Rotteck was born in Saginaw, Michigan. After graduating from the University of Michigan, I worked as an English teacher in several universities. He settled down in Washington University.
His poems include Open Day (1941); Lost son (1948); Praise to the end (195 1 year); Dedicated to the language of the wind (1958); Lamb baa (am! Say lamb) (196 1 year); Far field (1964); Poetry anthology (1966); On the Poet and His Craft (1965) contains many essays and speeches. There are many essays and poems in Chai Huo's notes.
montage
Translated by Theodore Rotteck and Lin Pengyu (USA)
Tired branches droop on the granular fertile soil,
The intricate fluff on the branches dried up;
But the fragile cuttings keep absorbing water,
Tiny cells are expanding.
Growing node
Push away a grain of sand,
Puncture the moldy skin,
Let your pale tendril-like buds sway.
The Cut by Theodore Rotteck. After the first reading, I was attracted by its delicate and realistic writing and natural and harmonious rhythm, chewed it carefully and was impressed by its profound philosophy.
The whole poem consists of seven sentences and eight lines. The poet first used the first two lines to show a panoramic view: a dry and drooping branch crouched in the sand and seemed to have lost its vitality. Can it still be alive? Can you survive? This situation is worrying. However, the poet did not worry the readers too much, and immediately gave them vitality and commerce in three or four lines: the branches were still "fragile" but "constantly absorbing water"; Although the "cell" is still "tiny", it is "expanding", giving readers surprises and hopes. It seems that the poet is still a master of grandstanding, making you breathless. Then the quatrain focuses on a point-"a growing node" with a biomicroscope pen. It carefully and bravely pushes loose "sand chips", "pierces" the scabbard and "swings out" the bud angle, giving readers vivid visual impact and spiritual shock. Poetry came to an abrupt end, leaving readers with endless imagination.
Reading "Scissors" reminds me of Linxi's "Life in Cracks", which shows the life forms of natural plants and eulogizes their strong vitality. Plants in nature are still like this. What about people who are primates of all things? I think this is what this poem wants to inspire people. The cutting in the poem is not only a natural branch, but also a carrier of the poet's ideal intention and a person in real life. He may have the same experience as cutting branches. He may be in his youth and in the glorious period of his career, but he was teased by fate intentionally or unintentionally and fell into the trough of his career. What do we do? It's like cutting. As long as there is an opportunity, we should "continuously attract", "expand", "push away", "pierce", "swing out" and "sprout" and walk out of our own life path. This is also the touching part of this poem.