Shi Jing, The Book of Odes: Lessons from the States, Odes Of Wei and Odes of Wang

[x_los]

Thanks for a nice crop of responses! Remember to check out the comments, and thank you to those who've contributed Baidu and other language insights that aren't accessible to non-Chinese speakers.

Some notes:

* Two chapters translate in pinyin into Odes of Wei. This is the first one, not the second.

* I'm posting these two chapters together because they're short. We'll drop to one chapter a week if a chapter hits 'about 20' poems rather than 'about 10'.

* Every week I search the poems' English results to see if I can find any scholarship or neat bits and pop the results in Resources. Here is this week's collection.

* The first of our reminder emails should have gone out on Saturday. If you did not get an email but you'd like to be on the list, please let me know!

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* If you haven't read it yet, chapter one, on tetrasyllabic shi poetry, in How to Read Chinese Poetry is hugely useful for the Book of Odes, imo.

Comments

73. 大車 - Da Che

[x_los]

大車檻檻、毳衣如菼。
豈不爾思、畏子不敢。

His great carriage rumbles along,
And his robes of rank glitter like the young sedge.
Do I not think of you?
But I am afraid of this officer, and dare not.

大車啍啍、毳衣如璊。
豈不爾思、畏子不奔。

His great carriage moves heavily and slowly,
And his robes of rank glitter like a carnation-gem.
Do I not think of you?
But I am afraid of this officer, and do not rush to you.

穀則異室、死則同穴。
謂予不信、有如皦日。

While living, we may have to occupy different apartments;
But when dead, we shall share the same grave.
If you say that I am not sincere,
By the bright sun I swear that I am.

Re: 73. 大車 - Da Che

[x_los]

Sedge: "a grasslike plant with triangular stems and inconspicuous flowers, growing typically in wet ground. Sedges are widely distributed throughout temperate and cold regions."

So are they lovers married to different people, or lovers politically separated by pressure from the state?

Re: 73. 大車 - Da Che

[superborb]

Baidu: modern scholars believe the protag wants to run away with their sweetheart, but is worried they will not agree to elope (bc parental disagreement). There are some historical theories, but they're inconsistent.