Mooring in Qinhuai
(Tang Dynasty) Du Mu
The smoke cage is cold, the moon is caged in the sand,
The Qinhuai River is close to the restaurant at night.
Shang girls don’t know the hatred for the country’s subjugation.
Across the river, they are still singing the flowers in the backyard.
Translation
The misty smoke enveloped the Hanjiang River, and the white sand of the boat reflected the silver moonlight.
At night, I parked on the bank of the Qinhuai River, near where the restaurant is. place.
The singing girl does not know what the hatred of the subjugation of the country is,
still singing "Yushu Backyard Flowers" loudly on the other side.
Appreciation of Works
Qinhuai, the Qinhuai River, originates in the northeast of Lishui, Jiangsu Province, runs through Jinling (now Nanjing, Jiangsu Province) and enters the Yangtze River. From the Six Dynasties to the Tang Dynasty, the Qinhuai River area in Jinling has always been a place for the rich and powerful to have dinner and have fun. This poem was written by the poet when he was mooring in Qinhuai at night and was inspired by the scenery. In his lament about the rise and fall of the Six Dynasties, it contains the feeling of worrying about the present world. This poem also shows considerable skill in the use of language. The first sentence describes the scene. "Smoke", "water", "moon" and "sand" are connected by the two characters "cage", blending into a hazy and deserted water-colored night scene. The second period title uses the rich connotation of "near a restaurant" to activate the nostalgia for the past. The Qinhuai area was a famous entertainment place in the Six Dynasties, with many restaurants, so the endless prosperity of the singing and dancing banquets in the past was actually included in the poet's words at this time. in thoughts. The last two sentences are inspired by the song "Flowers in the Back Garden". "I don't know" expresses the poet's indignation towards "business women", and also indirectly satirizes the rulers who do not take state affairs as a priority and are obsessed with life and death. The word "still singing" cleverly combines history and reality, and the pain of the time is euphemistic and profound. Shen Deqian, a critic in the Qing Dynasty, praised this poem as a "swan song". The word "Jew" reveals the author's critical meaning and worry. Guan Shiming even called it the masterpiece of the Tang Dynasty. The Qinhuai River was a prosperous place for singing and dancing in Jinling, the old capital of the Six Dynasties. The poet parked his boat on the bank of the river late at night, and heard the singing of a businesswoman's "Flowers in the Backyard of the Jade Tree" from across the river. Listening to the sound of the country's subjugation, one could not help but arouse a sense of the rise and fall of the times. These two sentences deeply condemn the rulers who only know how to sing, dance, buy laughter and enjoy themselves, but do not learn from history. The scenes of this poem blend together, and the hazy scenery is very harmonious with the faint sadness in the poet's heart. This poem is inspired by the scene. Jinling was once the capital of the Six Dynasties and prosperous for a time. Witnessing the declining power of the Tang Dynasty today and the ignorance and debauchery of those in power, it is inevitable to repeat the mistakes of the Six Dynasties, which is infinitely sentimental. The first sentence describes the scene, first trying to exaggerate the lightness and elegance of the night by the water; the second sentence of narrative points out the location of the night mooring; the third and fourth sentences of sentiments, from "near the restaurant" lead to the song of the business girl, there are many songs in restaurants, natural and free; The song is so wild that it brings out "I don't know the hatred of country subjugation", criticizing the wealthy gentry and the powerful for being indulging in sex and lust, and is subtle and profound; from "Hate of country subjugation" comes the melody of "Flowers in the Back Courtyard", borrowing the poem of Empress Chen to criticize the debauchery of the powerful, which is profound and sharp. . These two sentences express the relatively sober feudal intellectuals' hidden worries about state affairs, and also reflect that the bureaucrats and aristocrats are filling their decayed and empty souls with a life of sex, singing, dancing, and extravagance. This is exactly the real life of the declining late Tang Dynasty. Portraits of two different sides. "The merchant girl did not know the hatred of the country's subjugation, but she still sang "The Flowers in the Back Garden" across the river." "The Flowers in the Back Garden of Yushu" is said to be a piece of music composed by Chen Houzhu of the Southern Dynasty, and has been called "the sound of the country's subjugation" by later generations. "Across the river" comes from the previous sentence "hate for the country's subjugation". It refers to the Sui Dynasty soldiers Chen's army in the north of the Yangtze River. The small court of the Southern Dynasty across the river was in danger, but the empress Chen was still indulged in singing and women, and was finally captured and subjugated. . Literally, these two lines of poetry seem to be criticizing singing girls, but in fact, the poet was feeling the decline of the country and the decadent social customs in the late Tang Dynasty, and criticized those rulers who were addicted to singing and dancing to promote peace and "did not know" that the country was about to perish. The word "Yu Sing" has a profound meaning, cleverly connecting history, reality and the imagined future, showing the poet's concern and anxiety for the fate of the country. This poem describes what the poet saw, heard and felt. The language is fresh and natural, and the conception is exquisite and thoughtful. The whole poem combines scenery, events, emotions and ideas into one. The scenery is set for the emotions, and the emotions follow the scenery. Using Chen Houzhu's desolation and subjugation as an allegory for the rulers of the late Tang Dynasty, it implicitly expresses the poet's deep thinking about history and his deep concern for reality. With deep emotions and profound meaning, it is known as the masterpiece of Tang Dynasty quatrains. This poem expresses the poet's bitter satire on the rulers of the late Tang Dynasty and his deep concern for the fate of the country. Such rich connotations and profound themes are contained in just 28 words, each of which is condensed to the last detail. The language of poetry requires conciseness. Only conciseness can be implicit, and only implicitness can be concise. Therefore, subtlety and conciseness complement each other and complement each other. In the artistic conception of blending scenes, this poem vividly and typically expresses the atmosphere of the late Tang Dynasty. It reminds people of the debauchery and subjugation of the country by empress Chen to the fate of the declining late Tang Dynasty. It euphemistically and implicitly expresses the poet's profound understanding of history. Thinking, deep concern about reality, with profound content, deep feelings, endless meaning and thought-provoking.