This poem was written in 1970. At that time, the poet was sent to the cadre school of the Ministry of Culture in Xianning, Hubei Province-the so-called "bullpen" in the subtitle of the poem-labor reform. In the political climate and realistic situation at that time, the poet could not directly express his true thoughts and feelings, but only expressed his views on real life in a tortuous and subtle way. Unprecedented national disasters and major setbacks in personal fate made the poet who had never believed in any religion in his life reread the Bible sadly and silently: one night, the poet tossed and turned, unable to sleep, "so he got out of bed, spread out the banned books/lit an oil lamp in the early years of AD".
The poet's inner grief and metaphor for the times are highlighted through a rather gentle and peaceful style, and the biblical story is compared with the reality of the "Cultural Revolution" at a slow pace. The poet did not simply repeat the Bible story, but the Bible story became a background and the object of comparison here. Poets "respect Moses who legislated for the people", "admire Sassoon who overthrew the temple", "love the barefoot Nazarene" and "ask Maria? Magdalene saluted, admired Pilate, the Roman governor who declared Jesus innocent, and even sympathized with Judas who hanged himself quietly to thank the world. Positive praise for some characters in the Bible (although some praise is ironic) expresses the poet's love, yearning and pursuit. The poet lamented the characters in the real society and called for justice, courage, honesty and kindness. Especially, his comments on Jesus showed his sympathy for people in the disaster and his confusion about his own suffering.
However, the poet did not indulge in the myth of time evolution, "In the world, it is almost the same as today,/in character (alas! ) It may not be as good as we are today. " Because-today, Jesus was crucified more than once. Today, Pilate will never intercede for Jesus again. Today, Maria? Magdalene was doomed to be humiliated forever. Today, Judas will never think of suicide again. After countless days of "endless examination and explanation on the table, endless criticism and struggle tomorrow", the poet still stubbornly adheres to his beliefs and continues to write great life poems. At this time, the "cowshed" was silent, and the snoring of friends around it fluctuated. There are endless checks and explanations on the table, and there will be endless criticism and struggle tomorrow ... "All hope must be given up here". Anyway, you are a little energetic. I have always believed in atheism: have mercy on my God-only people.
The whole poem is not only heavy, profound and sharp, but also saturated with the poet's deep thinking about life and the world with a clear and optimistic mood. The description and evaluation of the characters and the world in Bible stories is the natural expression of the poet's views on real life. Therefore, its own sense of heaviness, critical consciousness and conscious rational speculation have reached an unprecedented height in similar works.
See P373 for the answer analysis.
Knowledge points of this topic: "Rereading —— Copying the N poem of Cowshed",