A tree, a tree/independent of each other/wind and air/telling their distance.
These first four lines are about a scene, which is real, not only for the poet, but also for others. All the trees in the world are isolated and have a certain distance from each other. Looking at these four lines alone, it seems nothing special. If you don't look at the following, it is difficult for others to know the poet's intention in writing like this. But after reading the following poem, the meaning of the first four sentences becomes clear, and there is a social generalization in this simplicity.
But under the cover of soil/their roots are elongated/in the invisible depths/they are entangled in their own roots. "But", a turning point, shifted the reader's eyes from the ground to the underground, and the broad meaning of this poem gradually became clear. This "but" has great power. The poet wants people to know that it is more important to see the tree standing alone on the ground, and it is more important to see the scene of the tree underground, where the roots are "intertwined".
The structure of this poem is very clear. The first four sentences are about the above-ground landscape of trees, and the last four sentences are about the underground landscape of trees. These two landscapes are the living landscapes of trees.
Extended data:
The original "tree"-Ai Qing
A tree, a tree
Stand apart from each other
Wind and air
Tell them the distance
But under the cover of soil,
Their roots are growing.
In the unseen depths
They are wrapped around the roots.
Creation background
The tree was written in the spring of 1940. At this time, War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression has been going on for more than two years, and is turning into a difficult stalemate stage. This national war is giving all the people a baptism, making their souls undergo severe tempering in the war and gradually moving towards spiritual awakening. Ai Qing is deeply aware of the trend of the times and the pulse of society, and realizes that the national awakening has arrived.
References:
Baidu encyclopedia-tree