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宋 Song · 词 Ci lyric

贺新郎

Congratulating the Bridegroom: The Racing of the Festival Days

刘克庄

Liu Kezhuang

感怀memory 节序Theme 身世Theme 咏志Theme

过眼光阴驶。
忆垂髫、留连节物，逢场游戏。
初试𦈌衣弄纨扇，斗采菖蒲涧里。
今发白、颜苍如此。
艾子萧郎方用事，怪先生、苦死纫兰芷。
君不乐，欲何俟。
头标夺得群儿喜。
向溪边、旁观助噪，叹吾衰矣。
欲建鼓旗无气力，唤起龙泉改委。
但酒户、加封而已。
晚觉醉乡差快活，那独醒、公子真呆底。
聊洗净，笛筝耳。

Passing, the light of the years, racing.
Remembering, the hanging locks of the childhood, lingering, at the festivals and the objects,
Meeting, the occasions, playing, the games.
First, trying, the garment of the silk, playing, the round fans,
Contending, to pick, the calamus, in, the brook.
Today, the hair, white, the face, aged, so.
Ai Zi and Xiao Lang, just, in, the power,
Wondering, the gentleman, suffering, to death, sewing, the orchids and the angelicas.
You, not, pleased,
What, to wait, for.
The first, in, the race, seizing, the flag, the children, delighted.
Toward, the brook side, standing by, cheering, the noise,
Sighing, my, decayed, so.
Desiring, to set up, the drums and the banners, no, strength,
Awakening, the Longquan, changed, the casting.
Only, the household of the wine, added, the title, and, nothing, more.
Late, realizing, the drunken country, quite, joyful,
That, the only, waking, the gentleman, truly, foolish.
Casually, washing, clean,
The ears, of the flutes and the zithers.

Listen

Meaning

A lyric of the festival and the sigh, written by Liu Kezhuang. The light of the years racing, remembering the hanging locks of the childhood lingering at the festivals, the playing of the games, the garment of the silk with the round fans, and the contending to pick the calamus in the brook — the festival of the opening. Today the hair white with the face aged, Ai Zi and Xiao Lang in the power, the gentleman suffering to death sewing the orchids and the angelicas — the sigh of the present. The first in the race seizing the flag with the children delighted, the cheering of the brook side, and the sighing of the decayed, desiring to set up the drums without the strength — the decay of the poet. And the close's the drunken country quite joyful, the only waking gentleman truly foolish, casually washing clean the ears of the flutes and the zithers — the close's waking. The lyric is the festival and the sigh: the racing years, the decayed self, and the close's drunken country.

光阴如飞驰的快马,一晃眼就从眼前过去了。当初初次换上𦈌布新衣,摆弄着纨扇,还和小伙伴们比赛着到山涧里去采菖蒲。艾草萧艾之辈正当得势用事,却怪先生我,苦苦地佩着兰芷而不肯同流。到晚年才觉得醉乡之中还算快活,至于那独醒的公子,真是呆得可以。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] Passing, the light of the years, racing. Remembering, the hanging locks of the childhood, lingering, at the festivals and the objects, meeting, the occasions, playing, the games. First, trying, the garment of the silk, playing, the round fans, contending, to pick, the calamus, in, the brook. Today, the hair, white, the face, aged, so. Ai Zi and Xiao Lang, just, in, the power, wondering, the gentleman, suffering, to death, sewing, the orchids and the angelicas. You, not, pleased, what, to wait, for. The first, in, the race, seizing, the flag, the children, delighted. Toward, the brook side, standing by, cheering, the noise, sighing, my, decayed, so. Desiring, to set up, the drums and the banners, no, strength, awakening, the Longquan, changed, the casting. Only, the household of the wine, added, the title, and, nothing, more. Late, realizing, the drunken country, quite, joyful, that, the only, waking, the gentleman, truly, foolish. Casually, washing, clean, the ears, of the flutes and the zithers. [Structure and Thought] The lyric moves from the festival of the childhood and the racing years, through the sigh of the aged with the power of the present, to the close's drunken country and the washing clean of the ears. [Key Technique] The lyric's art is the close of the waking: the only waking gentleman truly foolish, and the close's washing clean the ears — the sigh gathered in the festival and the close's waking. [Emotional Tone] Sighing, resigned, and wry: the lyric is the racing years, the decayed self and the close's drunken country.

【白话串讲】刘克庄写贺新郎忆端午：“过眼光阴驶。忆垂髫、留连节物，逢场游戏”——他想起小时候过端午。“初试𦈌衣弄纨扇，斗采菖蒲涧里”——“今发白、颜苍如此”——“艾子萧郎方用事”——他写自己老了，世事沧桑。【意象与手法】此词以「光阴」为经、「今昔」为纬。上片「忆垂髫」,试衣弄扇、斗采菖蒲、溪边夺标,笔致轻快,写足童年热闹;「今发白、颜苍如此」一句猛拽回现实。下片化《离骚》香草之喻,以「艾子萧郎」暗讽小人用事;结处反用《渔父》「独醒」之典,自笑独醒者为呆。以俗语谐词藏悲慨,今昔对照,愈乐愈哀。【情感与主旨】刘克庄一生仕途偃蹇,晚年国势日蹙、壮心消磨。此词由端午节物追忆儿时之乐,落到「欲建鼓旗无气力」的暮年之叹,笑中含泪:当年夺标何等英气,如今看人夺标唯余衰叹。「苦死纫兰芷」是自守,「真呆底」是自嘲,貌似谐谑,实为英雄末路的酸辛,把身世之感、时局之忧、节序之思熔铸于一炉。【名句点睛】「那独醒、公子真呆底」:反用屈原「举世皆浊我独清」之意,笑独醒者为呆,貌似调侃,实是痛极之语——守了一辈子独醒,到头来只剩醉乡之托,以谐写悲,比直陈沉痛更令人断肠。

Background

Liu Kezhuang (1187-1269), the poet of the late Song, wrote this 'Congratulating the Bridegroom' of the festival and the sigh — the sigh of the aged. The racing light of the years with the festival of the childhood, the sigh of the aged with the power of Ai Zi and Xiao Lang, and the close's drunken country with the washing clean of the ears — the lyric gathers the sigh of the poet, the wry of the late Song. The lyric is one of the famous works of the poet's lyrics of the sigh.

刘克庄,字潜夫,号后村,莆田人,南宋后期文坛宗主,江湖诗派领袖,兼工词,词风近辛弃疾而稍趋散文化,有《后村长短句》传世。此词自「初试𦈌衣弄纨扇,斗采菖蒲涧里」「头标夺得群儿喜」诸语观之,当作于端午时节,词人由眼前节物,追忆垂髫之年逢场游戏、涧中采菖、溪边夺标的旧事。刘克庄一生,仕途偃蹇,屡起屡废,晚年虽赐官致仕,而国势日蹙,壮志销磨。「今发白、颜苍如此」直写老态;「艾子萧郎方用事」则借端午艾草与《离骚》萧艾之喻,暗讽当世小人用事;「欲建鼓旗无气力,唤起龙泉改委」,更见烈士暮年、壮心难再的悲慨。全词以节令为引、以光阴为线,把儿时之乐、壮年之怀、暮年之叹绾合一处,笑中含泪,旷中带悲,是后村晚年词中融节序、身世、时局于一体的代表作,亦可窥南宋末年士人阶层的普遍心态。细按词意,起于过眼之叹,终于醉乡之托,中间以兰芷、龙泉为骨,慷慨悲凉,一唱三叹,正是后村「家国之感,一寄于词」的本色。

Art

The lyric's art is the art of the sigh. The festival opens: passing, the light of the years, racing — the racing of the years; remembering, the hanging locks of the childhood, lingering, at the festivals and the objects — the childhood of the lingering; meeting, the occasions, playing, the games — the playing of the games; first, trying, the garment of the silk, playing, the round fans — the garment of the silk; contending, to pick, the calamus, in, the brook — the calamus of the picking. The sigh follows: today, the hair, white, the face, aged, so — the aged of the present; Ai Zi and Xiao Lang, just, in, the power — the power of the present; wondering, the gentleman, suffering, to death, sewing, the orchids and the angelicas — the sewing of the orchids; you, not, pleased, what, to wait, for — the waiting of the not pleased. The decay: the first, in, the race, seizing, the flag, the children, delighted — the seizing of the flag; toward, the brook side, standing by, cheering, the noise — the cheering of the brook side; sighing, my, decayed, so — the sighing of the decayed; desiring, to set up, the drums and the banners, no, strength — the no strength of the drums; awakening, the Longquan, changed, the casting — the changed casting of the Longquan; only, the household of the wine, added, the title — the title of the wine. And the close gathers the waking: late, realizing, the drunken country, quite, joyful — the joyful of the drunken country; that, the only, waking, the gentleman, truly, foolish — the foolish of the waking; casually, washing, clean, the ears, of the flutes and the zithers — the washing clean of the ears — the festival, the sigh and the close's waking, gathered in the lyric.

此词章法,以「光阴」为经,以「今昔」为纬,俯仰之间,感慨系之。起句「过眼光阴驶」五字,开门见山,一笔总揽,如快刀劈水,立定全篇气骨。以下「忆垂髫」至「头标夺得群儿喜」,追忆儿时:留连节物、逢场游戏、试衣弄扇、斗采菖蒲、溪边夺标,笔致轻快,如数家珍,把童年的热闹写得跃然纸上;而「今发白、颜苍如此」一句,如当头棒喝,把回忆猛然拽回现实,今昔对照,苍凉无限。下片由身世转入时局与心态:「艾子萧郎方用事」,以香草萧艾之喻,冷眼看当世;「欲建鼓旗无气力,唤起龙泉改委」,写有心杀贼无力回天,豪气与颓唐并见;末以「聊洗净,笛筝耳」作结,自我解嘲,归于谐谑。全词插叙儿时、直写暮年、隐讽时局、自托醉乡,转折多达数层,而一气流转,如珠走盘,正是辛派词「以文为词」、纵笔挥洒的本色,亦是后村词清真中有狂放、谐谑中有沉痛的独特面目。尤可玩味者,上下片皆以短句收束:「今发白、颜苍如此」「但酒户、加封而已」,三字一顿,如曲中击节,声情相生,把词的节奏与感情的起伏完全融成一体,足见后村于词体形式运用的纯熟。

Allusions

'The calamus' (chang pu) is the calamus — the herb of the festival of the dragon boat, the picking of the brook; 'the orchids and the angelicas' (lan zhi) are the orchids and the angelicas — the herbs of the fragrance, the sewing of the gentleman, the purity of the poet; 'the Longquan' (Long quan) is the Longquan — the sword of the Longquan, the changed casting; 'the drunken country' (zui xiang) is the drunken country — the country of the drunken, the joyful of the close; 'the only, waking, the gentleman' (du xing) is the only waking — the waking of the one, the foolish of the close.

此词用典不多而皆能化入情思,尤以香草、醉乡两系为要。「艾子萧郎方用事,怪先生、苦死纫兰芷」,本于屈原《离骚》「何昔日之芳草兮,今直为此萧艾也」「纫秋兰以为佩」之语,以兰芷喻贤者、萧艾喻小人,诗人借端午艾草应景之「艾」,暗刺当世小人用事,而自比为苦守兰芷之屈子,化骚人之辞为身世之叹,寄托遥深。「那独醒、公子真呆底」,反用《楚辞·渔父》屈原「举世皆浊我独清,众人皆醉我独醒」之意,屈原以独醒自高,诗人却笑独醒者为呆,貌似自嘲,实则于反语之中,见出贤者不遇、举世昏昏的愤懑。「酒户加封」「醉乡差快活」,用唐人王绩《醉乡记》之典,以醉乡为托身之所,谓求醉于酒,差可自遣。诸典皆随手拈来,化入俚语谐词之中,不使人觉,正是后村以博学运俗语、以谐趣藏悲慨的拿手好戏。而「头标夺得群儿喜」之「头标」,亦本竞渡夺标之俗,典出荆楚岁时之习,以寻常民俗入词,与骚雅之典相映成趣,尤见后村词雅俗兼赅、庄谐并作的面貌。

Commentary

This lyric is one of the famous works of Liu Kezhuang's lyrics of the sigh, quoted for the wry of its festival and the waking of its close. The contending to pick the calamus, and the washing clean of the ears, are among the admired passages of the poet's lyrics. Critics praise the lyric's wry: the years gathered in the sigh, to the close's waking.

刘克庄此词,为其晚年感时抒怀之作,清人论后村词,每许其学稼轩而得其神。此词「过眼光阴驶」之起、「叹吾衰矣」之叹,与辛弃疾《贺新郎》「甚矣吾衰矣」之句,声口如出一辙,而「欲建鼓旗无气力,唤起龙泉改委」之壮怀消歇,亦正稼轩「醉里挑灯看剑」的悲凉余响,故况周颐《蕙风词话》谓后村词「苍劲中时露风骨」,移以论此作,最为惬当。全词妙在谐与悲的熔铸:儿时夺标之乐,写来何等热闹;暮年看客之叹,说来何等萧瑟;「公子真呆底」之嘲,又带多少酸辛。前人谓辛派词人「以词为陶写之具」,后村此词,正是把身世之感、时局之忧、节序之思,一齐倾泻于纸端,纵横排奡,不作儿女态,亦不作寒乞语,置之南宋后期词坛,堪称苍凉激楚的压卷之作。此外,后村此词于谐谑之中时露倔强,「苦死纫兰芷」「真呆底」诸语,貌似自嘲,实为自守,正合其人「生不逢时,而终不肯改节」的行事,词品与人品,于此互相发明,尤堪玩味。

Prosody

Form A long ci lyric of the sigh (ci diao)词·贺新郎（双调一百十六字体）

Rhyme The lyric rhymes on the level and the oblique of the group — the cadence of the long ci that carries the wry sigh.通押仄声韵,以上声纸、止部为主（驶、里、此、芷、喜、矣、委、已、耳）,间用去声寘（戏）与上声荠（底）,统属词韵第三部支微部

Tone pattern The cadence is that of the sigh: the level opening with the festival, the turning with the power and the decay, and the close's fall with the waking.仄韵到底,上下片各十句,句间平仄多拗峭,声情激越,宜于抒写磊落不平之气

Reading note The lyric's sound matches its wry: the cadences of the long ci, and the close — 'liao xi jing, di zheng er' — falls with the washing clean, the sound of the ears of the waking poet.《贺新郎》一名《金缕曲》,为北宋以后词人习用的长调,双调一百十六字,上下片各十句,句句有韵,仄声韵到底,声情激越悲壮,最宜抒写家国之感与身世之慨。刘克庄此词,通押词韵第三部支微部仄声,以上声纸、止韵为骨干,上声者,其音低而长,有沉郁顿挫之感,正合抚今追昔、欲说还休的情味;间用去声「戏」字,其音清而远,于儿时之乐处一扬;又用上声荠韵「底」字作结,其音细而促,于自嘲处一挫,声情与文情,丝丝入扣。句式上,起句五字「过眼光阴驶」,顿然而起;「忆垂髫、留连节物」,七、四错落,顿挫有致;「今发白、颜苍如此」与「但酒户、加封而已」,皆以三字短句收束,如曲中之「顿」,摇曳生姿。通观全词,韵密句促,而气舒意长,正是后村「以长调写短情、以拗声配硬语」的当家本领,足见其于声律一道,亦自深造。

Line by line

过眼光阴驶。

Time flashes past the eye, galloping on.

光阴如飞驰的快马,一晃眼就从眼前过去了。

Time flashes before the eye like a galloping horse, gone in a moment.

起句五字,是全词的「机括」所在。「光阴驶」以「驶」字状时间,如车马飞驰,一去不回,时间的流逝感被写得具体而急迫;「过眼」二字,更添一种倏忽而过、欲挽不得的怅惘。五字开门见山,不作任何铺垫,直接把人生的苍茫感压在读者心头,与下文的「忆垂髫」「今发白」形成因果:正因光阴过眼如驶,故昔日垂髫之乐,转瞬已成白发苍颜。此句在声气上短促有力,仄收而断,如击键定音,为全篇定下俯仰今昔、感喟身世的基调。后村词善以「领字」「短句」振起全篇,此五字正是一例,看似寻常,实有千钧之力。

The opening five words are the ci's mainspring. Time galloping uses the word galloping to write time like a rushing chariot, gone and never returning, making the sense of time's passage concrete and urgent; before the eye adds the pathos of something flashing past, beyond recall. Five words, no buildup, pressing the vastness of life onto the reader at once, and forming the cause of what follows - remembering childhood and now white-haired: precisely because time flashes like a gallop, the joys of boyhood have turned in an instant to an aged face. In sound the line is short and forceful, ending on a falling tone like a struck key, fixing the ci's key of looking now and then, mourning one's lot. Later-poet Liu Kezhuang likes to lift the whole piece with leading words and short lines; these five, ordinary as they seem, carry a thousandweight.

初试𦈌衣弄纨扇，斗采菖蒲涧里。

First, trying, the garment of the silk, playing, the round fans, contending, to pick, the calamus, in, the brook.

当初初次换上𦈌布新衣,摆弄着纨扇,还和小伙伴们比赛着到山涧里去采菖蒲。

I first put on my new ramie robe, toyed with the silk fan, and raced the other children gathering calamus in the mountain stream.

此二句追忆儿时端午之乐,是「忆垂髫」的具体展开。「初试𦈌衣」写新衣上身的新鲜,「弄纨扇」写小儿把玩团扇的天真,「斗采菖蒲涧里」则是一场热闹的竞赛:涧水潺潺,一群孩童争采端午应节的菖蒲,比谁采得多、采得快,满幅都是跳跃的身影与清脆的笑声。着一「斗」字,儿时的争强好胜、兴高采烈,便全活了起来。两句一静一动,先写衣扇之玩,后写涧中之采,把童年端午的况味写得有声有色。然而越是这样天真烂漫的回忆,越衬出下句「今发白、颜苍如此」的苍凉,以乐景写哀,其哀弥深,这正是后村以儿时之「戏」写暮年之「叹」的深心。

These two lines recall the Double Fifth joys of childhood, the concrete unfolding of remembering boyhood. First putting on the new ramie robe gives the freshness of new clothes; toying with the silk fan gives a child playing with the round fan; racing to gather calamus in the stream is a lively contest - the gurgling gully, a crowd of children scrambling for the festival calamus, competing to gather most and fastest, the whole scene full of leaping figures and bright laughter. The single word race brings childhood's rivalry and delight to life. One still, one moving: first the robe and fan, then the gathering in the gully, rendering the Double Fifth of childhood in sound and color. Yet the more innocent the memory, the more it sets off the desolation of now white-haired, the face so aged - writing grief through joy, the grief the deeper, which is Liu's deep purpose of writing old-age sigh through childhood play.

艾子萧郎方用事，怪先生、苦死纫兰芷。

Wormwood and mugwort now hold power; they wonder why I, sir, persist in threading orchids.

艾草萧艾之辈正当得势用事,却怪先生我,苦苦地佩着兰芷而不肯同流。

Wormwood and mugwort are now in power; they wonder why I, sir, so stubbornly wear orchids and iris.

此二句是全词的「眼」,由身世之叹转入世之愤。「艾子萧郎」借端午艾草之名,暗用《离骚》萧艾之喻,指当世小人当道;「方用事」三字,冷峻如刀,写尽世道之晦。「怪先生、苦死纫兰芷」,以小人责贤者守志的口气出之:他们反怪你这先生,苦苦抱着兰芷那样的节操不放,活该不合时宜。一个「怪」字,把小人得志时的得意与对贤者的嘲弄,写得如在目前;而「苦死」二字,又是诗人的自伤自怜:守志如此之难,苦守如此之久。此二句化骚为词,借端午应景之物,把身世之慨与时局之忧一齐打入,辛辣而沉痛,是后村「以文为词、以议论入词」的典型笔法。

These two lines are the ci's eye, turning from the sigh over one's lot to indignation at the age. Wormwood and mugwort in power borrow the festival wormwood's name and secretly use the Li Sao metaphor of mugwort and wormwood, meaning the petty men now in charge. In power is cold as a blade, writing the darkness of the times. They wonder why I, sir, persist in threading orchids is voiced as if the petty men reproach the worthy for keeping his integrity: they marvel that you, sir, cling to the orchid's purity, so out of season. The word wonder writes the men's triumph and mockery as if present; while persistently, to the death is the poet's own self-pity - keeping faith is so hard, and kept so long. These lines turn Li Sao into ci, using the festival's plants to drive both personal grief and national worry into one, sharp and bitter - a typical stroke of Liu's writing ci through prose and argument.

晚觉醉乡差快活，那独醒、公子真呆底。

In old age I find the land of wine almost cheerful; as for the gentleman who stays sober, he is truly a fool.

到晚年才觉得醉乡之中还算快活,至于那独醒的公子,真是呆得可以。

In old age I find the land of wine almost cheerful; as for the gentleman who stays sober, he is truly a fool.

结语以谐谑出之,是自嘲,亦是自解。「晚觉醉乡差快活」,谓历尽沧桑,始知醉酒忘忧、差可快活,一个「晚」字,含多少阅世之痛:早岁岂不知醉乡可乐,只是抱着一腔孤忠,不肯醉耳。如今「差快活」,仍是「差」——差强人意而已,并非真个快活。下句反用《渔父》屈原独醒之典,自笑「那独醒、公子真呆底」,貌似讥屈子之痴,实则以反语自嘲:当年的独醒自守,到头来落得一场空,岂不是呆?这「呆底」二字,笑中有泪,是英雄末路的自我解嘲,也是举世昏昏的愤激反语。词至此戛然而止,谐趣之中,悲凉无限,正是后村词「愈谐愈悲」的高妙处。

The closing comes out in jest, self-mockery and self-consolation at once. In old age I find the land of wine almost cheerful means that, after all the world's turns, he has learned that drinking to forget is almost enough; the word old age holds how much the pain of lived experience - did he not know in youth that wine is cheerful? He held to a lone loyalty and would not be drunk. Now almost cheerful is still only almost, passable, not truly glad. The next line reverses the Fisherman allusion to Qu Yuan staying sober, mocking himself: as for the gentleman who stays sober, he is truly a fool. Seeming to ridicule Qu Yuan's obsession, it is really self-mockery in reverse - the lone sobriety he kept once has ended in nothing, so is it not foolish? The word fool laughs through tears, the self-mockery of a hero at the road's end, and the bitter reverse-speech of a world all drunk. The ci stops here, and amid the jest lies boundless desolation - the high art of Liu's the more jesting, the more sorrowful.

Study

Word focus

驶 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「过眼光阴驶」之「驶」,是通篇立骨之字,状时间之逝,力重千钧。「驶」本写车马疾驰,移以写光阴,则时间不再是抽象的概念,而是一匹脱缰的快马,风驰电掣,转瞬即逝,其速度感、方向感、一去不返的决绝感,全在一个「驶」字之中。若易为「逝」「流」,则只状其去,不状其疾;唯「驶」字,既见其速,又见其无情,仿佛看见光阴扬鞭催马,从眼前呼啸而过,欲挽无从。此字与下文「今发白」遥相照应:正因光阴「驶」得太急,垂髫才转瞬成白发。一词之工,定下全篇俯仰今昔的基调,是后村炼字以少总多的范例,亦见其词「起句即见筋节」的本领。

斗 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「斗采菖蒲涧里」之「斗」,是追忆儿时最传神的一字。「斗」有比赛、争胜之义,着一「斗」字,把一群孩童在涧边争采菖蒲的场面写得热气腾腾:你采得快,我采得更多,谁也不肯服输,涧水溅衣,嬉笑喧哗,一派天真烂漫的竞技之乐。若不用「斗」,只说「采菖蒲涧里」,便只是寻常纪事,平淡无奇;一个「斗」字,胜负心、好胜气、热闹劲,一齐迸出,童年的生命力便扑面而来。且此字与下片的「叹吾衰矣」暗中形成对照:儿时斗采,何等英气;如今看人夺标,唯余衰叹。同一「斗」字,隔开两段人生,今昔之感,不待言而自明,是后村以一字绾合上下片的妙笔。

用事 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「艾子萧郎方用事」之「用事」,是暗讽时局最冷峻的一字。「用事」本谓当权执政,此处以艾草、萧艾之辈「方用事」,明写端午应景之物正当其时,暗刺当世小人得势、贤者退避,一语双关,皮里阳秋。「方」字尤妙,正当、恰逢之意,写出小人得志的猖獗气焰,正是他们「方」得意之时,愈发衬出守志者之孤危。「用事」二字,在宋词中本多指权臣柄政,诗人借草木之微,寓朝政之刺,措辞极含蓄,而锋芒极锐利,正是词「微而显、婉而讽」的传统。此字之下,全词的感慨由一己之老,升华为世道之忧,境界顿然开阔,是后村以俚词作雅讽、化俗为庄的典范。

差 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「晚觉醉乡差快活」之「差」,是结语中最见分寸、也最见酸辛的一字。「差」是差强人意、勉强凑合之意,着一「差」字,便否定了「快活」的绝对性:不是真个快活,只是「差」可快活,聊胜于无而已。此字一出,所谓「醉乡快活」,不过是一个历尽沧桑的老人无可奈何的自慰,其间的勉强、将就、自我排遣,尽在字里。若去「差」字,直说「醉乡快活」,便成真语,失去自嘲的意味;唯「差」字,欲盖弥彰,愈说快活,愈见不快活,正是「以乐写哀」的老到笔法。此字与末句「真呆底」的谐谑相配合,把壮怀消歇的悲凉,藏进自嘲的苦笑之中,读之令人低回不已。

贺新郎