresses and then expands, and in the end it is unhurried and unhurried. It allows us to recognize the unique interest and unique charm of his family life. In this way, the reader's previous sour feeling is swept away. And left with a knowing smile. It’s not that we all really accepted Wen Yiduo’s logic and convinced him of his theory, but that through his well-intentioned narration, we truly understood Chinese intellectuals have a special mental state in which they experience hardship while enjoying hardship. This state of mind does not specifically refer to family life or marital life. In our entire life history, we have never encountered situations where "suffering is greater than happiness". Sometimes, however, due to various reasons that cannot be solved by human power, it seems difficult for us to show off our personalities like Westerners and be unwilling to give up. We have to hit a dead end and be defeated. More often, we are still aggrieved and "enjoying hardships". Although this is indeed too cowardly and cowardly, it has been followed by many loyal and honest Chinese intellectuals, and it is the "realism" of life.