Love-Sickness
- Poetry of Yang Weizhen

《相思》

中文原文

深情长是暗相随，月白风清苦苦思。

不似东姑痴醉酒，幕天席地了无知。

English Translation

The lass deep in love longs for her beloved apart;

In moonlit breezy night lovesickness gnaws her heart.

Why won’t she drink like silly maiden in the east,

Who cares nor for the breeze nor the moon in the least?

By Yang Weizhen

- Last updated: 2024-07-01 09:34:37

· Pre： Qing Ming

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