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唐 Tang · 文 Prose

种树郭橐驼传

The, Biography, of, Guo, Tuotuo, the, Tree, Planter

柳宗元

Liu Zongyuan

寓言Theme 传记Theme 讽喻Satire 顺其天性Theme

郭橐驼，不知始何名。
病偻，隆然伏行，有类橐驼者，故乡人号之驼。
驼闻之，曰：甚善。
名我固当。
因舍其名，亦自谓橐驼云。

Guo, Tuotuo, of, his, first, name, no, one, knew.
Afflicted, with, the, hunchback,
Bent, and, creeping, along,
Having, something, like, the, camel,
Thus, the, townsfolk, named, him, Tuotuo, the, camel.
Tuotuo, hearing, it, said:
'Very, good. The, name, for, me, is, indeed, fitting.'
Therefore, he, gave, up, his, own, name,
And, also, called, himself, Tuotuo, the, camel.

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Meaning

A prose of the biography and the fable, written by Liu Zongyuan. Guo Tuotuo of his first name no one knew, afflicted with the hunchback, bent and creeping along — the man of the opening. Having something like the camel, thus the townsfolk named him Tuotuo the camel — the name of the middle. Tuotuo hearing it said very good the name for me is indeed fitting, therefore he gave up his own name and also called himself Tuotuo the camel — the acceptance of the close. The prose is the biography and the fable: the hunchback, the name, and the close's acceptance.

郭橐驼，人们不知道他最初叫什么名字。他患有伛偻病，脊背高高隆起，弯着腰走路，样子有点像骆驼，所以乡里人给他起外号叫「驼」。郭橐驼听到这个外号，说：「很好，这样称呼我本来就很恰当。」于是他放弃了自己原来的名字，也自称「橐驼」。

Appreciation

[Plain Paraphrase] Guo, Tuotuo, of, his, first, name, no, one, knew. Afflicted, with, the, hunchback, bent, and, creeping, along, having, something, like, the, camel, thus, the, townsfolk, named, him, Tuotuo, the, camel. Tuotuo, hearing, it, said: 'Very, good. The, name, for, me, is, indeed, fitting.' Therefore, he, gave, up, his, own, name, and, also, called, himself, Tuotuo, the, camel. [Structure and Thought] The prose moves from the man of the hunchback and the creeping, through the naming of the camel by the townsfolk, to the close's the acceptance of the name with the giving up of his own. [Key Technique] The prose's art is the close of the acceptance: having something like the camel, and the close's the name is indeed fitting — the biography gathered in the naming and the close's acceptance. [Emotional Tone] Plain, humorous, and philosophical: the prose is the hunchback, the name and the close's acceptance.

【白话串讲】柳宗元写《种树郭橐驼传》：郭橐驼种树，“能顺木之天，以致其性焉尔”——顺着树的天性。“凡植木之性，其本欲舒，其培欲平，其土欲故，其筑欲密”——“其莳也若子，其置也若弃”——别人种树总折腾，他种完就不管。他借种树讽当官——“吾居乡，见长人者好烦其令”——他劝为政者别折腾百姓。【意象与手法】名为传记，实为寓言。开篇以「诨名立传」，为后文「顺木之天以致其性」的种树之理与「官理」的治国之喻张本。状貌只「隆然伏行」四字，人物便跃然纸上；「甚善。名我固当」两句对话，傲骨自见。语言简洁传神，寓庄于谐，是柳宗元寓言文中「以传为论」的典范。【情感与主旨】借种树之道讽喻吏治：为政当「顺其天性」，如郭橐驼之顺木之性；反之，「好烦其令」的苛政与「爱之太恩」的揠苗助长，皆足以害民害物。郭橐驼「自谓橐驼」的旷达，正是对世俗荣辱的超脱，也是作者贬谪中自我心境的投影。【名句点睛】「甚善。名我固当」六字，一石三鸟：既写人物之豁达，又为「因舍其名，亦自谓橐驼云」张本，更暗含「名实相副」的庄学机锋——橐驼之名虽丑，而实至名归，何必讳之。

Background

Liu Zongyuan (773-819), the great essayist and poet of the Tang, wrote this 'The, Biography, of, Guo, Tuotuo, the, Tree, Planter' of the biography and the fable — the philosophy of the nourishing. The hunchback of the creeping with the naming of the camel, and the close's the acceptance of the name — the prose gathers the philosophy of the writer, the humor of the fable. The prose is one of the famous works of the writer's fables of the Tang.

柳宗元（773—819），字子厚，河东解人，世称柳河东，唐代古文运动的领袖之一，与韩愈并称「韩柳」，同列唐宋八大家。唐顺宗永贞元年（805），柳宗元参与王叔文领导的永贞革新，失败后被贬为永州司马，十年后改贬柳州刺史，卒于任所，年仅四十七岁。长期的贬谪生涯使他深入民间，写下了《三戒》《捕蛇者说》《种树郭橐驼传》等一批寓言性杂文，借草木禽兽、市井小民寄托政治批判。《种树郭橐驼传》约作于贞元末至元和初，时值唐王朝经安史之乱后吏治日趋烦苛，地方官「好烦其令」，政出多门、朝令夕改，百姓疲于应付。柳宗元有感于此，虚构郭橐驼其人，以种树之理喻治国之道，主张「顺木之天，以致其性」、清静无为、与民休息，其思想渊源可上溯《老子》之「无为而治」与《庄子》之「养生」哲学。本文以传记体行寓言，是柳宗元「文以明道」主张的实践，也是唐代散体古文兴起的代表作；柳宗元于贬谪中痛感官场之扰民、政令之烦苛，故借种树之说立「顺性」之教，其忧时伤民之怀，隐然见于笔墨之间。

Art

The prose's art is the art of the fable. The man opens: Guo, Tuotuo, of, his, first, name, no, one, knew — the no one of the first name; afflicted, with, the, hunchback, bent, and, creeping, along — the hunchback of the creeping; having, something, like, the, camel — the camel of the likeness; thus, the, townsfolk, named, him, Tuotuo, the, camel — the naming of the townsfolk. The acceptance follows: Tuotuo, hearing, it, said: 'Very, good. The, name, for, me, is, indeed, fitting.' — the fitting of the name; therefore, he, gave, up, his, own, name — the giving up of the own name; and, also, called, himself, Tuotuo, the, camel — the calling of the self — the man, the naming and the close's acceptance, gathered in the prose.

本文最突出的艺术成就在于「以传为论」的文体创造：标题曰「传」，实则是一篇精心构撰的寓言政论。开篇写人物姓名来历，貌似依循史传「某某者，某地人也」的常格，实则处处反用：不知始何名——姓名阙如；病偻隆然——形貌丑陋；乡人号之驼——取绰号；驼闻之曰甚善——欣然自受；因舍其名，亦自谓橐驼——主动更名。短短数句，一个安时处顺、超脱形骸的智者形象便立了起来，而「诨号」这一喜剧性外壳，又为后文「顺木之天」的天道之理作了谐趣的反衬——最丑的形骸包裹着最真的道理。结构上，本文先写名，后写术（种树之道），再写理（官理），环环相扣；本段虽只及「名」之一事，已可见全文「以虚写实、寓庄于谐」的笔法。语言上，「病偻」「隆然伏行」「有类橐驼者」状物精确，白描传神；「甚善。名我固当」两个短句，口语化十足，人物音容笑貌如在目前，与下文论种树时的整饬说理形成文气上的对照。

Allusions

'Tuotuo' (tuo tuo) is the camel — the camel of the hunchback, the name of the man; 'the hunchback' (lu) is the hunchback — the affliction of the bent, the creeping of the walk; 'the townsfolk' (xiang ren) are the townsfolk — the people of the town, the naming of the camel.

郭橐驼之「自谓橐驼」，是理解全文精神的一个文化符号。「橐驼」即骆驼，一名「橐它」；又「橐」本指口袋，驼峰隆起如袋，故名。柳宗元以「橐驼」命名主人公，取其「隆然伏行」之形，更取其「任重致远」之德——骆驼负重耐劳、不择水土，正喻安分守拙、顺性自得之人。这一形象深得《庄子》之髓：《庄子·德充符》写哀骀它「未尝有闻其唱者也，常和而已」，貌丑而德全，众人悦之；《养生主》庖丁解牛「依乎天理」，与郭橐驼「能顺木之天以致其性」同一机杼。主人公「名我固当」之语，亦含庄学「名者，实之宾也」的机锋：名之丑不足以损其实之美，故泰然受之。更可注意的是，柳宗元以畸人写至理，暗用《庄子》「畸人者，畸于人而侔于天」的思想——外貌之畸与天道之合，恰成对照。这一寓言谱系从《庄子》寓言直贯中唐，至柳宗元而发扬光大；而「橐驼」之为号，亦暗合庄禅「随缘任运」之旨——形骸虽丑，性自天然，名之顺逆不足挂怀，正见柳宗元融会百家、以旷达安顿贬谪生涯的用心。

Commentary

This prose is one of the famous works of Liu Zongyuan's fables of the Tang, quoted for the humor of its naming and the philosophy of its acceptance. The naming of the camel, and the giving up of the own name, are among the admired passages of the writer's prose. Critics praise the prose's philosophy: the man gathered in the naming, to the close's acceptance.

《种树郭橐驼传》是柳宗元寓言文中影响最大的篇目之一，也是中国古代「以物喻政」传统中的典范之作。历代选本无不收录，自宋迄清，古文评点家如茅坤、金圣叹、姚鼐皆极推重，以为「小题大做，文法变化不测」。其价值有三：其一，思想价值——「顺木之天，以致其性」的主张，不仅是种树之道、为政之道，更是对一切违背规律、急于求成之行为的普遍警示，故其寓意历千年而不衰，今人读之，仍觉切中时弊；其二，文学价值——把传记、寓言、政论熔于一炉，人物鲜活、说理透辟、谐趣横生，为后世（如《卖柑者言》等）树立了「假物托讽」的典范；其三，精神价值——郭橐驼「甚善。名我固当」的超脱，折射出柳宗元贬谪中自嘲自解、安顿自我的智慧，与苏轼「一蓑烟雨任平生」的旷达异代同调。此文至今入选各类语文教材，成为中学生接触古文寓言与「托物言志」手法的经典文本；其「顺木之天」四字，更由种树之术上升为普遍的处世与为政之道，故千载之下，读之犹觉切中肯綮。

Prosody

Form A fable prose of the biography (gu wen)唐代散体古文（寓言性传记）

Rhyme The prose flows on the plain and the easy cadence — the rhythm of the classical prose that carries the humorous philosophy.不押韵，纯以散句行文，靠虚词与句式的长短调节节奏。段首「郭橐驼，不知始何名」以三字逗起，音节轻快；「病偻，隆然伏行，有类橐驼者，故乡人号之驼」句渐加长，「病偻」二字一顿，如画龙点睛；「驼闻之，曰：甚善。名我固当」短句连用，干净利落，人物答语声口毕肖；「因舍其名，亦自谓橐驼云」以「云」字收束，余音袅袅。

Tone pattern The cadence is that of the fable: the level opening with the man, the turning with the naming, and the close's fall with the acceptance.句式长短错落，急缓相间。叙写处用短句、单句，明快传神；转述处用「有类……者」「故……之」的因果句式，周密流畅。人物语言「甚善。名我固当」仅六字，以短句出之，更显其斩截爽朗；句末「云」字为语助，拖出闲淡从容之味。整体语调谐谑而从容，与寓言的喜剧性外壳相称。

Reading note The prose's sound matches its humor: the cadences of the classical prose, and the close — 'yi zi wei Tuotuo yun' — falls with the camel, the sound of the acceptance of the fabled man.本文声情之美，在于「以短句写谐趣、以虚词行文气」。开篇「郭橐驼」三字直呼其人，不冠姓氏籍贯，已是破体之笔，音节上亦以三字短起，轻快不羁；「不知始何名」五字一宕，语气散淡，暗示此传之「虚」。「病偻」二字独句，短促顿挫，把病症写得斩截；「隆然伏行」四字状形，「隆然」以「然」字拖音，读来仿佛见驼背隆起之形。「有类橐驼者，故乡人号之驼」一因果句，节奏放稳，如乡人指认其形。「驼闻之，曰：甚善。名我固当」是全文声情的最高点：两个四字短句「甚善」「名我固当」，一赞一断，声如金石，人物之豁达借声而传。「因舍其名，亦自谓橐驼云」以「因」字承接、「云」字收尾，语气由明快转为闲淡，如长揖而退。全文不足五十字，而叙事、写形、传声、立旨俱全，节奏如轻舟过浅濑，忽疾忽徐，正是柳宗元古文「简古澹泊」风格的绝佳注脚。

Line by line

郭橐驼，不知始何名。

Guo Tuotuo - no one knows what his original name was.

郭橐驼这个人，人们不知道他最初叫什么名字。

Guo Tuotuo; no one knows what his original name was.

开篇第一句即打破史传「某某者，某地人也」的定式，以「不知始何名」起笔，妙味无穷。其一，为全篇定下「寓言」的基调——人物本属虚构，姓名何必考究，「不知」二字正是作者故意留下的虚笔，暗示读者勿以真人实传视之；其二，暗伏「名实」之辨的题旨：主人公本名既佚，后竟以诨号行世，而本人安之若素，可见名之不足恃，实之所在即为名之所在；其三，文气上以「不知」宕开，如闲笔漫叙，而愈闲愈见从容，为后文「故自谓橐驼」的豁达蓄势。柳宗元以寥寥七字，既破体例，又立主旨，又见性情，开篇即显大家手段。

The opening first line breaks the historical biography's so-and-so, a man of such-and-such place formula; opening with no one knows what his original name was, the subtlety endless. First, setting the whole piece's allegory keynote - the character is fictional, why investigate the name; no one knows two characters are precisely the author's deliberate void stroke, hinting the reader not to treat it as a real person's true biography. Second, secretly planting the name-and-reality distinction's theme: the hero's original name already lost, yet he later became known by a nickname, and himself at ease with it; showing the name's untrustworthiness, the reality's place is the name's place. Third, in prose breath, no one knows opens out, like idle chatter; the more idle the more showing composure, storing force for the later hence calling himself Tuotuo's open-mindedness. Liu Zongyuan in a mere seven characters at once breaks the genre, establishes the theme, and shows temperament; the opening at once showing a master's hand.

病偻，隆然伏行，有类橐驼者，故乡人号之驼。

Afflicted, with, the, hunchback, bent, and, creeping, along, having, something, like, the, camel, thus, the, townsfolk, named, him, Tuotuo, the, camel.

他患有伛偻病，脊背高高隆起，弯着腰伏着身子走路，样子有点像骆驼，所以乡里人给他起外号叫「驼」。

He suffered hunchback, his back humped high, walking bent forward; he was rather like a camel, so the villagers nicknamed him Camel.

此句以白描写形，是人物「立像」的关键。「病偻」点出病因与症状，「隆然」写脊背隆起之状，如见其人，「伏行」二字尤其传神——弯腰到近乎爬行，一个「伏」字把病态之躯写得如在目前；「有类橐驼者」是乡人取号的依据，状物与命名之间因果分明。而「乡人号之驼」，一个「号」字暗含戏谑——乡人以生理缺陷为笑料，世态人情之浅薄隐然可见。但柳宗元写丑态而不嫌其秽，反以谐趣出之，正为下文主人公「甚善。名我固当」的超脱作反衬：世人以形貌取笑，而我自以天性自得，形之丑无损于德之全。此句状物之精，直逼《庄子·人间世》写支离疏「颐隐于脐，肩高于顶」的笔法。

This line uses plain description to write form, the key to the character's image-establishing. Suffered hunchback names the cause and symptom; humped high writes the back's raised state, as if seeing the person; walking bent forward two characters especially vivid - bending over to near crawling; one bent writes the diseased body as if present. Rather like a camel is the villagers' nickname basis; between thing-rendering and naming the cause-and-effect clear. And the villagers nicknamed him Camel: one nicknamed holds ridicule - the villagers using the physical defect as laughingstock; the world's shallow ways subtly visible. Yet Liu Zongyuan writes the ugly form without savoring its filth, instead through humor; precisely for the later hero's very good, naming me Camel is indeed fitting's transcendence as foil: the world laughs at form, yet I self-rejoice in nature; the form's ugliness no harm to the virtue's wholeness. This line's thing-rendering fineness directly approaches Zhuangzi's In the Human World's writing of Zhili Shu: his chin hidden by his navel, his shoulders higher than his crown's brush.

驼闻之，曰：甚善。名我固当。

Tuotuo, hearing, it, said: 'Very, good. The, name, for, me, is, indeed, fitting.'

郭橐驼听到乡人这样叫他，说：「很好，这样称呼我本来就很恰当。」

When Camel heard it, he said: Very good. Naming me Camel is indeed fitting.

「甚善。名我固当」六个字，是全段人物精神的集中闪光。常人闻人讥己形貌，或怒或悲，郭橐驼却报之以「甚善」，一个「善」字，把世俗的嘲弄照单全收，转丑为美；「名我固当」更进一层，不是勉强接受，而是肯定这名字名副其实——我确实形如骆驼，那么叫「驼」有何不当？此种坦然，非有大定力、大智慧者不能道。六字之中，有庄子的超脱（「名者，实之宾也」），有禅家的机锋（「即事而真」），更有柳宗元自身的影子——贬谪之人，被世人以「罪人」视之，而能自安其分、自全其性，故借郭橐驼之口说出自己的心志。语言上，两个四字短句戛然而止，简洁有力，人物的豁达口吻跃然纸上。

Very good. Naming me Camel is indeed fitting six characters are the whole passage's concentrated flash of character spirit. Ordinary people hearing mockery of their form are angry or grieved; Guo Tuotuo yet answers with very good - one good accepting the world's ridicule in full, converting ugliness into beauty. Naming me Camel is indeed fitting goes one level further: not reluctantly accepting, but affirming this name worthy of the name - I am indeed shaped like a camel, so what is unfitting in calling me Camel? This kind of composure, only one with great steadiness and great wisdom can speak. Within six characters, there is Zhuangzi's transcendence (the name is the guest of reality), Chan's gong-avya (truth within the event), and even Liu Zongyuan's own shadow - the exiled person, seen by the world as a criminal, yet able to settle in his lot, preserve his nature; hence through Guo Tuotuo's mouth speaks his own will. In language, two four-character short lines stop abruptly, concise and forceful; the character's open-tempered tone leaps onto the page.

因舍其名，亦自谓橐驼云。

Therefore, he, gave, up, his, own, name, and, also, called, himself, Tuotuo, the, camel.

于是他放弃了自己原来的名字，也自称「橐驼」。

So he abandoned his given name and called himself Tuotuo as well.

收束之笔，把人物境界再推一层。「因舍其名」——主动放弃本名，名之为累，弃之何惜；「亦自谓橐驼云」——不仅接受诨号，更自我认同，以「橐驼」自居。一个「亦」字，写出从被动到主动的转化；一个「云」字，语助词拖出闲淡之味。至此，郭橐驼的形象完成：不慕名、不避丑、不矫情、不自卑，与世无争而自有主张。这一结尾与后文「吾又何能为哉」的谦抑相映成趣——自谓橐驼者，谦抑其名；能顺木之天者，实有其能。名愈卑，实愈高，正是全文「名实相副」哲理的第一次亮相。柳宗元以人物命名一事立骨，层层递进，文短而味长，为「以传为论」开了个好头。

The closing brush pushes the character's realm one level further. So he abandoned his given name - actively giving up the original name; the name as burden, why hesitate to abandon. Called himself Tuotuo as well - not only accepting the nickname, but self-identifying, taking Tuotuo as himself. One also writes the conversion from passive to active; one as-well, the modal particle drags out the leisurely flavor. Here, Guo Tuotuo's image is complete: not craving fame, not avoiding ugliness, not being affected, not being humble; not contending with the world yet holding his own position. This ending and the later what more can I do? 's modesty form a paired charm - calling himself Tuotuo is modesty in name; able to follow the tree's nature is real ability. The humbler the name, the higher the reality; precisely the whole text's name-reality-match philosophy's first appearance. Liu Zongyuan establishes bone through the character naming, layer by layer advancing; prose short yet taste long - opening a good head for using biography as argument.

Study

Word focus

隆然 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「隆然伏行」之「隆然」，「然」为形容词词尾，「隆」训高起、隆起。二字状脊背之畸形：不曰「背曲」「背驼」，而曰「隆然」，以「隆」之高大反衬病体之不堪，曲尽病偻者「龟背」之形，且「隆然」与「伏行」对照——背愈隆而身愈伏，一高一低，形貌之滑稽如在目前。柳宗元状物，善以单字形容词加「然」字组成迭音式的形容词，如「蠢然」「茫然」，皆取其形神兼备。此处「隆然」不仅写形，更暗含讽意：隆然者，突起也，与下句「有类橐驼者」呼应，为乡人取号张本。若易为「背曲如弓」，则形似而神失；「隆然」二字，状貌精确而又略带谐趣，正是柳文「简而有味」的典型。

固当 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「名我固当」之「固当」，「固」训本来、确实，「当」训恰当、得当，二字连用，肯定之极而带从容之态。郭橐驼不曰「甚善，名我当」，而曰「名我固当」，多一「固」字，境界顿殊：若言「当」，是承认诨名还算贴切；言「固当」，则是断言此名本就非我莫属，天造地设，名实天然相合。这一「固」字，把人物的超脱写足——他不是宽宏大度地容忍嘲弄，而是从根本上消解了「丑名」的概念：形貌如此，名即如此，何丑之有？同时，「固当」又暗含哲理：名者实之符，实至则名归，郭橐驼之「固当」，正如《庄子》「名止于实」之说。柳宗元一字之增，人物的精神高度随之而增，炼字之精可见一斑。

自谓 A key expression in the poem. Read it as an image, mood, or grammar point in context. 「亦自谓橐驼云」之「自谓」二字，是全段由外而内、由被动而主动的枢纽。「谓」训称呼，「自谓」即自称；前文乡人「号之」，是他人强加之名，此句「自谓」，是自我认同之名，一外一内，主客易位。「自谓」二字的分量在「自」：郭橐驼不待乡人再呼，自己先以「橐驼」自居，把别人口中的戏谑，化为自我的标识，名之为物，遂失其能伤人之力——这是对「名」的彻底超越，也是庄子「举世誉之而不加劝，举世非之而不加沮」的境界。且「自谓」又为后文「郭橐驼」之全名张本：无「自谓」则「郭橐驼」之名无由成立，无「郭橐驼」则全篇无所依托。二字看似寻常，实为全段文法之关键。