About a poem in Hongloumeng

About a poem in Hongloumeng

帆 江- келді
Number of replies: 160

Refer to different English translations of the following poem in Hongloumengand try to contribute your own translation.

无才可去补苍天,枉入红尘若许年。此系身前身后事,倩谁记去作奇传?


In reply to 帆 江

回复: About a poem in Hongloumeng

高艳 高艳- келді
Not competent to restore the sky,
I have been wandering in the mortal world for years,
These are history of myself in this life and the previous,
I wonder who will be the one to write and tell the legends about me?
姓名:高艳 学号:0213701030
In reply to 帆 江

回复: About a poem in Hongloumeng

张宏宇 张宏宇- келді
Never become the salt of the earth and the pillar of the heaven,
I was of no use for celestial repairs and discarded by the Goddess Nu-wa.
Sent me adrift in the earthly realm for years,
But to no avail, it was nothing but a void.
With stories of my past life and next life enshrined in my incarnation,
Who shall transcribe them to unfold another Odyssey-like saga?

As this poem serves as the beginning in Hongloumeng and there is no clear hint that points out who is the subject of this poem, I just referred to different interpretations of this poem. At the surface level, the subject of this poem is the odd block lay at the foot of Greensickness Peak of the Great Fable Mountains as the story in the poem is directly related to the myth of Nuwa Repairs the Sky. However, some connotations can be found when reading through the lines and referring to the story of Hongloumeng. Some may suggest the subject of this poem is Jia Baoyu, the protagonist of this book and the story of the poem fits with the destiny of Baoyu. Others argue that the subject epitomizes the life story of the author, Cao Xueqin. Both views seem to be plausible, but there isn’t a definite answer to this question. As the famous saying goes, “There are a thousand Hamlets in a thousand people’s eyes.” I believe it is meaningless to assign a clear-cut subject to the poem, leaving readers without their own appreciation and interpretation of this poem. Therefore, I just referred to the subject of the poem as “I” and translated the literal meaning of this poem without adding much of my own interpretation of this poem.
In reply to 帆 江

回复: About a poem in Hongloumeng

王庆伦 王庆伦- келді
Unqualified to mend the sky,
I was abandoned by the goddess,
Wondered and wasted centuries in the secular world.

Here lies my life story,
Of the past, present and coming future,
Who will record it and stage the legendary play?

姓名:王庆伦 学号:0213701017
In reply to 帆 江

回复: About a poem in Hongloumeng

程思 程思- келді
Not qualified enough to mend the sky,
Left behind in the mundane world, I waste my time.
Here is the recording of my past and future,
Please introduce to those who feel days fly.

This is a poem without subject, I prefer to regard Jia Baoyu as the narrator, since the stone only has a very limited life experience and then it became Jia Baoyu and started its journey in the mundane world. The latter one experiences more, having more to share with the world.

0213700966程思
英笔1班
In reply to 帆 江

回复: About a poem in Hongloumeng

黄睿 黄睿- келді
Being abandoned and regarded useless to fix the firmament.
This is just a story of a stone that become a human for so many years but finally did nothing.
Wondering, whether the story I left behind can be passed on for somebody.

姓名:黄睿 学号:0213701086
In reply to 帆 江

回复: About a poem in Hongloumeng

夏美玉 夏美玉- келді

无才可去补苍天,

枉入红尘若许年。

此系身前身后事,

倩谁记去作奇传?

Existing as a stone in the previous life, he was not qualified for mending the sky;

Born as a man in the second life, he was lost in experiences of tangled relationships.

His both lives were past, while these stories were left.;

To be forgotten, or to be written into legends, that remains to be a question.

0213701000 夏美玉

In reply to 帆 江

回复: About a poem in Hongloumeng

高伟华 高伟华- келді
Being abandoned though as the stone for sky-mending,
Thus in an attempt to make a hit in the secular world.
I failed completely with NOTHING outstanding achieved
Looking back the passing days, keep asking myself, finally
Who’s the writer of my life and recorder of the history?

高伟华 0213700974
In reply to 帆 江

Re: About a poem in Hongloumeng

包舒杨 包舒杨- келді
The magic stone was ashamed of its not being used for celestial repairs by the goddess.
And later on it considered its experience in the busy world of men where he had lived in the form of a mortal for decades as a waste.
From a magic stone to an ordinary mortal, there must be a lot of fancy stories to tell.
But who should be invited to listen to and record them?
In reply to 帆 江

回复: About a poem in Hongloumeng

朱一璇 朱一璇- келді
Abandoned in mending the sky,
Living in vain for a long time,
This is all my past and present life,
Who will record it as a legend?
In reply to 帆 江

回复: About a poem in Hongloumeng

俞新晗 俞新晗- келді
"无才可去补苍天,枉入红尘若许年。此系身前身后事,倩谁记去作奇传?"
I came to the secular world with the embodiment of an heir to a high-heeled family.
I know I have wasted my attributes and talents just as I missed the chance to mend the sky.
But I do think this trip is worth the while,
so although I decided to leave everything behind me,
I still want you to know about my story, cause this is a story that I wrote with my body and soul, my flesh and blood.

俞新晗 0213701040
In reply to 帆 江

回复: About a poem in Hongloumeng

钟子轩 钟子轩- келді
I should’ve gone in vain,
End up locking into this place,
I wrote stories no one could tell,
Who’d ever know my name?
有一些意译的感觉可能
In reply to 帆 江

Re: About a poem in Hongloumeng

震昊 钟- келді
Lacking in virtues meet the azure sky to mend,
I have entered the mortal world for so many years in vain.
Before birth and after death there are events.
Whom can I get to go and record them and fall into a wonderland?

0213100938 钟震昊
In reply to 帆 江

回复: About a poem in Hongloumeng

邱海涛 邱海涛- келді
I was left aside when the Goddess repaired the sky with my brothers and sisters,
And after so many years, I am still of no use to the world.
Here I leave the life story of mine, from the beginning to the end,
But who would do me the honour to faithful pass it down?

邱海涛 0213700981