Cambridge is the seat of the famous Cambridge University in the UK. He was studying there at the time.
"Farewell Cambridge" is a popular poem by the modern poet Xu Zhimo and a representative work of Crescent Poetry. The whole poem uses the ups and downs of emotions when bidding farewell to Cambridge as a clue to express the deep feeling of farewell to Cambridge. The language is light and soft, and the form is exquisite and mature. The poet uses the technique of alternating virtual and real to depict flowing pictures, forming wonderful artistic conceptions everywhere. He meticulously combines the poet's love for Cambridge, his longing for the past life, and his vision of the present. The helpless sorrow of separation is sincere, rich and meaningful, which is the swan song of Xu Zhimo's poems.
Original text:
Gently I left,
Just as I came gently;
I waved gently,
Be a farewell to the clouds in the western sky.
The golden willows by the river,
are the bride in the sunset;
The beautiful shadow in the ripples,
is in my heart Ripple.
The green banana plants on the soft mud,
swaying oilily under the water;
In the soft waves of the Cam River,
I am willing to be a waterweed!
The pool under the shade of elm trees,
is not a clear spring, but a rainbow in the sky;
crushed among the floating algae,
sedimented Dreaming like a rainbow.
Looking for a dream? Take a long punt and row back to where the grass is greener;
Load a boat full of stars,
Sing songs in the colorful starlight.
But I can’t sing,
Quietness is the shengxiao of parting;
The summer insects are also silent for me,
Silence is today Late Cambridge!
Quietly I left,
just as quietly as I came;
I waved my sleeves,
not taken away A cloud.
Creative background:
This poem was written on November 6, 1928, and was first published in the "Crescent" monthly magazine, Volume 1, No. 10, on December 10, 1928, signed by Xu Shima. Cambridge is the seat of the famous Cambridge University in the UK. From October 1920 to August 1922, the poet studied here. The Kangqiao period was a turning point in Xu Zhimo's life. The poet once stated in "The Preface to the Collection of Tigers": Before the age of 24, his interest in poetry was far less than his interest in the theory of relativity or the theory of folk conventions. It was the water of the Cam River that opened the poet's mind and awakened the poet's destiny that had been dormant in his heart for a long time. Therefore, he later said with great affection: "It was Kangqiao who taught me to open my eyes, my thirst for knowledge was stimulated by Kangqiao, and my self-awareness was given to me by Kangqiao as an embryo." ("Smoking and Culture") )
The poet revisited his hometown in 1928. On November 6, while on his way home in the South China Sea, he composed this masterpiece. This poem was first published in the "Crescent" monthly magazine, Volume 1, No. 10, on December 10, 1928, and was later included in "Tiger Collection". It can be said that the "Cambridge plot" runs through Xu Zhimo's poems throughout his life, and "Farewell to Cambridge" is undoubtedly the most famous one.
This poem was written by Xu Zhimo on his way back from his third trip to Europe. The time was November 6, 1928, and the location was Shanghai, China. One summer day at the end of July, after he stayed one night at the home of the British philosopher Russell, without informing anyone in advance, he quietly came to Cambridge to find his British friend. Unfortunately, none of his British friends were there. Only Cambridge, which he was familiar with, was waiting for him silently. Scenes of the past life unfolded before his eyes again... Since he was in a hurry at the time, he was in a hurry to meet him. Another British friend did not record this emotional event. It wasn't until he took a boat from Marseille to return home, facing the turbulent sea and the vast sky, that he took out a piece of paper and wrote down his personal feelings about returning to Cambridge.
However, what Xu Zhimo left behind at that time was the English version of "Farewell Cambridge", which was translated by an unknown Chinese at the time.