Selected Poems of Du Fu No Home Farewell Du Fu Series: Selected Poems of Du Fu | Collection of Poems of Du Fu Selected Poems of Du Fu No Home Farewell
Original text After the lonely Tianbao, there is only Artemisia terrestris in the garden 1! There are more than a hundred families in my house, and everything is in chaos. There is no news about the survivors, and the dead are dust and mud. The bastard was defeated and returned to look for old ways. After walking for a long time, I saw empty alleys, and I became thinner and miserable every day. But for foxes and raccoons, my hair stands on end and I cry in anger4! What do the neighbors have? One or two old widows. The old bird loves this branch, can it say goodbye and live in poverty? 5? In the spring, I am alone with the hoe, and at dusk I am still irrigating the fields. The county officials knew that I had arrived, and summoned them to practice the drum and the rhinoceros. Although he is serving in the state, he has nothing to take with him7. If you go near, you will stop. If you go far, you will end up lost. 8. Now that my hometown has been exhausted, the principles of the near and far are also unified9! My mother is always in pain and sick, and she has been appointed to ditch and stream for ten years. If I am unable to give birth, I will be sore all my life. If you have no home in your life, why should you live in Zhengli?
Notes 1 Tianbaohou: refers to after the Anlushan Rebellion. The chapter begins with a retrospective narrative, tracing the reasons for homelessness and leading to the following. Lu: A house for living. However, it only conveys the tragic scene after the Anlu Mountain Rebellion in an extremely summary and painful way: there is nothing but a piece of Artemisia terrestris (that is, weeds). 2 Bitch: This homeless person calls himself. Defeat: refers to the defeat of Yecheng. Lose weight in 3 days: The sunlight is weak, Du Fu’s own coinage. 4 I cry when I am angry: I am angry and cry at me. The countryside has been deserted for a long time and wild beasts are rampant. 5 This sentence refers to itself as a "local bird", which means that everyone loves their homeland, so even if they are trapped in a poor place, they still do it. 6 This sentence means that he will be drafted to fight again. 7 carry: leave immediately. Having nothing to carry means that there is no one at home to say goodbye to. 8 These two sentences mean that I feel lucky to be able to serve in this state. 9 Qi: Qi Tong. These two sentences go one step further and are self-injurious. It means that there is nothing left in my hometown, and being a soldier in this state is the same as being a soldier in another county. It was exactly five years since the rebellion in Anlu Mountain in the 14th year of Tianbao's reign. Two sour hisses: It means that both the mother and the son are hated. Hissing with soreness, crying uncontrollably. Zhengli: refers to the working people. Steamed, many. Li, black.
Translation After Tianbao, the countryside was desolate and decayed, leaving only wormwood and tribulus in the fields. There used to be more than a hundred families in my hometown, but due to the chaos of the world, they all went their separate ways. There is no news about those who are alive, and those who are dead have long since turned into dust. Because Yecheng was defeated, I came back to look for the old road in my hometown. After walking in the village for a long time, I saw only empty alleys, the sun was dark, and there were depressing and miserable scenes everywhere. I could only face the wild rats and foxes, and they all bristled and howled at me. Who else is around? There were only one or two old widows left. The old bird is always attached to the branch, and I am also attached to my homeland. How can I leave my hometown? Just stay here. It was spring, so I picked up a hoe and went to work in the fields. In the evening, I was still busy watering the fields. The county officials knew I was back and drafted me into service again. Although he was serving in the state, he had nothing to bring home. If I go nearby, I will be alone; if I go far away, I will eventually be lost. Since there is nothing left in my hometown, distance and distance are the same to me. Thinking of my mother who had been ill for many years, I felt extremely sad. It was pity that she had not been properly buried even after five years of death. She gave birth to me, but did not receive my service and care. The mother and son endured bitterness throughout their lives. People live in this world but have no home to leave. How can they be ordinary people?
Appreciation "No Home" shows the pain the war brings to the people through the protagonist's self-narration before joining the army. The whole poem consists of three parts. From the beginning to "One or Two Old Widows" is the first part, which describes what the protagonist saw when he returned to his hometown after the war; the last four sentences of the second part are, "The old bird loves this branch, and it is peaceful and poor. "In the spring, I am alone with my hoeing, and at dusk I still irrigate the fields." It describes the living conditions of the veterans after returning to their hometowns; the rest is the last part, describing the veterans' laments about having to serve again and have no home to leave. The first part describes the appearance of my hometown from both the overall and detailed perspectives. The first six sentences are the protagonist's recollection of the scenes in his hometown, which are caused by realistic scenes. So what is the reality? "After the loneliness of Tianbao, there is only wormwood in the garden." The poet uses the word "loneliness" to present the desolate and depressed scene of the countryside to the readers. The protagonist is sentimental and sad because of this, which is also the emotional tone of the whole poem. The following eight sentences describe what the protagonist saw after entering the village. The two sentences "Bitch" serve as a transition. "Jiu Xing" fully demonstrates that the village has changed beyond recognition. "Every day is thin and miserable", through the use of personification, it truly describes the miserable state of mind of the veteran - he searched all the way, but only "one or two old widows" were still there! The four sentences of "Home Bird" mainly describe the protagonist's living conditions after returning to his hometown. The poem uses the attachment of the resident bird to the branches where it builds its nest to express the protagonist's nostalgia for his homeland. Even though my hometown is extremely poor, I don't want to leave. So the veteran began his hard farming life again, plowing land during the day and watering the vegetable garden in the evening. The last part is about separation, but the protagonist has no home to leave. The incident started because "the county officials knew that I was here". The six sentences from "Although I am a soldier in Honshu" to "The distance and the near are all the same" start with the details and go deep layer by layer to describe the psychological change process of the protagonist after receiving the order. The lonely expedition is already very desolate, and the unpredictability of life and death is even more sad. "When the hometown is gone, the distance and the distance are balanced." There is nothing in the hometown, and there is no care anymore, so whether it is "near trip" or "far away" is insignificant, there is no difference. The reason for "nothing to take care of" is explained in the last six sentences: He has no wife or children, so he can settle down everywhere.
His mother had already left him due to the war. Not only was he unable to receive his service while alive, but she also ended up in the "Weigou River" after her death.
Such pain of family destruction and death made the protagonist question at the end: If people have no home to leave, what else can they rely on to serve as common people?