Historical event:
In November (755), the fourteenth year of Tianbao, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, An Lushan rebelled against the Tang Dynasty. In June of the following year, the rebels captured Tongguan, and Tang Xuanzong fled to Sichuan in a hurry. In July, Prince Li Heng was located in Lingwu (now Ningxia), which was for Tang Suzong, and changed the Yuan Dynasty to Germany. When Du Fu heard the news, he settled his family in Duzhou and went to the Suzong court alone. Unfortunately, he was captured by the rebels on the way and sent to Chang 'an, but he was not imprisoned because of his humble position.
First, the original poem
Spring Hope
Author: Du Fu (Tang)
though a country be sundered, hills and rivers endure, and spring comes green again to trees and grasses.
where petals have been shed like tears, and lonely birds have sung their grief.
after the war-fires of three months, one message from home is worth a ton of gold.
I stroke my white hair. It has grown too thin, to hold the hairpins any more.
Second, vernacular translation
Only the mountains and rivers remain when the country falls, and the urban areas are overgrown with weeds in spring.
I'm worried and sad, but I cry when I see flowers blooming. It makes me feel palpitation when I leave my family.
The flames of war have not stopped in March, and family letters are precious and worth thousands of dollars.
I'm only scratching my head when I'm depressed and upset, so my hair is too thin to be inserted.
Expand the information
Appreciation of ancient poems:
Spring Watch is a poem written by Du Fu, a great poet in the Tang Dynasty. The first four sentences of this poem describe the miserable and dilapidated scene of Chang 'an in spring, which is full of ups and downs. In the last four sentences, the poet's feelings of caring for his loved ones and being concerned about state affairs are full of bitterness and grief. The rhyme of the whole poem is strict, and in the couplet, "where petals have been shed like tears" should be the sigh of the first couplet, and "and lonely birds have sung their grief" should be the worry of homesickness in the couplet. The couplet emphasizes that the deep worry leads to whiteness and sparseness, delicate antithesis and tragic voice, which fully shows the poet's patriotic feelings.
"though a country be sundered, hills and rivers endure, and spring comes green again to trees and grasses." At the beginning of the poem, I describe what I saw in the spring: the mountains and rivers are still the same, but the capital has fallen, and the city has been ruined in the war, with grass growing in disorder and trees being barren. The poet remembers how prosperous the spring in Chang 'an was in the past, with birds singing and flowers singing, flocks flying, bright smoke and willow, and tourists lingering, but that scene has disappeared today. A word "broken" makes people stunned, and then a word "deep" makes people sad.
"where petals have been shed like tears, and lonely birds have sung their grief." Flowers are heartless and tearful, birds are shocked without hatred, and flowers and birds have resentment because of people. The flowers in spring were originally beautiful and fragrant; Birds in spring should cheer and sing euphemistic songs to give people pleasure. Both "feeling for time" and "hating farewell" are concentrated with Du Fu's grief and anguish. The meaning of these two sentences can be understood as follows: I feel the defeat of the current situation, see the flowers bloom and tears fall; I feel melancholy and resentful, and I am frightened when I hear birds singing.
"after the war-fires of three months, one message from home is worth a ton of gold." The poet thought: the war has been going on continuously for a spring, and it is still not over. Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty was forced to flee to Shu, and Tang Suzong just succeeded to the throne. However, the loyalist has not yet gained a favorable situation and has not been able to recover Xijing. It seems that the war still doesn't know how long it will last. I also remembered that I was captured and detained in the enemy camp. I haven't heard from my wife and children for a long time. Their life and death are uncertain and I don't know what happened. If only I could get a letter from home.
"I stroke my white hair. It has grown too thin, to hold the hairpins any more." When the flames of war continue for months, the family will not believe, and the worries of the country and the family will come to mind, and the internal and external troubles will be entangled. At present, there is a miserable scene, and my heart is extremely anxious. I don't feel bored at the moment, scratching my head, hesitating, and turning my hair into white hair. I have been wandering in the war since I left home, and I have been trapped in Chang' an for several months. My hair is even thinner. I scratch my hair with my hands, and I feel that it is scarce and short-sighted. I can't even insert my hair.
The poet wrote about his own senility from the separation of national destruction and war. "White hair" comes from worry, and "scratching" is more worrying because it wants to relieve worry. Hair is white and thin. From the change of hair, readers feel the poet's inner pain and sorrow, and readers can more appreciate the poet's true image of worrying about the country and missing his family when he is injured. This is a touching, complete and full artistic image.
Baidu Encyclopedia-Spring Hope