The similarities and differences between Wang Wei's "Send Yuan Er Envoy to Anxi" and Gao Shi's "Farewell to Dongda"
The famous landscape poet Wang Wei in the prosperous Tang Dynasty and the famous frontier fortress poet Gao Shi has written many farewell poems. Wang Wei's representative work in this regard is "Farewell to the Second Envoy of Yuan Dynasty in Anxi", also known as "Weicheng Song"; one of Gao Shi's representative poems as a farewell poem is "Farewell to Dongda". From these two poems, we can clearly see the difference in style and imagery of the two poets' farewell poems.
Wang Wei's "Weicheng Song" has fresh diction and desolate emotions. It creates the artistic conception and atmosphere of "willows in the West City make spring soft" and "the taste of separation is stronger than wine". It is deeply touching to read. The first two lines of the poem, "The morning rain and light dust in Weicheng, the guest houses are green and the willows are new" describe the scene. In the early morning, the fine and silky spring rain wiped away the light dust of the guest house and soaked the willows that covered the guest house. In the fresh and moist breath of spring, the guest house next to the post road in Xianyang, the ancient capital, is fresh and valuable, and the tender willow branches on the street also look green. These first two sentences not only explain the time, place and season of farewell, but also allow people to experience the softer feelings and surging thoughts from the beautiful and fresh scenery: the sky is sad and the rain falls. , so the first sentence emphasizes the "morning rain"; seeing the willows makes me sad to say goodbye, so the second sentence fully emphasizes the "willow color" of cherishing people. In this way, the feeling of "releasing the willows" and the meaning of saying goodbye to the willows are all contained in the poem, which naturally leads to the last two famous lyrical sentences. The techniques of foreshadowing, setting off and exaggerating the atmosphere are extremely successful. "I urge you to drink another glass of wine, there will be no old friends when you leave Yangguan in the west." These two sentences are to persuade friends who are about to leave to drink another glass of farewell wine full of deep affection, because after walking through Yangguan in the southwest of Dunhuang, Gansu, there are only a few people in the area. During the journey, it is difficult to see relatives and friends again. This is really "a handshake to send each other off, and the heart is sad and at ease", "already hated relatives are far away, who pity friends become rare" (both are Wang Wei's farewell poems). Homesickness, nostalgia, fear of the journey, sigh of distance, love for relatives and old friends, and loneliness at the frontier will all come to my heart at this time, making me burst into tears. No wonder Li Yishan, when commenting on this poem, said: "Singing Yangguan in the sound of heartbreak"!
In the Tang Dynasty, when transportation was congested and frontiers were in turmoil, people would inevitably regard leaving and traveling far away as a major difficulty in their lives, allowing their feet and horses to be used as means of transportation to travel far and wide. , and it is not difficult to understand that it causes great sadness in my heart. Wang Wei captured this common psychology in a timely manner, and used his unique artistic talents in poetry, painting, and music to paint a vivid picture of a spring farewell with careful observation, careful appreciation, delicate emotions, and meticulous brushwork. Its new and beautiful words, clear and soft pronunciation, far-reaching meaning in painting, and long-lasting thoughts deeply touched the hearts of countless people who lived in feudal society and were sung by feudal scholars for a long time. So much so that the famous song "Yangguan Sandie" adapted from it has been circulated to this day and can still make people feel sad when listening to it and want to cry when chanting it. This fully illustrates the unique immortal art of this poem. charm.
Gao Shi's "Farewell to Dongda" is of a different style. The poet writes about the vastness of the sky, the dimness of the sun and the yellow clouds in the sky. Between the sky and the earth, the cold north wind brought heavy snowfall, and there was also "a formation of wild geese frightening the cold", and the soldiers were far away. The two sentences at the beginning of this poem, "Thousands of miles of yellow clouds and white sun, and the north wind blows the wild geese and the snow" completely depict a majestic and vast frontier fortress scenery. Although the cold and desolate atmosphere is all there, the tragic atmosphere can still be clearly seen. It is revealed between the lines, and the writing is impressive. If the first two sentences of the poem have described the frontier fortress as extremely desolate and tragic, then the next two sentences are even more heroic and awe-inspiring: "Don't worry about having no friends on the road ahead, there is no one in the world." "I don't know you" means: Don't worry that you will never meet a close friend if you go forward. In fact, who in the world doesn't respect a man with great talents and strategies! This is exactly what the saying goes, "Don't be sad when you leave your soul, look at the treasured sword." The poet always looks at the big picture, writes ink in big places, and always grasps the overall situation when describing the scene, which is natural. He writes quickly and expresses his heart, which shows the basic characteristics of Gao Shi's "high quality and principle". The poet is very good at creating extraordinary momentum and heroic character in the majesty of the weather; when the mountains are difficult to overcome and the fate is difficult, he shows an optimistic and cheerful majestic style. The profound philosophy of life and the spirit of enterprising spirit envelope the whole poem, which is just as translated by later generations: "With the poet as a military commander, in times of danger, his reputation and integrity are not lost" ("Old Book of Tang" original biography) Gao A suitable person and a poet can indeed do this.
It is also a farewell poem. Wang Wei took the image from the Xianyang ancient road where "guest houses are green and the willows are new". What he felt was that "there are no old friends when leaving Yangguan in the west"; while Gao Shi was in "the north". In the harsh environment of "the wind is blowing, the geese are blowing, and the snow is falling", I think of "who in the world doesn't know you"! Comparing the two, the seasons written are one spring and one winter respectively; the weather is sunny and cloudy, after rain and snow; but the thoughts and feelings are one desolate and one heroic. The contrast is extremely obvious. This contrast does not only appear in one or two poems, but is a concentrated reflection of the completely different overall styles of their farewell poems. For example, while sending a friend to Anxi (equivalent to today's Kuqa in Xinjiang), Gao Shi wrote, "Young people are incompetent. Don't be miserable when you go there." Beside Chunliuqi Road, Gao Shi wrote: "The country is full of joy, but the willows are green and sad."
But Wang Wei often said: "Unconsciously on the ditch, holding a glass of wine with a sad mouth", "We smiled when we met, but wept when we saw each other", felt that "old friends are invisible, lonely in the east of Ping Ling", "I also say goodbye to home" It has been a long time since I saw it, and my face was filled with tears." This further reminds me of "Farewell to the bright moon, you should listen to the rules of the emperor." Even in his farewell poem to Gao Shi, Wang Weishang said: "On the Cangzhou Island, there is no one who knows how to wander." From this point of view, the sadness of farewell and the euphemistic and delicate mentality are the consistent characteristics of Wang Wei's farewell poems, while the ambition to serve the country with a sword and the broad-minded and heroic spirit are the main features of Gao Shi's farewell poems. Characterized.
The above-mentioned stylistic differences between Wang Wei and Gao Shi in their farewell poems are mainly due to their different life experiences and ideological trends. Wang Wei was born into an official family. With his extraordinary talents in poetry, painting, and music, he was favored among the royal families. Relying on the recommendation of powerful people, he became famous in the imperial examination, which can be said to be a young success. He had delicate feelings and was filial to his mother, who was deeply influenced by her mother's Buddhist thoughts. The relationship between mother and son, brothers and husband and wife was extremely deep, which was highly appreciated by people at the time. However, just after this, Wang Wei suffered another unfortunate blow. Not long after the young man succeeded, he was implicated in the case of the actor and the yellow lion dancer, and was demoted and released. After the revival, Zhang Jiuling was expelled from the court, so he was disheartened and felt hopeless politically. What followed was that he was captured during the Anshi Rebellion. He had no choice but to accept the official title of An Lushan, so he was almost charged with treason by the court. Coupled with the death of his mother and the loss of his wife in middle age, his relationship was severely frustrated and his spirit became depressed. All these experiences clearly tell us that Wang Wei, who has been mixed up in the upper class for a long time, cannot draw the nourishment for progress and the spirit of realistic criticism from the lower class society. On the contrary, he has added a lot of interest in leisurely life and lost some understanding of society and life. Comprehensive understanding; Young success is actually a great misfortune in Wang Wei's life. It is extremely difficult for such a person to withstand the blow of unfortunate fate after middle age, and it is difficult for him to have the courage and perseverance to adapt to various adversities; and ideological belief Buddhism made Wang Wei too indulged in inner seeking and introspection, and he lost a lot of courage and strength to seek from the real society. It is precisely because of these reasons that Wang Weicai sadly lamented, "How many sad things in life can't be sold to Buddhists". As a typical representative of the weak intellectuals at that time, he always felt the mental torture caused by separation and separation in an extremely melancholy and sad manner. He often recited "I know the Han envoy Xiao Tianwai from afar, and I am worried about seeing the sunset over an isolated city." The desolate tone of the farewell poem "Bian Bian" is a true reflection of the poet's misfortune and the emptiness of the Buddha's thoughts.
Gao Shi’s experience is exactly the opposite of Wang Wei’s. He lost his father when he was young and is well aware of the hardships of the world. Although he had learned both civil and military skills through hard study and hard work, it was not until Gao Shi was forty-nine that he succeeded in the scientific examination, and based on this, he only obtained the minor position of Fengqiu County Lieutenant. Although he enjoyed official success in his later years and became a prince, the experience of living in the lower class for a long time since childhood, the hardships of a difficult life, and the process of self-struggle were enough for Gao Shilian to develop the perseverance to fight hard, the spirit of self-improvement, and high-spiritedness. Upward attitude towards life and magnanimous style. The idea of ??making contributions has always dominated Gao Shi's life, so he was always able to integrate his own fame and social utility. He often sang frankly, boldly and unrestrainedly, "When you are poor, master, don't shed tears." , "Men strive for wealth and honor, so I advise you not to return late", "You can use it at a good time, and don't do it in vain". In this series of farewell poems, the majestic tone and heroic style coincide with the magnificent atmosphere and the high-spirited spirit of the times. This spirit directly inspired and influenced the formation of Li Bai's bold poetic style, and played a very positive role in promoting the development of poetry in the Tang Dynasty.
Of course, Wang Wei's farewell poems did contain the Zhuang language of "generously leaning on the long sword and singing a song to send you off", but this was only an accidental appearance and only a few of his works. Just one or two, which is really not enough to indicate the basic style of his farewell poem. Similarly, in Gao Shi's farewell poems, there was also a lament that "the journey is long and we are far apart, and we are relatively sad", but this is only seen in one or two poems, and his perseverance and heroic spirit are It is enough to mark the overall style of his farewell poem and the basic bearing of his person. The so-called "lots of hypothetical words, but also spirit" (Yin Fan's "Heyue Yingling Collection") is indeed a good comment.
On the basis of the above analysis, when we go back and reread the two farewell poems "Weicheng Song" and "Farewell to Dongda", we can have a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of "Wang Wei's poems" "I urge you to have another glass of wine, and there will be no old friends when you leave Yangguan in the west." The deep feelings of farewell and the delicate and sad mentality are revealed; you can also stand in a higher realm and appreciate the poem "Don't worry about having no friends in the future" in Gao Shi's poem "Who in the world does not recognize you" expresses the majesty, masculinity and profound philosophy of life. What needs to be emphasized here is that from the second part of "Farewell to Dong Da", we can find that when Gao Shi wrote "Farewell to Dong Da", he was in a difficult situation in his life. , the sad situation of meeting today without money for drinks" (Part 2 of "Farewell to Dong Da"). But even so, this majestic man can still inspire his friends and himself with the powerful words "Who in the world does not recognize you", and show the world with his unyielding and unyielding majesty. This is indeed worthy of praise. Qi is a capital person, a real person.
Using this moral integrity as a poem is probably a spiritual state that cannot be ignored nowadays!