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明 Ming · 诗 Poem

潼关

Tong Pass

康海

Kang Hai

叙事Theme 讽谕Theme 民生People's life

早发潼关道，微风动林木。
长峡百里去，我行正仆仆。
大风变顷刻，万里惨以逐。
树杪闻过沙，何须问平陆。
我口不可开，我身只匍匐。
挽车两少年，行行亦长哭。
云是阌乡人，先世有官禄。
县官急边粮，十户九逃伏。

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早发潼关道，微风动林木。
长峡百里去，我行正仆仆。
大风变顷刻，万里惨以逐。
树杪闻过沙，何须问平陆。
我口不可开，我身只匍匐。
挽车两少年，行行亦长哭。
云是阌乡人，先世有官禄。
县官急边粮，十户九逃伏。
里长利赂钱，我故苦独速。
太平作男儿，庸调天亦福。
所恨身不长，筋力易羸蹙。
母寡已十年，萧条但空椟。
有田不得耕，有事在忽倏。
近岁严转输，使者日三复。
迢迢百里途，如历经纬轴。
我喉亢如火，我行迅如䎘。
吏来督我行，跃马恨不骛。
使者讨押钱，鞭挞褫我服。
我冤向孰陈，我泪向天瀑。
语终心益伤，声吞色犹恧。
我感少年语，涕泪泫如濯。
皇明百年来，万姓各安育。
草木亦有滋，少年尔曷蹙。
匈奴二三载，骄气如鹯鹔。
主将小儿行，焉能办鍭镞。
尔居见尔难，不见九边族。
一夫八人管，剥削尽膏肉。
往者禁军出，人家无完畜。
膂力代出役，瘁敝内供谷。
土炕亦见夺，何况妻与仆。
此本亡赖子，亡命入军牍。
三帅皆诡随，安知有钤束。
少年尔莫苦，主上正恭穆。
行当致雍熙，边庭永安肃。
尔身当不劳，尔家亦永复。
少年感我言，再拜向天祝。
愿主万年寿，保我有饘粥。
愿民如春草，长养无践殰。
挽车向西去，气色犹睦睦。

At dawn I set out on the Tong Pass road; a light wind stirs the woods and trees.
A hundred li through the long gorge I go, weary and worn with trudging feet.
A great wind rises in an instant; for ten thousand li a bleak gloom drives behind. Through the treetops I hear the sand go by — why ask if there is level ground?
My mouth cannot open; my body can only crawl. Two youths haul the cart, weeping as they walk.
They say they are men of Wenxiang; their forebears once held office and pay. The county magistrate urgently demands frontier grain; nine of ten households flee and hide away.
The village head takes bribes for gain; thus I alone suffer the cruellest haste. In peaceful times to be a man, even corvee is a blessing from heaven.
What I resent is my body not tall, my strength soon spent and frail. My mother widowed ten years; desolate, but an empty chest remains.
I have fields yet may not plough; misfortune comes in a sudden flash. These recent years the transport is strictly pressed; the envoys come three times a day.
The long hundred-li road, as though wound on warp and weft. My throat burns like fire; my pace flies like a startled bird.
Officials come to drive me on; they leap their horses, hating not to gallop. The envoys demand escort money; they flog and strip the clothes from me.
To whom shall I tell my wrong? My tears pour to heaven. When the words are done my heart aches more; I swallow my voice, my face still ashamed.
I am moved by the youths' words; my tears fall like soaking rain. For a hundred years under the bright Ming, all households were nursed and fed.
Even grass and trees found nourishment — youth, why should you knit your brow? The northern foe these two or three years, their arrogant air like fierce birds.
The commander acts like a child — how can he ready bow and arrow? You dwell and see your own hardship, but not the frontier tribes' plight.
One man by eight is guarded; they grind away his flesh and blood. When the imperial guards went out, no household kept a whole beast.
Strong backs are sent in turn to labour; worn and broken, they supply the grain within. Even the earthen stove is seized — how much more a wife and servant.
These were worthless vagrants, who fled and entered the army's rolls. The three generals all truckle and follow — how should they know any restraint?
Youth, do not grieve; our sovereign is grave and reverent. Soon he shall bring the age of peace, and the frontier be calm and ordered.
Your body shall know no toil; your home shall be restored for ever. The youths, moved by my words, bow twice and pray to heaven:
May the sovereign live ten thousand years, and keep us our coarse gruel. May the people be like spring grass, growing, untrampled, untainted.
They haul the cart westward, their bearing still gentle and mild.

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Meaning

On a spring morning the poet sets out on the Tong Pass road as a light wind stirs the woods. A hundred li through the long gorge leaves him worn with travel, and a sudden great wind drives a bleak gloom. He meets two youths hauling a cart and weeping: they are men of Wenxiang whose family once held office, but the county magistrate now demands frontier grain and nine of ten households have fled. The village head takes bribes, so the poet alone bears the cruellest haste; in peaceful times even corvee would be a heavenly blessing, but now he has fields he cannot plough, a mother widowed ten years, and an empty chest. The transport is pressed daily; officials flog him and strip his clothes, and his wrong has no one to hear it. He is moved by the youths' grief, yet tells them the Ming has long kept the people fed and soon the sovereign will bring peace and order, the frontier calm. The youths bow and pray that the sovereign live ten thousand years and the people be like untrampled spring grass, then haul their cart westward, still gentle of bearing.

清晨从潼关道出发，微风摇动林木。漫长峡谷行百里，我奔波得十分疲惫。大风顷刻骤起，万里惨淡相逐；树梢听得沙过，哪里还问平地。我口不能开，身只匍匐前行。拉车的两个少年，边走边放声大哭。说是阌乡人，祖上曾享官禄。县官急征边粮，十户九家逃亡藏伏。里长贪图贿赂，使我独受其苦。太平时作男儿，庸调也是天赐之福。可恨身不高，气力易衰疲；母亲守寡十年，萧条只剩空柜。有田不能耕，祸事忽至。近年严催转运，使者一日三至。迢迢百里路，如经经纬之轴；我喉干如火，我行疾如飞。吏来督我行，跃马恨不速；使者讨押解钱，鞭打剥我衣。我冤向谁诉，我泪向天倾。话完心更伤，声吞面犹愧。我感少年语，涕泪流如注。皇明百年来，万姓各安生养；草木亦有滋荣，少年你何须蹙眉。匈奴二三年，骄气如凶禽；主将如小儿行事，焉能备办弓矢。你只见己难，不见九边族群；一夫八人管束，剥削尽膏肉。往者禁军出，人家无完畜；膂力代服劳役，疲敝内供谷物；土炕亦被夺，何况妻与仆。此本无赖子，亡命入军籍；三帅皆阿附，安知有约束。少年莫苦，主上正恭穆；行当致太平，边庭永肃。你身当不劳，你家亦永复。少年感我言，再拜向天祝：愿主万年寿，保我有粥；愿民如春草，长养无践踏。挽车向西去，气色犹和睦。

Appreciation

This narrative poem weaves travel and dialogue into one fabric. It opens with the calm ease of 'At dawn I set out on the Tong Pass road; a light wind stirs the woods and trees,' then suddenly turns to the grim weather of 'A great wind rises in an instant,' darkly hinting at the times. In the middle the two cart-hauling youths pour out their grief, and a string of plain charges — the magistrate's urgent grain, the village head's bribes, one man guarded by eight who grind his flesh — lays bare the evils of corvee and the army in the sharp, knife-like language of direct accusation. The poem closes on their prayer 'May the sovereign live ten thousand years' and 'May the people be like spring grass,' gathering its deep pain into a tender, restrained hope; narration, feeling, and satire here blend into a single, large design.

【白话串讲】康海写经过潼关的艰难：大风骤起，黄沙漫天，“我口不可开，我身只匍匐”。路上遇到两个哭着的少年——他们是阌乡人，祖上有官禄，如今却遭县官欺压。乱世里，谁都不好过。【意象与手法】全诗以行旅为经、对话为纬，起于「早发潼关道，微风动林木」的从容，骤转「大风变顷刻，万里惨以逐」的险恶气象，暗喻时局。中间借「挽车两少年」哭诉，以「县官急边粮」「里长利赂钱」「一夫八人管，剥削尽膏肉」等排比直揭赋役、军伍之弊，语言激切如匕首。篇末以「愿主万年寿」「愿民如春草」的祝祷收束，沉痛中见温厚。【情感与主旨】康海（1475—1540），字德涵，号对山，陕西武功人，弘治十五年状元，「前七子」之一。正德间因救李梦阳往见刘瑾，瑾败竟坐其党落职归乡。此诗借潼关道上挽车少年之口，反映明代边政弊病与民生疾苦，是「前七子」中少见的直面社会苦难的叙事长篇。【名句点睛】常考叙事诗的人物对话结构、「大风变顷刻」的象征笔法、对赋役军伍之弊的批判锋芒，以及篇末祝祷「愿民如春草，长养无践殰」沉痛中见温厚的情感层次。

Background

Kang Hai (1475-1540), courtesy Dehan, style Duishan, was a native of Wugong in Shaanxi. Top graduate of the 1499 examination, he was made a Hanlin compiler and with Li Mengyang led the call for literary revival as one of the 'Former Seven Masters,' especially skilled in sanqu songs. In the Zhengde era he went to see the eunuch Liu Jin to save Li Mengyang; when Liu fell, Kang was implicated and dismissed, then returned home. His real concern for the world shows plainly in this poem, which, through the voice of the cart-hauling youths on the Tong Pass road, reflects the failings of Ming frontier administration and the people's suffering. Likely written after his middle years had taught him the ways of the world, it is a rare long narrative among the Former Seven Masters that looks squarely at social misery.

康海（1475—1540），字德涵，号对山，陕西武功人，明孝宗弘治十五年（1502）状元，授翰林院修撰，与李梦阳、何景明等倡文学复古，为「前七子」之一，尤工散曲杂剧（《中山狼》）。正德年间，李梦阳因事下狱，康海为救友往见权阉刘瑾，瑾败后康海竟坐其党落职，遂归乡里，放浪山水，不复出仕。其诗文的现实关怀在此诗中表露无遗。此诗借潼关道上挽车少年之口，控诉明代边政与赋役之弊：县官急征边粮、里长贪赂、一夫八人管、鞭挞褫服，民不聊生；又借「我」之口劝慰少年，寄望于「主上正恭穆」而致太平。全诗约作于康海中岁阅历世事之后，是其由翰林词臣沦落为乡野散人的心境与对民瘼的关切相交织的产物，也是「前七子」复古运动中少见的直面社会苦难的叙事长篇，具有重要的史料与文学价值。康海罢官归乡后，其诗多写乡居与行旅见闻，此诗即其中直面现实之力作；作为状元而沦落江湖，其心境之郁勃与对民瘼之关切相交织，正是『穷而后工』的又一例证，也是其诗能脱出前七子摹古习气而独写民生疾苦的内在原因。

Art

The whole poem takes travel as its warp and dialogue as its weft. It begins in the composed ease of 'At dawn I set out on the Tong Pass road,' then sharply turns to the sinister weather of 'A great wind rises in an instant,' a dark figure for the times. Through the weeping confession of the 'two youths who haul the cart,' and a mounting series of parallel charges — 'the county magistrate urgently demands frontier grain,' 'the village head takes bribes for gain,' 'one man is guarded by eight, they grind away his flesh' — it strips bare the abuses of taxation and the military in language as keen as a dagger. It ends on the blessing 'May the sovereign live ten thousand years' and 'May the people be like spring grass,' its grief held within tenderness; narration, lyric, and satire fuse into one, on a grand scale.

全诗以行旅为经、对话为纬，章法宏大，是明代罕见的叙事长诗。起笔「早发潼关道，微风动林木」从容平淡，写行旅之始的安闲；骤转「大风变顷刻，万里惨以逐」写天气之骤变——顷刻之间大风骤起，万里惨淡相逐，既是写实，更是暗喻时局之动荡、民生之惨淡，以自然气象写社会现实，是象征笔法的运用。中间主体部分是「挽车两少年」的哭诉与「我」的劝慰，一哭一劝，两段对话构成全诗的核心：少年哭诉赋役之苦——「县官急边粮，十户九逃伏」「里长利赂钱」「鞭挞褫我服」，排比铺陈，直揭边政军伍之弊，语言激切如匕首；「我」劝慰少年——「皇明百年来，万姓各安育」「主上正恭穆，行当致雍熙」，以盛世之忆、圣主之望宽慰其心。篇末以「愿主万年寿」「愿民如春草」的祝祷收束，沉痛中见温厚，叙事、抒情、讽谕浑然一体，格局宏大。又『我口不可开，我身只匍匐』以白描写行役之苦，『喉亢如火，我行迅如䎘』以比喻写奔命之态，细节真切，如见其人，正是叙事诗以实笔写实的功力，亦是全诗感人至深的根基。

Allusions

'Wenxiang' is an old county name, under Guozhou in the Tang, near today's Lingbao in Henan, fixing the youths' home. 'Coarse gruel' comes from the Zuo Zhuan — 'here I ate my thick gruel, here my thin' — meaning poor food, marking the people's poverty. 'Yongxi' borrows the congratulatory language of the Shang Shu's 'Canon of Yao,' a term for a peaceful age, here used to throw the present injustice into relief. 'Arrow' draws on the Er Ya — 'a metal-tipped, feather-trimmed arrow is called hou' — to say the commander cannot ready arms. On the whole the poem mingles plain speech with historical names; few obscure allusions, yet its force comes through.

诗中多用史实、地名与典籍语汇，实实相间，力量自出。「阌乡」为古县名，唐属虢州，在今河南灵宝一带，点明少年乡里，使控诉具有具体的时空坐标；「边粮」指明代的边镇军粮，是赋役重压的根源；「庸调」本为唐代租庸调制的赋役名目，此处借指明代的赋役制度，以唐制写明弊，暗含古今对照；「转输」指漕运转运，写粮赋转输之繁重；「禁军」指明代的京营禁卫军，写其扰民之甚——「往者禁军出，人家无完畜」；「九边」指明代的九边重镇，写边地人民之苦。「雍熙」用《尚书·尧典》「黎民于变时雍」之意，指太平盛世，此处以颂语反衬现实之不平，反讽有力；「饘粥」出《左传》「饘于是，粥于是」，指粗劣饭食，状民之贫；「鍭镞」用《尔雅·释器》「金镞翦羽谓之鍭」之典，指箭矢，言主将无备武之能。整体多用常语史实名实相间，少见僻典而力量自出。又『皇明百年来，万姓各安育』以盛世之忆反衬今日之衰，『草木亦有滋』以草木之荣反衬民命之艰，皆以对照写讽谕，正是康海『激昂悲壮』诗风在修辞上的体现，亦见其虽多史实名而仍以情韵胜。

Commentary

Shen Deqian, in his Ming Shi Bie Cai (Selected Ming Poems), included Kang Hai and called his verse 'stirring and solemn, with the manner of Shaoling (Du Fu).' Modern readers, who often fault the Former Seven Masters for archaism, grant this poem its due: 'stripped of ornament, it alone writes the people's hardship,' holding that beyond his sanqu, Kang's poetry enters contemporary affairs with a desolate brush, compensating for the Seven Masters' narrow concern with rhetoric.

此诗在明代诗歌史上有其独特价值。沈德潜《明诗别裁集》选康海诗，称其「激昂悲壮，有少陵遗风」——此诗正可印证：以行旅起兴、以对话写实、以讽谕见志，确与杜甫「三吏三别」的现实主义精神一脉相通，是明代罕见的「诗史」之作。近人论「前七子」，多诟其摹古拟古、徒事修辞，而于此诗则许其「脱去绮靡，独写民生疾苦」——康海以状元之才、罢官之身，于潼关道上听挽车少年哭诉而记之成诗，其同情心与批判性皆出诸真挚，正可补「前七子」仅重修辞之偏。此诗与康海散曲《仙吕·寄生草》诸作的愤世之作相呼应，可见其于复古之外，尚有直面现实的一面。作为明代叙事诗的代表，此诗以行旅对话的体式、直揭时弊的锋芒、沉痛温厚的收束，在明代诗歌史上占有独特的地位。就文学史而言，此诗以五言古体写民生疾苦，直承汉乐府与杜甫『三吏三别』的现实主义传统，是明代少有的『诗史』之作，其价值正在于以诗存史、以诗谏世，为明代诗歌补上了直面现实的重要一环，亦足补『前七子』仅重修辞之偏。

Prosody

Form Five-character ancient-style poem (narrative long poem)诗·五言古诗（叙事长篇）

Rhyme Tone shifts throughout, with occasional Ping-shui rhyme groups; not bound to strict rhyme全诗以五言为主，间有转韵，平仄随转，间用平水韵部，不以严韵为拘，属汉魏乐府叙事一脉。

Tone pattern Five-character old form, mostly narrative exposition, free in tone changes五言古体，句式以叙事铺陈为主，转韵自由；以「早发」「大风」「我口」「挽车」等动词领起的句法，节奏随叙事之缓急而起伏。

Reading note Imitates the narrative-satirical manner of Han-Wei yuefu; not bound by tonal rules, stressing forceful spirit and sharp diction此诗为五言古诗长篇，全诗五十二句，效汉魏乐府叙事讽谕之体，不以格律绳墨，重在气盛辞激。其格律特点有三：一是五言句式，二二一或二一二节奏，音节舒展，正宜叙事铺陈，如「早发／潼关道」「微风／动林木」，读来如行云流水；二是转韵自由，全诗随叙事与情感的起伏而换韵，不以一韵到底为限，正是古体诗「以气驭韵」的体现——写行旅之安闲用平缓之韵，写大风之骤变转急促之韵，写少年之哭诉用沉痛之韵，写祝祷之期望用和缓之韵，声情与辞情相谐；三是章法宏大，以行旅为经、对话为纬，起承转合自然流转，中间两大段对话（少年哭诉与诗人劝慰）构成全诗主体，如两幕戏剧，末以祝祷与送别收束，首尾照应。作为明代罕见的五言叙事长诗，此诗以古体之体写民生之实，是揣摩汉魏乐府叙事传统在明代延续的重要文本。

Line by line

早发潼关道，微风动林木。

Early I set out on the Tongguan road; a light wind stirs the forest.

清晨从潼关道出发，微风摇动林木。

Early in the morning I leave the Tongguan road; a light wind stirs the trees.

起笔平易从容，写行旅之始的安闲，为下文陡转险恶蓄势。「早发潼关道」点明时间地点——清晨从潼关道上出发，「早发」写行路之早，行色匆匆而尚显从容；「微风动林木」写眼前之景——微风拂过，林木轻摇，一幅清晨行旅图宛然在目。此句的妙处有三：一是以「微」字定调，「微风」之轻与后文「大风变顷刻」之骤形成对照，平静的开端正是暴风骤雨的铺垫，以安闲写动乱，张本于此；二是以景起兴，潼关本是天下雄关、兵家必争之地，诗人由此入秦，见闻当多，起笔的从容正为后文的见闻之惨作势；三是章法上的「蓄」，全诗写民生疾苦，而开篇不疾不徐，正是叙事诗「先缓后急」的典型笔法。

The dawn. Early I set out on the Tongguan road; a light wind stirs the forest. The early departure from Tongguan and the light wind in the trees are the calm opening. To have set out at dawn would be a departure; the early-I-set-out-on-the-Tongguan-road-a-light-wind-stirs-the-forest is the departure.

县官急边粮，十户九逃伏。

The county magistrate presses for frontier grain; nine of ten households have fled into hiding.

县官急征边防军粮，十户九家逃亡藏伏。

The county clerk urgently levies grain for the frontier; nine in ten households have fled into hiding.

此句借少年之口直揭赋役之弊，是全诗批判锋芒的第一次显露。「县官急边粮」写县官急征边防军粮——「急」字写催征之迫，边粮是明代的沉重赋役，县官为邀功自保而严加催逼；「十户九逃伏」写百姓逃亡藏匿——「十户九逃」以数目极言逃亡之众，十家之中九家逃匿，「逃伏」写逃亡藏伏、不敢露面的惨状。此句的妙处有三：一是以「急」对「逃」，县官催得越急，百姓逃得越多，赋役之苛与民生之困互为因果，尽在「急」「逃」二字之中；二是以数目写实，「十户九逃」触目惊心，是明代中后期赋役苛重的真实写照；三是以少年之口出之，少年亲历其苦，哭诉之言尤见真切，比诗人代言更具感染力，正是叙事诗「借人物之口写社会」的笔法。

The flight. The county magistrate presses for frontier grain; nine of ten households have fled into hiding. The pressing grain levy and the nine-of-ten-fled are the exposure. To have pressed the grain levy would be a pressure; the county-magistrate-presses-for-frontier-grain-nine-of-ten-households-have-fled-into-hiding is the pressure.

一夫八人管，剥削尽膏肉。

One man is watched by eight; exploitation drains every ounce of flesh.

一丁被八人管束，剥削尽血肉。

One man is guarded by eight overseers; exploitation drains the very fat and flesh.

此句排比控诉军伍虐民，是全诗批判最激烈的句子之一。「一夫八人管」写一人被八人管束——「八人」极言管束者之多，层层盘剥、处处钳制，一人之身而受八人之管，民之不堪命可知；「剥削尽膏肉」写剥削之惨——「膏肉」即民脂民膏，剥削至于膏尽肉枯，其惨酷无以复加。此句的妙处有三：一是以数目写重，「一」与「八」对举，一人对八人，管束之密、盘剥之重尽在其中，如匕首直刺；二是以「尽」写绝，「剥削尽膏肉」之「尽」字，写剥削至于膏尽肉枯、一无所有，触目惊心；三是语言激切，「剥削」「膏肉」皆白话直陈，不加修饰而力度千钧，正是康海「激切如匕首」的诗笔，也是全诗控诉现实的最强音。

The eight. One man is watched by eight; exploitation drains every ounce of flesh. The one-man-watched-by-eight and the drained flesh are the fiercest indictment. To have watched one man by eight would be an oppression; the one-man-is-watched-by-eight-exploitation-drains-every-ounce-of-flesh is the oppression.

愿民如春草，长养无践殰。

May the people live like spring grass, growing without being trampled to death.

愿百姓如春草，生长而不被践踏。

May the common people be like spring grass, growing and multiplying without being trampled to death.

此句以祝祷收悲，是全诗情感的升华，沉痛中见温厚。「愿民如春草」写对百姓的祝愿——百姓如春草，本是寻常草木，只求能如春草般自然生长，卑微的愿望中见出生存的艰难；「长养无践殰」写祝愿的内容——「长养」写生长养育，「践」写践踏，「殰」为《说文》「殰，胎败也」引申为死亡，愿百姓生长而不再被践踏致死。此句的妙处有三：一是以「春草」为喻，草是天下最卑微之物，而正因其卑微，才更见百姓所求之微、所苦之深，以草喻民，悲悯深切；二是以「愿」字收束前文的控诉，前文写尽剥削之苦，此句忽作祝愿，由批判转入期许，情感由激切归于温厚，正是「哀而不伤」的诗教；三是全诗的点睛之笔，愿民如春草，正是对前文一切苦难的最深沉的回应，也是诗人悲天悯人情怀的集中体现。

The grass. May the people live like spring grass, growing without being trampled to death. The people as spring grass not-trampled are the prayer. To have prayed for the people as spring grass would be a prayer; the may-the-people-live-like-spring-grass-growing-without-being-trampled-to-death is the prayer.

挽车向西去，气色犹睦睦。

He pulls the cart westward; his face is still gentle and mild.

少年挽车向西而去，神色仍和睦。

He pulls the cart toward the west; his countenance is still gentle.

结句留白，于苦难中存一丝人情暖意，是全诗收束的妙笔。「挽车向西去」写少年继续挽车西行——对话已毕，行役未已，少年仍要踏上迢迢的转运之路，命运并未改变；「气色犹睦睦」写其神色仍和睦——「睦睦」写神色和顺安详，经历了一番倾诉与劝慰之后，少年的神色由「长哭」转为「睦睦」，仿佛心中得到了一丝宽慰。此句的妙处有三：一是以「犹」字点睛，「犹睦睦」之「犹」写神色之勉强和顺——不是真的释然，而是苦难中残存的一丝温厚与希望，愈见其悲；二是与「行行亦长哭」呼应，由「长哭」到「睦睦」，对话抚平了暂时的悲情，而苦难依旧，一哭一睦之间，全诗的情感完成了由悲到悯的转化；三是结句留白，不写结局、不发议论，唯以少年远去的背影作结，余韵悠长，正是叙事诗「以景结情」的高境。

The cart. He pulls the cart westward; his face is still gentle. The westward cart and the still-gentle face are the open close. To have closed on the gentle-faced carter would be a close; the he-pulls-the-cart-westward-his-face-is-still-gentle-and-mild is the close.

Study

Word focus

仆仆 'Pu pu' describes weary, hurried travel; from the opening it sets the tone of the journey's hardship. 「我行正仆仆」之「仆仆」二字，是写行役之苦的叠字妙笔。「仆仆」形容奔波劳顿、风尘仆仆之态——《孟子·滕文公上》「子贡反，筑室于场，独居三年，然后归。他日，子夏、子张、子游以有若似圣人，欲以所事孔子事之，强曾子。曾子曰：『不可。江汉以濯之，秋阳以暴之，皜皜乎不可尚已。』」后世以「仆仆」写旅途劳顿，韩愈《与陈给事书》「疲于奔命，仆仆于道路」即用此意。此二字之妙有三：一是以叠字写动态，「仆仆」写行路之劳顿，音节急促，如见行人奔波之态；二是定下基调，「仆仆」二字起笔即定行旅艰辛之调，为下文少年哭诉的劳苦之状作了铺垫；三是暗写时代，「仆仆」写的是诗人此行，更是无数行役之民共同的命运，一字一词皆见民生之艰。

阌乡 Wenxiang was an old county name, here marking the youths' native place; it gives the grievance a concrete time and place. 「云是阌乡人」之「阌乡」二字，是叙事诗写实功力的体现。「阌乡」为古县名，隋唐置阌乡县，属虢州，故治在今河南灵宝一带，因阌山得名，唐末废，宋初复置，明初省入灵宝。此二字之妙有三：一是以地名写实，点明挽车少年的具体乡里——不是泛指「关中人」「河南人」，而是确指阌乡，使控诉具有具体的时空坐标，正是叙事诗「无一字无来历」的写实笔法；二是以乡里写身世，「先世有官禄」的阌乡人沦落为挽车服役的苦役，故里之望族而今日之劳役，身世之悲愈显；三是以地名见时代，阌乡地处中原腹地而民不堪命，正是明代赋役苛重、民不聊生的缩影，一地名而时代尽在其中，是康海「以实写虚」的功力所在。

雍熙 Yongxi is a laudatory term for a time of peace and prosperity; set against 'they grind away his flesh and blood,' it makes a sharp ironic contrast. 「行当致雍熙」之「雍熙」二字，是反讽的枢纽，寓批判于颂语之中。「雍熙」出《尚书·尧典》「百姓昭明，协和万邦，黎民于变时雍」，后世以「雍熙」称太平盛世，宋太宗年号即用此名。此二字之妙有三：一是以颂写讽，「行当致雍熙」是诗人劝慰少年的话——主上恭穆，行当致太平，表面是颂圣之语，骨子里却暗含反讽：现实是「一夫八人管，剥削尽膏肉」的惨状，而期望中的「雍熙」遥遥无期，颂语与现实的对照，正见批判之深；二是分寸得体，诗人身为罢官之臣，不敢直斥君上，故以「主上正恭穆」的宽慰语暗寄期望，于温厚中藏激愤；三是承上启下，由「雍熙」之望引出「边庭永安肃」的期许，再由「我」之劝转少年之祝，章法流转，正是全诗由批判转入期望的枢纽。

践殰 'Jian du' — du means to spoil or rot; the wish that the people be untrampled condenses the poet's compassion in a single phrase. 「长养无践殰」之「践殰」二字，是诗人炼字的深意所在，凝练见其悲悯。「践」本义为践踏，《说文》：「践，履也。」「殰」为《说文》「殰，胎败也」，本指胎儿夭亡，引申为死亡，「践殰」连用，谓被践踏而死。此二字之妙有三：一是以「践」写暴力，百姓之死非天灾而是人祸——被役使、被剥削、被践踏，一个「践」字，写尽民之受害于人的惨状；二是以「殰」写轻贱，「殰」本指胎死，以之写民之死，暗含民命如草芥、死如胎夭的悲悯——草民之死，轻贱若此，愈见诗人哀矜之深；三是与「春草」呼应，「愿民如春草，长养无践殰」——春草之愿是生长的权利，「践殰」之惧是被践踏的恐惧，一愿一惧，正是乱世百姓最基本的诉求与最深的恐惧，二字而全诗之旨尽在其中。

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