The lonely swan won't drink nor eat,
But longs to join its flock to fleet.
Who will pity its shadow lonely,
Astray in the clouds,
it wails only.Out of sight,
still it seems in view;
Lost in grief,
its song's heard anew.
What do insensible birds know?
You hear only caws of the crow.
Original Poem:
「孤雁」
杜甫
孤雁不饮啄，飞鸣声念群。
谁怜一片影，相失万重云？
望尽似犹见，哀多如更闻。
野鸦无意绪，鸣噪自纷纷。
Interpretation:
This poem was written during Du Fu's sojourn in Fengjie, Chongqing, when the poet was already in his old age, sickly and in a difficult situation, his heart was full of disillusionment and sadness.
In the first two lines, the lonely goose neither drinks nor pecks for food, and its voice is full of longing for its flock mates.
The lonely goose misses its companions very much, not only misses, but also desperately pursues, is an emotionally passionate and persistent lonely goose. Send the poet was eager to reunite with friends and relatives mood.
The third and fourth lines: the geese disappeared between the sea of clouds, who will pity the lonely geese in the sky?
In the distant and vast sky, this small lonely geese and geese lost in the clouds, at this time and place seem anxious, anxious and confused. The image of the road far away from the lonely geese, companions difficult to find the miserable feelings. The poet misses not only his brothers, but also his close friends. In those turbulent years, the poet is in exile, friends and relatives separated, different sides of the world, but he always long for the reunion of flesh and blood, no day does not dream of friends to reunite, the lonely geese, the poet's own shadow.
The fifth six lines: the lonely geese look at the end of the world, as if vaguely see the partners in front of them, wailing endlessly, as if more and more heard the companions call.
Through the description of the lonely geese flying and screaming in search of their companions, the longing and torment of the lonely geese are expressed to the fullest extent. It is haunted by longing and tormented by pain, forcing it to keep flying and calling. It looks at the sky and keeps looking, as if the lost geese are always in front of its eyes. It wailed and wailed and wailed, as if the song of the companion was always ringing in its ears. Therefore, it has to keep chasing after the geese and keep calling out.
The last two sentences: the wild crows do not understand the feeling of the lonely geese, just focus on their own song and noise.
With the accompaniment of the penmanship, expressed the poet's love and hate feelings. With the wild crow's carefree, lively and very contrast the loneliness of the lonely geese, sadness, to further show the lonely geese longing for reunion of the sadness and perseverance in the search.
The poem describes the poet himself through the lonely geese, and indirectly implies the poet's feelings of being displaced and missing his friends and relatives during the war through the lonely geese that are wailing and searching for their partners.
Poem translator:
Xu Yuan-chong (许渊冲)
About the poet:
Du Fu (杜甫), 712 - 770 AD, was a great poet of the Tang Dynasty, known as the "Sage of Poetry". Born into a declining bureaucratic family, Du Fu had a rough life, and his turbulent and dislocated life made him keenly aware of the plight of the masses. Therefore, his poems were always closely related to the current affairs, reflecting the social life of that era in a more comprehensive way, with profound thoughts and a broad realm. In his poetic art, he was able to combine many styles, forming a unique style of "profound and thick", and becoming a great realist poet in the history of China.
