Ai Qing is an important poet in the history of modern Chinese literature. The deep and melancholy lyrical style in his works made the thirties and forties the era of Ai Qing. "Handcart" is a new poem written by Ai Qing in early 1938. At that time, Japan had fully invaded China, and the people in the northern country were living in dire straits. At this time, Ai Qing witnessed the suffering of the people in the Yellow River Basin from south to north, so he wrote Got this poem.
In the poem, the trolley acts as an observer. It walks from the foot of one mountain to the foot of another mountain, from one small village to another. It passes through the cold loneliness, vastness and desert, but discovers these places. There is not much difference. It is resounding in all these places, intertwined with the sorrow of the people of the North, and the sorrow of the people is as thick as ink. In the poem, the Yellow River, the mother river, has dried up, and the originally warm village has been shrouded in ice and snow, and there is no life in the vast land. Not only is the object being observed heavy, but the observer himself is also dignified. During its observation journey, faced with this heavy human condition, it sent a piercing and frightening scream into the sky, leaving deep traces in the gray-yellow soil. But it was alone, so its screams and solemnity were not responded to.
The emotions in "Trolley" are deep and solemn, but the language of its poetry is plain and clear. The passion is hidden in the plain words, like the calm before the storm, and its emotions are extremely tense. . In the poem, images such as wheelbarrows, the Yellow River, and the earth are used to express the sorrow of the people, which is very representative. The Yellow River is the mother river of life, the handcart is the means of transportation for production and life, and the earth is the basis of survival. But all of these are now shrouded in the shadow of war and destroyed under the iron heel of the enemy. The author uses the intention related to the people to create a solemn and deep picture, showing the pain of people's lives.
Of course, the popular nature of Ai Qing's poetry is not only reflected in the intentional language, but also reflected in his own emotional resonance. The author is like that cart, witnessing the suffering of the people. He is a witness to everything, and at the same time, he also experiences all the pain. He does not describe the people's suffering from a purely third-party perspective, but experiences everything with the people. His posture is low, and his heart is with the people. This kind of emotional tendency runs through Ai Qing's poetic works and poetic theory.
In Ai Qing’s poetry, land and the sun are two important poetic themes. The brown land holds both the hope of cultivation and the trampling of enemies. It bears witness to the historical memory of China’s rural areas and the nation’s troubled fate. Its meaning is rich and heavy, and the sun represents light and harmony. Warmth, in a specific historical context, symbolizes hope. The author not only expresses deep sympathy and lament for the suffering of the nation and people, but is also full of hope for the country's future, expresses the people's most genuine emotional feelings, and gives the people hope for continuous progress. This may be the reason why Ai Qing's poetry has become the mainstream of the times and directly influenced the July Poetry School.