The Tian family has less leisure in the month, and people are twice as busy in May. In the evening, the south wind rises and the wheat turns yellow.
Mother-in-law is rich in food, and children are full of pot pulp. Go with Tian Xiang. Ding Zhuang is in Nangang.
Filled with the heat of the country, the back was scorched by the sun. I don't know about the heat, but I regret the long summer.
There is another poor woman with her son in her arms. Grab the ear with your right hand and hang the basket with your left arm.
Listening to his words of concern is very sad. My family's taxes are gone, so I can take this to satisfy my hunger.
Today, I have no merit, and I have never worked in farming and mulberry. There are three hundred stones in the land, and there is surplus food at the age of eight.
This poem was written by the author when he was a county magistrate in the second year of Yuanhe (807) (now Zhouzhi, Shaanxi), and it was a famous satirical poem of the author in his early days. This article describes the hard life of farmers under the oppression of heavy taxes. They are busy farming, but there is still no guarantee. Today's wheat reapers are likely to become tomorrow's wheat pickers, and this strong irony is among them.
"The family, idle month less, people twice as busy in May. At night, the south wind rises and the wheat turns yellow. " The beginning of the poem explains the writing background, indicating that May is the busy season for wheat harvest. Then "mother-in-law pays for food, and the child carries the kettle pulp." Go with Tian Xiang. Ding Zhuang is in Nangang. "Two sentences describe the scene of women taking their children to the fields to deliver water and meals to young adults who are cutting wheat. Later, I wrote about the fatigue and hardship of young people. They are "full of the heat of the country, roasting the sky." "Regardless of the scorching sun, I stepped on the hot land and tirelessly bowed my head to harvest wheat in Nangang wheat field." I don't know about the heat, but I regret the long summer. "Although they are exhausted, they cherish this long summer regardless of the scorching sun. At this point in the poem, the scene of the family's hard work and busyness is displayed in front of us, and the readers also give deep sympathy to it. Then the author painted a sad picture. " A poor woman with a baby in her arms. The right hand holds the ear and the left hand hangs the basket. A poor woman, with a child in her arms and a broken basket in her hand, was picking up the ears of wheat that fell during the wheat harvest to listen to their concern, and the listener was sad. My family's taxes are gone, so I can take this to satisfy my hunger. "It turns out that in order to pay the official tax, her family bought all the fields. Now there is no field to plant and no wheat to harvest, so she has to live on the broken wheat scattered by others when harvesting. It's really sympathetic and sad.
These two scenes are intertwined, with both differences and connections: the former reveals the hardships of farmers, while the latter reveals heavy taxes. Since heavy taxes have made poor women lose their fields, they will also make this peasant family who is cutting wheat lose their fields. Today's wheat pickers are yesterday's wheat pickers; Today's wheat harvesters may become tomorrow's wheat harvesters. Strong irony is self-evident. The poet linked the pain of farmers' life with the ease of his own life, feeling ashamed and unable to calm down for a long time. This lyric text is the essence of the whole poem. It is the product of the author's touching feelings and shows the poet's deep sympathy for the working people. Bai Juyi wrote satirical poems with the aim of "only making people sick, and I hope the emperor knows." In this poem, he made a sharp contrast between the peasants and himself as a court official with his own personal feelings, that is, he hoped that the "son of heaven" was affectionate and tactful, which could be described as well-intentioned.