6/11/23 - Victor Cheung’s book review on Chinese poem “Fried Fish” by Cyrus Lai:
The intention of the poetry collection "Mirror Heart" is very attractive, and the layout is also very good. I have a special love for the fifteenth chapter "Fried Fish". The word "fried fish" has my close sentiment with "deep affection" and "sincerity". This poem shows the contrast of "seemingly light or dark", depicting the combination of the two moods of "sincerity" and "sigh". It's just a short four lines. With the thinking of the ancients, this poem can affect the emotional ups and downs of "rediscovering eating alone", which makes people feel the breath of nature in their minds. Specifically, there are charcoal stoves in the house and reeds in the wilderness. When the pungent smell of fried fish sauce comes to the nose, it may also uplift the distressful mood.
After reading this poem, I suddenly remembered the prose of Liu Zongyuan, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, which I read in high school. This poem first writes about the scene of the trip to the West Mountain, and then the feeling of the trip. He summed up the mood of the first trip to the West Mountain and his evaluation of its scenery: “weird”. Liu was full of sighs after being demoted. When he traveled to the West Mountain, he was intoxicated with the joy of natural beauty, which was also in sharp contrast to the sigh in "exclusive enjoyment of fried fish" in the poetry collection "Mirror Heart". Ancient and modern poets have relieved a lot of grief accumulated in their hearts for a long time. Of course, they also got some indescribable comfort. Perhaps, only in nature can we understand the special realm of ancient poetry.
2 comments:
Victor Cheung 閲 「煎魚」之讀後感：
「情暈鏡」這詩集的立意很吸引，佈局也很好。我對第十五首 「煎魚」情有獨鍾。題目“煎魚”二字、與”深情”和”摯誠”都有密切的關係。這詩流露着「或明或暗」的對比，刻畫了“真誠”和”嘆息”這兩種心情之彼此聯合。祇是短短四行，這詩就能以古人之思維、牽動了「重覓獨吃」的感情起伏，令人在腦海裏沈澱著大自然的氣息。具體的，有屋內的炭爐、與荒野的蘆葦作伴。當煎魚醬油之濃烈氣味衝著鼻子而來的時候，或許也會令苦惱的心情「為之一振」。
看罷此詩，我油然想起在中學時代曾讀過的唐代詩人柳宗元之散文 「始得西山宴遊記」。這詩先寫遊西山的情景，再寫遊西山的感受。他總括了始遊西山時的心情及對西山景色的評價：「怪特」。柳宗元在被貶之後的心情充滿嘆息，他在遊西山時陶醉於自然美的欣喜、與「情暈鏡」詩集中「獨享煎魚」的唏噓、亦形成鮮明的對比。古今詩人、都隨心舒發出許許多多長久積壓在內心的悲嘆。當然，他們也獲得了一些難以形容的安慰。或許，祇有在大自然中，我們才能領悟到古詩中之「怪特」境界。
6/11/23 - Victor Cheung’s book review on Chinese poem “Fried Fish” by Cyrus Lai:
The intention of the poetry collection "Mirror Heart" is very attractive, and the layout is also very good. I have a special love for the fifteenth chapter "Fried Fish". The word "fried fish" has my close sentiment with "deep affection" and "sincerity". This poem shows the contrast of "seemingly light or dark", depicting the combination of the two moods of "sincerity" and "sigh". It's just a short four lines. With the thinking of the ancients, this poem can affect the emotional ups and downs of "rediscovering eating alone", which makes people feel the breath of nature in their minds. Specifically, there are charcoal stoves in the house and reeds in the wilderness. When the pungent smell of fried fish sauce comes to the nose, it may also uplift the distressful mood.
After reading this poem, I suddenly remembered the prose of Liu Zongyuan, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, which I read in high school. This poem first writes about the scene of the trip to the West Mountain, and then the feeling of the trip. He summed up the mood of the first trip to the West Mountain and his evaluation of its scenery: “weird”. Liu was full of sighs after being demoted. When he traveled to the West Mountain, he was intoxicated with the joy of natural beauty, which was also in sharp contrast to the sigh in "exclusive enjoyment of fried fish" in the poetry collection "Mirror Heart". Ancient and modern poets have relieved a lot of grief accumulated in their hearts for a long time. Of course, they also got some indescribable comfort. Perhaps, only in nature can we understand the special realm of ancient poetry.
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