唐 Tang · 诗 Poem
长干曲四首 二
The, Song, of, the, Changgan, Four, Poems, No. 2
家临九江水来去九江侧同是长干人自小不相识
My, home, faces, the, water, of, the, nine, rivers,Coming, and, going, by, the, side, of, the, nine, rivers.
Both, of, us, are, people, of, the, Changgan,
From, childhood, we, did, not, know, each, other.
Meaning
A poem of the boat and the acquaintance, written by Cui Hao. My home faces the water of the nine rivers, coming and going by the side of the nine rivers — the home of the opening. Both of us are people of the Changgan, from childhood we did not know each other — the acquaintance of the close. The poem is the boat and the acquaintance: the rivers, the home, and the close's not knowing.
家临九江水，来去九江侧。同是长干人，自小不相识。
Appreciation
[Plain Paraphrase] My, home, faces, the, water, of, the, nine, rivers, coming, and, going, by, the, side, of, the, nine, rivers. Both, of, us, are, people, of, the, Changgan, from, childhood, we, did, not, know, each, other. [Structure and Thought] The poem moves from the home of the nine rivers and the coming and going, through the same people of the Changgan, to the close's the not knowing from childhood. [Key Technique] The poem's art is the close of the acquaintance: both of us are people of the Changgan, and the close's from childhood we did not know each other — the boat gathered in the same home and the close's not knowing. [Emotional Tone] Plain, warm, and touching: the poem is the rivers, the home and the close's acquaintance.
【白话串讲】 崔颢写《长干曲四首其二》：“家临九江水，来去九江侧”——“同是长干人，自小不相识”——他写长干曲——同是长干人。 【意象与手法】 首句“家临九江水”写家临九江之水；次句“来去九江侧”写来去九江之侧；三句“同是长干人”写同是长干之人；末句“自小不相识”写自小不相识。以答问写江南儿女的相逢。 【情感与主旨】 崔颢写江南水乡男子的回答，以答问写江南儿女的相逢，清新而隽永，是乐府诗的名篇。 【名句点睛】 常考“家临九江水，来去九江侧”写家临九江；“同是长干人，自小不相识”写相逢之憾。
Background
Cui Hao (c. 704-754), the poet of the Tang, wrote this 'The, Song, of, the, Changgan, No. 2' of the boat and the acquaintance — the meeting of the two boat people. The home of the nine rivers with the coming and going, and the close's the same people of the Changgan not knowing from childhood — the poem gathers the warmth of the poet, the simplicity of the river folk. The poem is one of the famous works of the poet's poems of the folk songs.
此诗为盛唐诗人崔颢的《长干曲四首》其二之作，是乐府诗的名篇。崔颢（约704—754），汴州（今河南开封）人，盛唐诗人，开元十一年（723）进士，其《黄鹤楼》为唐人七律之冠。长干曲为乐府旧题，长干为金陵（今南京）里巷名，地近长江，居民多以舟为业。此首为男子对前首女子问话的回答：「家临九江水」，写家临九江之水——「九江」写长江（一说泛指长江下游诸水），「家临」写家临水边；「来去九江侧」，写来去九江之侧——那男子，来去于九江之侧，正是以舟为业的水乡儿女；「同是长干人」，写同是长干之人——「长干人」写长干里的儿女；「自小不相识」，写自小不相识——那同是长干人，却自小不相识，正是水乡相逢的怅惘。全诗以答问写江南儿女的相逢，二十字写尽水乡的相遇与怅惘，清新而隽永，是乐府诗「民歌清新」的代表作。要理解此诗，须知此首为《长干曲四首》之二，紧承前首「君家何处住」而来——前首写女子发问，此首写男子回答，一唱一和，正是民歌的对答。诗中「家临九江水」「来去九江侧」，写以舟为业的水乡生活；「同是长干人，自小不相识」，写相逢的怅惘——那萍水相逢的男女，同乡而相逢太晚，正是民歌「相见恨晚」的情思。
Art
The poem's art is the art of the acquaintance. The home opens: my, home, faces, the, water, of, the, nine, rivers — the home of the nine rivers; coming, and, going, by, the, side, of, the, nine, rivers — the coming and going of the rivers. The acquaintance follows: both, of, us, are, people, of, the, Changgan — the people of the Changgan; from, childhood, we, did, not, know, each, other — the not knowing of the childhood — the home, the rivers and the close's acquaintance, gathered in the poem.
此诗艺术上以「对话传神」与「怅惘含蓄」为特色，在男子回答的描绘中写尽江南儿女的相逢。首句「家临九江水」，以「家临九江」写家临水边，以「九江水」写九江之水——那男子，家临九江之水，正是水乡儿女的答问，「临」字写尽临水而居；次句「来去九江侧」，以「来去」写往来，以「九江侧」写九江之侧——那男子，来去于九江之侧，正是以舟为业的水乡生活，「来去」写尽舟行的往来；三句「同是长干人」，以「同是」写相同，以「长干人」写长干里的儿女——那同是长干之人，正是「或恐是同乡」的回答，「同是」写尽身份的相同；末句「自小不相识」，以「自小」写从小，以「不相识」写不相识——那同是长干人，却自小不相识，正是水乡相逢的怅惘，「自小」与「不相识」的对照，写尽相逢的遗憾。全诗由家临九江写起，经来去九江、同是长干，而归于「自小不相识」的怅惘，对话传神、怅惘含蓄，那「同是长干人，自小不相识」的对照，正是乐府诗「民歌清新」的极致。细观其章法，前两句写身份与生活，后两句写相逢与怅惘，前实后虚，那「自小不相识」的怅惘，正是全诗的画眼——以同乡之实，衬相逢之怅，正是民歌「以实写虚」的笔法。
Allusions
'The nine rivers' (jiu jiang) are the nine rivers — the waters of the nine rivers, the region of the boat; 'the Changgan' (chang gan) is the Changgan — the village of the Changgan, the home of the two; 'the coming and the going' (lai qu) are the coming and the going — the coming and going of the boats, the life of the river.
此诗用典于关键处见深意。「长干」，写长干里——长干为金陵（今南京）里巷名，地近长江，乐府旧题有《长干曲》，写金陵水乡男女之情，「同是长干人」写同是长干里的儿女。「九江」，写长江（一说泛指长江下游诸水）——「九江」在《尚书·禹贡》中为江汉一带的九条江水，后以「九江」写长江一带，「家临九江水」写家临长江之水。「九江侧」，写九江之侧——「侧」写旁边，「来去九江侧」写来去于九江之侧。值得注意的是，长干与九江，皆是江南水乡的地名——长干为金陵里巷，九江为长江一带，那「家临九江水」的男子，正是以舟为业的长干水乡儿女；而「九江」一词，见于《尚书·禹贡》的「九江孔殷」，本为上古的地理之名，用以写长江之水，正见民歌「以古雅写家常」的笔法，那水乡的日常生活，因「九江」之名而见悠远。这些意象，或写长干、或写九江、或写九江侧，皆围绕江南水乡与儿女相逢这一核心，织成一张清新隽永的情网，正是乐府诗「以地写情」的特点。
Commentary
This poem is one of the famous works of Cui Hao's poems of the folk songs, quoted for the plainness of its speech and the warmth of its close. The home of the nine rivers, and the not knowing from childhood, are among the admired passages of the poet's poems. Critics praise the poem's plainness: the home gathered in the rivers, to the close's acquaintance.
读此诗，最值得注意的是「同是长干人，自小不相识」所写出的「水乡相逢的怅惘」。前首《长干曲·其一》，那女子问「君家何处住」，男子此首作答：家临九江水，来去九江侧——那男子，家临长江，以舟为业，来去于九江之侧。而后「同是长干人，自小不相识」——那同是长干之人，却自小不相识。这一「自小不相识」，是全诗的关键：那同是长干里的儿女，本应相识，却自小不相识——不是不相识，而是相逢太晚；那「同是长干人」的身份相同，与「自小不相识」的相逢太晚，正是对照的怅惘。值得注意的是，这「自小不相识」的怅惘，正是对前首「或恐是同乡」的含蓄回应——那女子问「或恐是同乡」，男子答「同是长干人，自小不相识」：是同乡，却不相识。这「同乡」与「不相识」的对照，写尽了江南水乡儿女相逢的怅惘——那萍水相逢的男女，同是长干人，却无缘相识，正是「相见恨晚」的情思。崔颢《长干曲》四首，此首为男子的回答，与女子前首一唱一和，正是民歌的对答。那「同是长干人，自小不相识」的怅惘，正是乐府民歌「清新含蓄」的极致。
Prosody
Line by line
家临九江水
My home is by the Nine Rivers water,
家临九江之水。
My home lies by the Nine Rivers water.
这一句是此诗的起笔，写男子家临九江，是此诗答问的开端。「家临」，写家临水边——「家」写家，「临」写临近，「家临」写家临水边；「九江水」，写九江之水——「九江」写长江（一说泛指长江下游诸水），「九江水」写九江之水。以「家临九江水」写答问，比直写「我家住水边」更见水乡与具体——那男子，家临九江之水，正是水乡儿女的答问；「九江水」三字，写长江之水，正是「来去九江侧」的铺垫。这一起笔，以家临九江写水乡之家，为全诗定下水乡的基调，也是「同是长干人」的铺垫——那家临九江的男子，正是长干水乡的儿女。
This line is the poem's opening, writing the man's home by the Nine Rivers, the answer's beginning. My home is by writes the home by the water - home and by. The Nine Rivers water writes the Yangtze (one reading: the lower Yangtze's various waters). Using my home is by the Nine Rivers water to write the answer is more water-town and concrete than directly saying my home is by the water - that man, home by the Nine Rivers water, precisely the water-town child's answer. The Nine Rivers water three characters write the Yangtze, precisely preparing coming and going by the Nine Rivers' side. This opening uses home-by-Jiujiang to write the water-town home, setting the poem's water-town keynote, also preparing we are both from Changgan - that man home by Jiujiang is precisely the Changgan water-town child.
同是长干人
we are both from Changgan.
同是长干之人。
We are both people of Changgan.
这一句写同是长干之人，是此诗身份认同的核心。「同是」，写同是——「同」写相同，「是」写是，「同是」写同是，正是身份的相同；「长干人」，写长干里的儿女——「长干」写金陵里巷，「长干人」写长干里的儿女。以「同是长干人」写答问，比直写「我是长干人」更见身份与呼应——那男子，答同是长干之人，正是对「或恐是同乡」的回答；「同是」二字，写身份的相同，正是「自小不相识」的对照。这一句，是此诗身份认同的核心，也是「自小不相识」的铺垫——那同是长干人，本应相识，却自小不相识，正是相逢的怅惘。
This line writes we are both people of Changgan, the poem's identity core. We are both writes the sameness - same and is. People of Changgan writes the Changgan lane's children - Changgan is the Jinling lane, people of Changgan are its children. Using we are both people of Changgan to write the answer is more identity and echoing than directly saying I am from Changgan - that man answers we are both from Changgan, precisely answering I wonder if you might be from my hometown. We are both two characters write the identity's sameness, precisely setting since childhood we have never met's contrast. This line is the identity core, also preparing since childhood we have never met - that we-are-both-from-Changgan should have known each other, yet since childhood have not, precisely the meeting's regret.
自小不相识
yet since childhood we have not known each other.
自小不相识。
Yet since childhood we have never met.
这一句是全诗的结穴，写自小不相识，是此诗怅惘情思的最高点。「自小」，写从小——「自小」写自幼，正是「自小不相识」的时间；「不相识」，写不相识——「不」写否定，「相识」写相识，「不相识」写不相识。以「自小不相识」写相逢，比直写「不认识」更见时间与怅惘——那同是长干人，却自小不相识，正是相逢太晚的怅惘；「自小」与「不相识」的对照，写尽相逢的遗憾。这一结句，怅惘含蓄，是此诗怅惘情思的最高点，也是「同是长干人」的呼应——那同是长干人，本应相识，却自小不相识，正是水乡相逢的怅惘，正是乐府民歌「清新含蓄」的极致。
This line is the poem's knot, writing since childhood we have never met, the regretful feeling's highest point. Since childhood writes from earliest - since childhood, the time of since childhood we have never met. Have not met writes non-recognition - not and have known. Using since childhood we have never met to write the meeting is more time and regret than directly saying I don't know you - that we-are-both-from-Changgan, yet since childhood have not met, precisely the meeting-too-late regret. Since childhood set against have not met exhausts the meeting's regret. This closing line is reserved and regretful, the feeling's highest point, also echoing we are both people of Changgan - that we-are-both-from-Changgan should have known, yet since childhood have not, precisely the water-town meeting's regret, precisely the yuefu folk song's freshness and reserve extreme.
Study
Word focus
Related Reading
Compare this related work with the poem above through theme, imagery, tone, and emotional movement.
此诗写采莲的江南水乡之景，「江南可采莲，莲叶何田田」写采莲之乐、鱼戏莲叶之趣，是汉乐府民歌的名篇；崔颢《长干曲四首》则以水乡儿女的对答写恋情与乡思，皆以江南水乡为背景。两诗一为乐府民歌、一为文人拟民歌，同写江南水乡风情，对读正可见民间歌谣与文人乐府在题材、笔法上的传承与变化，皆是清新自然的水乡之歌。
长干行 The, Ballad, of, the, Changgan 李白 · 同为金陵长干水乡之作，一写同居长干里的婚恋一写同是长干人不相识的相逢，长干母题互为映照 Both are the poems of the Changgan — the waiting of the one, the meeting of the other — the two Changgans of the Tang.Li Bai's 'The, Ballad, of, the, Changgan' — 'the, waiting, by, the, Changgan' — is the Changgan of the longing; Cui Hao's 'The, Song, of, the, Changgan' — 'the, home, of, the, nine, rivers' — is the Changgan of the meeting — the two Changgans of the Tang, the one of the longing, the other of the meeting.
李白《长干行》「妾发初覆额，折花门前剧。郎骑竹马来，绕床弄青梅。同居长干里，两小无嫌猜」，写长干里的婚恋，是乐府诗的名篇；崔颢此诗「同是长干人，自小不相识」，同样写长干水乡。一写「同居长干里」的婚恋，一写「同是长干人，自小不相识」的相逢；李白是「两小无嫌猜」的深情，崔颢是「自小不相识」的怅惘。并读两作，可见「长干」这一母题在盛唐乐府中的两种情调，也可见水乡儿女从相逢到婚恋的两种情致。
琵琶行 Song of the Pipa 白居易 · 同为写同是天涯相逢之作，一写同是天涯沦落人的相逢一写同是长干人不相识的相逢，相逢母题互为映照 Related readingCompare this related work with the poem above through theme, imagery, tone, and emotional movement.
白居易《琵琶行》「同是天涯沦落人，相逢何必曾相识」，写天涯相逢的情思，是唐诗的名篇；崔颢此诗「同是长干人，自小不相识」，同样写相逢。一写「同是天涯沦落人」的相逢，一写「同是长干人，自小不相识」的相逢；白居易是「相逢何必曾相识」的豁达，崔颢是「自小不相识」的怅惘。并读两作，可见「相逢」这一母题在唐诗中的两种情致，也可见「同是」之叹在乐府与歌行中的不同表达。