Border-songs III
- Poetry of Lu Lun

《塞下曲四首之三》

- Last updated: 2024-03-18 15:32:00

中文原文

月黑雁飛高，單于夜遁逃。

欲將輕騎逐，大雪滿弓刀。

English Translation

High in the faint moonlight, wildgeese are soaring.

Tartar chieftains are fleeing through the dark --

And we chase them, with horses lightly burdened

And a burden of snow on our bows and our swords.

Folk-song-styled-verse

Why Chinese poems is so special?: The most distinctive features of Chinese poetry are: concision- many poems are only four lines, and few are much longer than eight; ambiguity- number, tense and parts of speech are often undetermined, creating particularly rich interpretative possibilities; and structure- most poems follow quite strict formal patterns which have beauty in themselves as well as highlighting meaningful contrasts.

How to read a Chinese poem?: Like an English poem, but more so. Everything is there for a reason, so try to find that reason. Think about all the possible connotations, and be aware of the different possibilities of number and tense. Look for contrasts: within lines, between the lines of each couplet and between successive couplets. Above all, don't worry about what the poet meant- find your meaning.

List of Chinese poets