ORCHID AND orANGE II
- Poetry of Zhang Jiuling

《感遇其四》

- Last updated: 2024-04-18 23:29:45

中文原文

江南有丹橘，经冬犹绿林。

岂伊地气暖，自有岁寒心。

可以荐嘉客，奈何阻重深。

运命唯所遇，循环不可寻。

徒言树桃李，此木岂无阴。

English Translation

Here, south of the Yangzi, grows a red orangetree.

All winter long its leaves are green,

Not because of a warmer soil,

But because its' nature is used to the cold.

Though it might serve your honourable guests,

You leave it here, far below mountain and river.

Circumstance governs destiny.

Cause and effect are an infinite cycle.

You plant your peach-trees and your plums,

You forget the shade from this other tree.

Five-character-ancient-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