All poems

近现代 近现代 · 诗 Poem

雨同我

The Rain, Together with Me

卞之琳

Bian Zhilin

名篇Masterpiece 牵挂Longing / Concern 哲理Philosophical 卞之琳Bian Zhilin

天天下雨,自从你走了。
自从你来了,天天下雨。
两地友人雨,我乐意负责。
第三处没消息,寄一把伞去。

It rains every day, ever since you left.
Ever since you came, it rains every day.
Friends in two places are rained on; I am glad to take charge.
The third place sends no word; I will mail an umbrella there.
Listen

Meaning

Through the single thread of 'rain,' the poem links the coming and going of a 'you,' the separation of friends in two places, and the silence of a third. The speaker declares he is 'glad to take charge' of others' rain and mails an umbrella to the one who sends no word. It rewrites traditional longing as active care, implying that rain, like human connection, ties all the separated together.

天天下雨,自从你走了以后;自从你来了以后,天天下雨。天各一方的友人那里也下着雨,我乐意把这份雨(这份牵挂)承担起来。第三处地方一直没有消息,那就寄一把伞去吧。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] Bian Zhilin's 'The Rain, Together with Me': 'It rains every day, ever since you left. Ever since you came, it rains every day. Friends in two places are rained on; I am glad to take charge. The third place sends no word; I will mail an umbrella there.' He takes on his friends' rain as his own. [Imagery and Method] A returning structure (the two opening lines differ only by 'left/came'), a murmuring tone, and a blank-suspense (who is the third place?); 'I will mail an umbrella there' grounds the concern in concrete action—plain yet wondrous. [Theme] The poem writes the unbroken concern between people separated by distance and silence, turning traditional longing into active responsibility, embodying the philosophical thought of 'rain, together with me'—human connection. [Key Lines] Often tested: the blank-art of 'the third place sends no word; I will mail an umbrella there' and the philosophical weight of the 'together' (tong) in the title.

【白话串讲】 卞之琳写《雨同我》:“天天下雨,自从你走了。自从你来了,天天下雨”——“两地友人雨,我乐意负责。第三处没消息,寄一把伞去”——他把朋友的雨都揽在自己身上。 【意象与手法】 回环结构(两句仅换走/来二字)、絮语口吻与留白悬念(第三处是谁?);「寄一把伞去」以具体的行动把牵挂落到实处,平淡见奇。 【情感与主旨】 写人与人之间隔两地、断消息也割不断的牵挂,把传统的相思翻转为主动的担当,寄寓「雨同我」的人世关联之思。 【名句点睛】 常考「第三处没消息,寄一把伞去」的留白艺术与诗题「同」字的哲理意味。

Background

'The Rain, Together with Me' is a short poem by Bian Zhilin (1910–2000), included in his 1930s collections. A native of Haimen, Jiangsu, Bian was a leading modernist poet; with Li Guangtian and He Qifang he published the 'Hanyuan Collection,' the three 'Hanyuan poets.' His style is fine, reserved and philosophical, influenced by Western symbolism and classical Chinese poetry, excelling at deep thought in minimal scope—his 'Fragment' ('you stand on the bridge and watch the scene') is his most famous work. 'The Rain, Together with Me' was written around 1937; it philosophizes the everyday image of rain, using rain to link the time of 'you left / you came,' the spatial barrier of friends in 'two places,' and the suspension of a 'third place,' closing with the daily act of mailing an umbrella—writing warmth of concern and the loneliness of existence in plain murmur. Bian spoke of his poetry's stress on relativity (under Western philosophical influence); this poem is exactly that relativism poeticized: what is rain to me? Yet I am concerned because of rain—the daily rain becomes a touchstone of human relation.

雨同我是卞之琳的一首短诗,收入其1930年代的诗集。卞之琳(1910—2000),江苏海门人,中国现代主义诗歌的代表诗人,1930年代与李广田、何其芳合出诗集《汉园集》,世称汉园三诗人。卞之琳诗风以精微、含蓄、哲理著称,深受西方象征主义与中国古典诗词的双重影响,擅长在极短的篇幅中寄寓深沉的哲思,《断章》(你站在桥上看风景)即其最著名的作品。雨同我作于1937年前后(一说1930年代),是诗人对雨这一日常意象的哲理化书写:诗以雨为线索,串联你走了、你来了的时间流转、两地友人的空间阻隔与第三处的悬而未决,最终以寄一把伞去的日常动作收束,在平淡的絮语中写出人与人之间牵挂的温情与存在的孤独。卞之琳曾自述其诗着重于相对关系的哲学(受西方现代哲学影响),雨同我正是相对性哲思的诗化表达:雨同我何干?而我竟为雨而牵挂——日常的雨,成了人际关系的试金石。

Art

The poem shows Bian Zhilin's art of 'wonder in plainness, greatness in smallness,' seen in its returning structure, murmuring tone, and blank-suspense. The whole takes rain as its thread: 'It rains every day, ever since you left' and 'Ever since you came, it rains every day' form a return—same syntax, only 'left/came' swapped, writing your coming-and-going and rain's constancy; is the rain's continuity tied to your presence or absence? The poet leaves it open. 'Friends in two places are rained on; I am glad to take charge' turns from you to friends—'two places' writes spatial separation, 'glad to take charge' writes active responsibility. 'The third place sends no word; I will mail an umbrella there' is the finest stroke: who is the third place, why no word? The poet tells nothing, only closes with the daily act of mailing an umbrella—the umbrella blocks rain, mailing it is silent concern for the wordless one. The blank of 'no word' and the action of 'mail an umbrella' set suspense beside warmth. The whole is colloquial, like household talk, yet every line hides unspoken words—Bian's poetics of turning plainness to wonder. The title's 'together' (tong) implies the identity of rain and me: I am rain, rain is me; one rain connects all the separated.

雨同我体现了卞之琳平淡见奇、以小寓大的诗艺,其艺术特色在回环结构、絮语口吻、留白与悬念。全诗以雨为纲,首句「天天下雨,自从你走了」与次句「自从你来了,天天下雨」构成回环:两句句式相同、仅换走、来二字,写尽你的来去与雨的始终——雨的连绵似乎与你的在场(或离去)相关,是巧合还是感应?诗人不作解释,留给读者品味;「两地友人雨,我乐意负责」由你转向友人,两地写空间的分隔,乐意负责写主动的担当——别人的雨,我也愿意为它负责,温情初现;「第三处没消息,寄一把伞去」是全诗最妙之笔:第三处是谁?为什么没消息?诗人不交代,只以寄一把伞去的日常动作作结——伞是挡雨的物,寄伞即是对没消息者无声的牵挂;没消息的留白与寄伞去的行动,构成悬念与温情的并置。全诗口语絮絮、如话家常,而每一句都藏着未说尽的话,正是卞之琳化平淡为神奇的诗学;诗题雨同我的同字,更暗含雨与我的同一性——我即雨、雨即我,天地间一场雨,牵连着所有相隔的人。

Allusions

Within this short piece lie dual cultural genes, classical and modern. First, the cultural image of rain: in Chinese literature rain joins parting and longing—'rain drizzles at the Qingming festival' (grief), 'wutong trees, fine rain' (sorrow), 'when shall we trim the candle by the west window, and talk of Bashan night-rain' (expectation); rain is a feeling thing. Bian writes friends' concern through 'it rains every day,' a modern continuation of this tradition, and 'mail an umbrella' grounds classical rain-sorrow in modern human warmth. Second, the traditional motif of 'two places' and longing: from the 'Nineteen Old Poems' ('row on row, parting from you') to Wang Bo ('a confidant in the world, near or far, like a neighbor'), separation is China's oldest concern motif; Bian's 'friends in two places are rained on' borrows it yet turns passive classical longing into modern active care. Third, modern relativistic thought: influenced by Western philosophy (e.g. Bradley), Bian often wrote seeing/seen, coming/going, this/that relativity; here 'you left / you came' against rain, 'two places' against the suspended 'third,' is that relativism poeticized. Fourth, the modern image of the umbrella: an everyday object, Bian uses mailing an umbrella to write concern, turning heavy longing into concrete action—modern poetry's turn to writing feeling through the daily.

雨同我短章之中,蕴含古典与现代的双重文化基因。其一是雨的文化意象:在中国文学中,雨常与离愁、相思相连——「清明时节雨纷纷」的断魂、「梧桐更兼细雨」的愁绪、「何当共剪西窗烛,却话巴山夜雨时」的期盼,雨是有情之物;卞之琳以天天下雨写友人间的牵挂,正是这一传统的现代延续,而寄一把伞去又以日常的伞把古典的雨愁落到现代的人情。其二是两地与相思的传统母题:自《古诗十九首》「行行重行行,与君生别离」到王勃「海内存知己,天涯若比邻」,两地相隔是中国诗歌最古老的牵挂母题;卞之琳两地友人雨化用了这一母题,却以我乐意负责的主动担当,把古人的被动相思转为现代人的主动关怀。其三是相对性的现代哲思:卞之琳受西方现代哲学(如布拉德雷)影响,诗作常写看与被看、来与去、此与彼的相对关系,雨同我中你走了、你来了与雨的对应、两地与第三处的悬置,正是这种相对性哲思的诗化——雨与我的关系,恰如人与人之间无法确证又真实存在的牵连。其四是伞的现代意象:伞是日常之物,卞之琳以寄伞写牵挂,把沉重的相思化为具体的行动,体现了现代诗以物写情的日常化转向。

Commentary

'The Rain, Together with Me' is representative of Bian Zhilin's short-poem art and a classic specimen of Chinese modernist poetry 'entering the philosophical through the poetic.' In literary history, 1930s new verse was turning from direct lyric to reserved symbol; with 'Fragment' and 'The Rain, Together with Me' Bian established his place as an intellectual poet—fusing philosophical speculation, daily observation and classical mood, giving new verse unprecedented finesse and depth, directly influencing the later Nine Leaves poets (Mu Dan, Zheng Min). In art, barely twenty-odd characters write multiple layers of concern, loneliness and warmth; its returning structure, murmuring tone and blank-suspense are models of 'greatness in smallness,' anthologized in many modern-poetry selections and textbooks. In influence, the 'together' of the title hints at human-world connection—rain and me, what bond? Yet I am concerned for rain, mail an umbrella for a friend—transcending any situation into a philosophical metaphor of modern relation: between people, even across two places and with no word, the unspeakable bond remains, like ceaseless rain-threads. With the most daily rain it writes modern man's deepest loneliness and warmest concern—a delicate amber left by Bian Zhilin in new poetry.

雨同我是卞之琳短诗艺术的代表,也是中国现代主义诗歌以哲入诗的经典样本。就文学史而言,1930年代的中国新诗正经历由直白抒情向含蓄象征的转型,卞之琳以《断章》《雨同我》等短章确立了自己智性诗人的地位——他把哲学的思辨、日常的观察与古典的意境熔为一炉,使新诗获得了前所未有的精微与深厚,直接影响了下之琳之后九叶诗人(穆旦、郑敏等)的智性诗风。就艺术而言,本诗以二十余字的篇幅写出牵挂、孤独与温情的多重层次,回环的结构、絮语的口吻、留白的悬念,皆是以小见大的典范,被收入多种现代诗选本与中学教材。就影响而言,雨同我的同字所暗示的人与世界的关联——雨与我何干?而我竟为雨牵挂,为友人寄伞——已超越具体情境,成为对现代人际关系的哲学隐喻:人与人之间,纵隔两地,甚至没消息,那份说不清的牵连仍在,正如雨丝一样绵绵不断。这首诗以最日常的雨,写出了现代人最深的孤独与最暖的牵挂,是卞之琳留给新诗的一枚精致的琥珀。

Prosody

Form Modern free verse (colloquial short piece)现代自由诗(口语化短章)
Rhyme Unrhymed; rhythm comes from colloquial caesurae and the return of phrasing. The ending syllables 'left, came, rain, charge, word, there' flow naturally without forced rhyme, yet form their own music.不押韵,以口语的顿挫与语句的回环形成节奏;走、来、雨、责、息、去句尾字音自然流转,无刻意韵脚而自成韵律。
Tone pattern The whole unfolds in a murmuring tone, like chatting with a friend. 'It rains every day, ever since you left. Ever since you came, it rains every day' returns circularly, low and lingering; 'I am glad to take charge' is crisp and bright; the last line 'the third place sends no word; I will mail an umbrella there' closes evenly, with a long aftertaste.全诗以絮语口吻展开,如对友人的闲谈;天天下雨,自从你走了。自从你来了,天天下雨回环往复,语调低回;我乐意负责斩截明快;末句第三处没消息,寄一把伞去平缓收束,余音绵长。
Reading note Bian Zhilin is known for 'entering poetry through colloquial speech, wonder in plainness.' The poem does not rhyme or divide stanzas, but lines break by speaking rhythm, lengths uneven ('it rains every day' four chars alternating with 'ever since you left' five), like daily murmur, intimate. The returning syntax ('it rains every day, ever since you left / ever since you came, it rains every day') makes a unique musical effect—two lines swap only 'left/came,' same syllables yet reversed sense, like rain's endless cycle, as if listening to unending rain. 'Friends in two places are rained on' pauses five chars, rhythm broadening from the earlier return; 'I am glad to take charge' is short and bright, a crisp assertion amid murmur; the last line closes long and slow, like rain-threads thinning. This rhythm of return-for-law and caesura-for-feeling gives a colloquial short poem musical structure—proof of Bian forging modern speech into poetic language.卞之琳的诗以口语入诗、平淡见奇著称,雨同我的节奏设计正体现其化俗为雅的功力。全诗不押韵、不分节,以说话的口气自然分行,句子长短参差(天天下雨四字句与自从你走了五字句交替),如日常絮语,亲切自然;而回环的句法(天天下雨,自从你走了。自从你来了,天天下雨)制造了独特的音乐效果——两句仅换走来二字,音节相同而语义翻转,如雨声的循环往复、绵绵不绝,读来仿佛真在听一场下不完的雨;两地友人雨五字一顿,节奏由前两句的往复转入舒缓,如目光由近及远;我乐意负责四字短促明快,如一声干脆的表态,在絮语中敲出重音;末句第三处没消息,寄一把伞去以长句收束,语调低缓,如雨丝渐细、余韵渐远。这种以回环造律、以顿挫表情的节奏,使一首口语化的短诗具有了音乐般的结构感,正是卞之琳把现代口语锻造成诗的语言的明证。

Line by line

天天下雨,自从你走了。自从你来了,天天下雨。

It rains every day, ever since you left. Ever since you came, it rains every day.

天天下雨,自从你走了以后;自从你来了以后,天天下雨。

It rains every day, since you left. Since you came, it rains every day.

这是全诗的开篇,两句回环,写尽雨与你的纠葛。天天下雨,自从你走了与自从你来了,天天下雨句式相同,仅把你走了与你来了的位置调换——而天天下雨始终不变:雨在你走后下,在你来时也下,雨的连绵与你的来去无关,又似乎有关;这种走来与雨的并置,制造了一种暧昧的感应——仿佛雨在为你送行,又在为你接风,天意与人情在雨丝中缠绕。卞之琳最擅长的相对性哲思在此显露:同一场雨,因你的来去而有了不同的意味,世界本无意义,意义皆因人而生。两句以自从领起,口语絮絮,如对友人的闲谈,而闲谈之下藏着哲学的机锋:走与来、去与留、雨与晴,皆在相对的流转中——这正是卞之琳着重于相对关系诗学的开门见山。

The rain. It rains every day, since you left. Since you came, it rains every day. The every-day-rain since-you-left and since-you-came are the loop. To have rained every day would be a raining; the it-rains-every-day-since-you-left-since-you-came-it-rains-every-day is the raining.

两地友人雨,我乐意负责。

Friends in two places are rained on; I am glad to take charge.

天各一方的友人那里也下着雨,我乐意把这份雨(这份牵挂)承担起来。

My friends in two lands have rain too; I gladly take charge.

这两句是全诗的转折,由你扩展到友人,由写景转为表态。两地友人雨五个字极凝练:既是两地的友人那里正下着雨的陈述,又暗含两地的友人共享着这场雨的意味——雨把相隔两地的人连在一起,空间的阻隔被雨丝穿透;我乐意负责是诗人对这雨(也是这牵挂)的态度:乐意写心甘情愿,负责写主动担当——别人的雨,本与我无关,而我乐意为之负责,正如我愿意牵挂远方的友人;这一句把传统相思的被动承受(为离别而愁)翻转为主动承担(为牵挂而喜),是现代人的主体性在诗中的体现。值得注意的是负责一词的日常性:它本用于事务、责任,诗人移以写雨(牵挂),化大词为家常,举重若轻——我愿意为这场牵连着你我的雨负起责任,即我愿意承担这世间所有的牵挂。两句之间,诗的情感由你走向友人,由个体走向普遍,格局顿开。

The friends. My friends in two lands have rain too; I gladly take charge. The two-lands friends' rain and the gladly-take-charge are the turn. To have taken charge would be a taking-charge; the my-friends-in-two-lands-have-rain-too-i-gladly-take-charge is the taking-charge.

第三处没消息,寄一把伞去。

The third place sends no word; I will mail an umbrella there.

第三处地方一直没有消息,那就寄一把伞去吧。

There is no word from a third place; I send an umbrella.

这是全诗的收束,也是全诗最耐人寻味的留白。第三处突然出现:前文已有你与两地友人,这第三处是谁?在何处?诗人全然不交代——没消息,不知其境遇,甚至不知其死活;然而正因为没消息,诗人的牵挂更甚:寄一把伞去——伞是挡雨之物,寄伞即是为那不知境况的人备一份遮风挡雨的保障。这一个动作,把前文的雨与牵挂全部落到实处:牵挂不是空想,而是寄一把伞的实在行动;同时,没消息的留白与寄伞去的行动构成深刻的对照——消息可以没有,牵挂不能没有;言语可以断绝,关怀不能断绝。更妙的是,伞寄向第三处,而第三处是没消息的地方——伞能否送到?那人能否收到?诗人不写,只留下一个悬念与一份心意。全诗以这个日常的动作收束,平淡至极,而余味无穷:人间最深的牵挂,往往不是千言万语,而是一把不知能否送达的伞。这没消息与寄伞去的并置,正是卞之琳平淡见奇诗学的巅峰一笔。

The umbrella. There is no word from a third place; I send an umbrella. The no-word third place and the sent umbrella are the close. To have sent the umbrella would be a sending; the there-is-no-word-from-a-third-place-i-send-an-umbrella is the sending.

Study

Word focus

同 The 'together' (tong) in the title 'The Rain, Together with Me' is the pivot of the poem's philosophical weight. 'Together' means 'same, jointly, at once'—the title does not say 'rain and me' but 'rain together with me,' placing rain and me as companion-equals: rain and I share the sky, one continuous rain, the flowing of time (you left, you came). It has three depths: (1) identity of thing and self—rain is no longer an observed object but a coexisting being, the state of 'heaven and man as one'; (2) human connection—'friends in two places are rained on,' rain is together with me, also together with friends, what is 'together' is this rain and the concern it raises, people becoming 'together' in the rain-threads; (3) relativistic thought—'together' presupposes 'difference,' precisely because of separation across two places there is the 'together' of one rain. Bian Zhilin stressed relativity all his life; one 'together' condenses his relativistic poetics. 诗题雨同我之同字,是全诗哲学意蕴的支点,最见卞之琳的匠心。同者,相同、共同、一同也——诗题不叫雨与我或雨和我,而叫雨同我,一个同字,把雨与我并置为同行的伙伴:雨与我同在天底下,同在一场连绵的雨里,同在时间的流转中(你走了、你来了)。这个字有三层深意:其一,物我同一——雨不再是被观赏的客体,而是与我共在的存在,天人感应、物我相忘的境界由此而生;其二,人际相通——两地友人雨,雨同我,也同友人,同的是这一场雨,更是这场雨牵起的牵挂,人与人在雨丝中成为同者;其三,相对性哲思——同以异为前提,正因为有相隔两地的异,才有同一场雨的同;卞之琳一生着重于相对关系,一个同字,正是其相对论诗学的浓缩。诗题两字,哲学、情感、诗艺三者兼得,堪称现代诗题目的典范。
负责 The phrase 'I am glad to take charge' (fu ze) is Bian's wonderful turn of daily language into poetic. 'Take charge' is an administrative, ethical word for bearing duty; the poet applies it to rain (concern), creating tension: (1) a big word for a small matter—merely rain among friends, why 'take charge'? Precisely because unnecessary yet glad, it shows the sincerity of feeling and the seriousness of heart, writing concern as solemn; (2) 'take charge' implies the ethical weight of responsibility—my concern for you is not random sadness but a duty I voluntarily bear, a modern subject's conscious expression of feeling, adding initiative to traditional longing; (3) 'glad' and 'take charge' together—one feeling, one reason—'glad' writes willingness (emotional consciousness), 'take charge' writes no-shirking (will's firmness), the two making my attitude to friends (and all separated ones) both tender and firm. 我乐意负责之负责二字,是卞之琳化日常语为诗语的妙笔。负责本是行政、伦理用语,指承担职责,诗人移以写雨(牵挂),产生了奇特的张力:其一,以大词写小事——不过是友人间的一场雨,何须负责?正因不必而乐意,才见其情之真、心之诚,把牵挂写得郑重其事;其二,负责暗含责任的伦理重量——我对你的牵挂不是随意的感伤,而是我自愿承担的责任,这是现代人情感关系的自觉表达,比传统的相思多了一份主体的担当;其三,乐意与负责连用,一情一理——乐意写心甘情愿(情感的自觉),负责写决不推卸(意志的坚定),二字合璧,把我对友人(及所有相隔者)的态度写得既温柔又坚定。一个日常的负责,因语境的错位而迸发出诗的光彩,正是卞之琳以俗为雅的语言艺术。
伞 The word 'umbrella' (san) in 'I will mail an umbrella there' is the poem's only concrete image and the landing-point of all its concern. The umbrella's duality: it blocks rain (answering 'it rains every day') and is mailed far (answering 'the third place sends no word')—mailing an umbrella means shielding a distant person from a rain I cannot block in person, turning the abstract feeling of concern into a concrete, sendable object. The 'an' (one) measure is exquisite: not two or several, but one—one umbrella exactly writes one-sided, unanswered concern (the third place 'sends no word'), and writes concern's just-right, irreplaceable quality. The umbrella also hints the homophone with 'scatter' (san, classical poetry often uses umbrella to imply separation), yet Bian reverses it: mailing an umbrella is not scattering but gathering—one umbrella sustains a bond that may already be broken. One 'umbrella' holds shielding, sending-feeling, suspense and homophone—four meanings, a perfect specimen of writing feeling through object. 寄一把伞去之伞字,是全诗唯一的实物意象,也是全部牵挂的落点。伞的妙处在于其双重性:它既是遮雨之物(对应天天下雨的雨),又是远寄之物(对应没消息的第三处)——寄伞,即是为远方的人遮一场我无法亲挡的雨,把牵挂这一抽象情感化为一件具体的、可寄送的物;伞的遮护功能,正是关怀的隐喻:我无法到你身边,但一把伞能替我为你挡雨。更妙的是一把的量词:不是两把、几把,而是一把——一把伞,恰恰写尽单方面的、无回应的牵挂(第三处没消息),也写尽牵挂的恰到好处与不可替代。伞还暗含散的谐音(伞与散音近,古典诗词中常以伞暗喻离散),然而卞之琳反用其意:寄伞不是散,而是聚——以一把伞维系那可能已断的联系。一个伞字,遮雨、寄情、悬念、谐音,四义并存,是以物写情的绝佳标本。

Related Reading

断章·卞之琳 Fragment (by Bian Zhilin) 卞之琳 · 同为卞之琳哲理短诗的代表,一写看的相对、一写雨的牵连 Related reading

Compare this related work with the poem above through theme, imagery, tone, and emotional movement.

断章「你站在桥上看风景,看风景的人在楼上看你。明月装饰了你的窗子,你装饰了别人的梦」与雨同我同是卞之琳相对性哲思的结晶:断章写看与被看的相对——你看风景,而你在别人的风景里;雨同我写雨与牵挂的牵连——雨同我何干?而我竟为雨(友人)负责。两诗都以极短的篇幅、极日常的场景,写出人与人、人与世界之间无法确证又真实存在的关联,是卞之琳智性诗的双璧。差异在意象与情绪:断章以明月、窗子、梦营造朦胧的意境,情绪清冷而悠远;雨同我以雨、伞营造潮湿的氛围,情绪温润而带牵挂的暖意。合观两诗,可见卞之琳诗学的核心:在平凡的相对关系中,看见存在的深度。

雨巷·戴望舒 Rain Alley (by Dai Wangshu) 戴望舒 · 同以雨为核心意象的现代诗名篇,一写哀愁的追寻、一写温情的牵挂 Both modern-poetry masterpieces centered on rain—one writes sorrowful pursuit, one writes warm concern.

'Rain Alley' ('holding an oil-paper umbrella, alone pacing the long, long, lonely rain-alley') and 'The Rain, Together with Me' both take rain as background and umbrella as prop, yet write two utterly different rain-worlds: Dai Wangshu's rain is lonely, sorrowful; under the umbrella paces the alone 'me,' seeking a lilac-like girl of sorrow—rain is symbol of loneliness and loss. Bian Zhilin's rain is continuous, connecting; the umbrella is mailed to a distant friend—rain is medium of concern and warmth. One is symbolist lyric (rain-alley is life, girl is ideal), the other intellectual murmur (rain together with me, connecting all separated). The former's umbrella is self-shielding loneliness (holding oil-paper umbrella, alone pacing), the latter's umbrella is care given to another (mail an umbrella there). Read together, they show the two poles of modern poetry's rain-image—sorrow-rain and concern-rain, and the contrast of Dai's melancholy with Bian's warmth.

雨巷「撑着油纸伞,独自彷徨在悠长、悠长又寂寥的雨巷」与雨同我同以雨为背景、同以伞为道具,却写出两种截然不同的雨境:戴望舒的雨是寂寥的、哀愁的,伞下是独自彷徨的我,追寻一个丁香般结着愁怨的姑娘,雨是孤独与失落的象征;卞之琳的雨是连绵的、牵系的,伞是寄给远方友人的,雨是牵挂与温情的媒介。前者是象征主义的抒情(雨巷即人生、姑娘即理想),后者是智性的絮语(雨同我,牵连着所有相隔的人);前者的伞是自我遮蔽的孤独(撑着油纸伞独自彷徨),后者的伞是寄予他人的关怀(寄一把伞去)。两诗并读,恰可见现代诗雨意象的两极——哀愁之雨与牵挂之雨,也可见戴望舒的忧郁与卞之琳的温煦两种诗风的对照。