Describe in an exaggerated way
Author: Liu Xie
The metaphysical refers to the Tao, while the metaphysical refers to the device. Shinto is hard to copy, and fine words cannot be chased; The shape is easy to write, and it can be described by powerful words; It's not short or long, but it's hard to understand. Therefore, since the beginning of heaven and earth, the words are always praised and decorated. Although "poetry" and "book" are elegant, customs teach the world, things must be broad and words must be strict. Therefore, if the words are used carefully, this song will be extremely high. If the words are narrow, the river can't tolerate them. By the way, your descendants are hundreds of billions. If you talk less, people will be miserable. Xiangling looked up at the sky and turned her back to the theory of floating pestle; Although the speech is serious, its meaning is harmless. And the ugliness of the husband's horn, how can you be good with Pan Lin? The bitterness of tea is better than that of Joo Won?. And the meaning is deeply praised, so the meaning becomes pretentious. In the Great Sage Record, in order to hang the charter, Monk said that "poets don't have to hurt their words, and they don't have to hurt their meaning".
Since Song Yu, Beijing inspection and boasting have become popular. Like the wind, the paradox is getting worse and worse. Therefore, the pavilions of Shanglin, Runxing and Wan Hong entered the pavilion; Judging from the prosperity of birds, Feilian has both birds and birds. There is Yang Xiong's "The Fountain", and the rest will be considered. If the language is magnificent, Yushu is fake and precious; If you talk mean, you will fall into ghosts and gods. Compared with Xi Du, Hai Ruo has no reason to be tested in Xijing, but the decoration of the poor is still not bad. Another sub-cloud "Feather Hunting" flogged Fu Fei to reward Qu Yuan; Zhang Heng's "Hunting Feather" trapped Xuanming in the wild. He is not a ghost, but this navy master is not verve. And the empty use is indiscriminate, not sparse? This desire to brag about one's power and decorate one's affairs is nothing more than a stab in the face. Be as beautiful as mountains and seas, have a posture like a palace, have a craggy and brilliant appearance, be as radiant as Wewe Chan, and your voice and appearance are in jeopardy. Amazing because of boasting and embellishment. As a result, backward talents, with the sound of awards, are eager to fly, but they are ashamed to leave and resign, so Chunzao can't be beautiful; Words wither, and cold valleys are insufficient to wither; Talking about happiness is a combination of talking and laughing, and talking about qi is a cry of * * * *; Letters can fly and stagnate, but they are scary and deaf.
However, if the decoration is poor, the sound will rise; Exaggerated, worthy of the name is good. If we can take into account the broad purpose of poetry and books, we can praise the horse very much, make it grandiose and restrained, and decorate it without falsehood.
Like:
Exaggeration is in use, and the words can't be found. Words are bound to flourish, but anger is stagnant.
Dive into the sea to explore the pearl, and turn Kun into a swallow. Open without overflowing, luxurious and flawless.
Classical Chinese translation:
Exaggeration is the thirty-seventh article of Wen Xin Diao Long, which focuses on the use of exaggeration.
The full text is divided into three parts. The first part discusses the necessity of exaggerated description in literary creation. Liu Xie cited some exaggerated examples from Confucian classics such as The Book of Songs, and pointed out that although this description is inevitable, it does not damage the educational function of the work, but can "seek its extreme" and "symbolize its truth" and play a more powerful educational role. In fact, not only some things that are difficult to express, but also common shapes can highlight their essence through exaggerated means and play a positive artistic effect. Therefore, Liu Xie concluded that "words are convincing and grandiose will last forever", and there will always be grandiose expressions in all literary descriptions.
The second part discusses the application, development and artistic power of exaggeration in Han Dynasty. Liu Xie cited some examples in "Han Fu", which showed that although the use of exaggeration by Ci Fu writers in Han Dynasty had a tendency from prevailing to excessive, they were all "surprised by exaggeration and embellishment" in their Ci Fu creation, giving full play to the artistic effect of exaggeration description, even opening the eyes of the blind and frightening the deaf.
The third part discusses the basic principles of exaggeration. Liu Xie believes that on the one hand, it is necessary to inherit the fine traditions of Confucian classics such as The Book of Songs, and on the other hand, it is necessary to correct the exaggeration bias of ci-fu writers in the Han Dynasty, so as to achieve "exaggeration and restraint, and no illusion in decoration"; The key is to grasp the main points and express thoughts and feelings effectively, instead of using inappropriate exaggeration to make "be worthy of the name"
Liu Xie not only thinks that there must be exaggerated ornaments in literary works since the beginning of the world, but even encourages writers to break away from convention and try to find jewelry decorated with exaggeration in the spirit of "dumping the sea" and "dumping Kunming". This shows that he did not stick to all Confucian theories, but had a correct understanding of the performance characteristics of literature and art.
( 1)
The unformed abstraction is called Tao, and the formed concrete is called Qi. Subtle truth is not easy to explain, even if you use accurate language, you can't fully express it; Although a specific thing is easy to describe, it can better reflect its true image with powerful words. This is not because the author's talent is big or small, but because the matter itself is difficult and easy. Therefore, from the beginning of the world, there are ways to exaggerate and modify anything involving sound and appearance, as long as it is expressed through words; Even the elegant language in The Book of Songs and The Book of History must be given a wide range of examples in order to educate readers, so there must be more content than the actual language. Therefore, in the Book of Songs, when it comes to high, it means that the mountain is high to the sky, and when it comes to narrow, it means that there is no room for the boat in the river; Speaking of more, it is said that there are countless descendants. Speaking of less, it is said that no one died in the Zhou Dynasty. History books say that when a flood surrounds a hill, it will drown the sky. When it comes to the soldiers who defected to the Zhou people, there is a record that they can float the hammer with blood. Although these are inevitably exaggerated, they do not harm the basic meaning to be expressed. Another example is the owl's cry, which is ugly. How can it be really nice just because it lives in a tree by the water? Bitter vegetables taste bitter. How can it really be like the book of songs, Daya noodles, because it grows on the plains of Zhou Dynasty and is as sweet as syrup? It is precisely because the author has profound praise that he exaggerates the meaning of the text. Great saints recorded it as a model for later generations. Therefore, Monk once said: "People who interpret the Book of Songs should not hinder their understanding of the poem because of the rigidity of rhetoric, nor should they misunderstand the author's original intention because of the rigidity of the poem itself."
(2)
After Song Yu and Jing Cha, exaggeration became popular in his works. Sima Xiangru inherited this fashion and made it worse. Weird and inaccurate descriptions became more and more serious. When he wrote about the high-rise building in Linyuan, he said that the meteor and Qu Hong seemed to have entered its window. I wrote that many people chase birds, but it is said that strange birds, such as dragonflies and Jiao Mingcan, catch everything. Later, Yang Xiong wrote Ganquan Fu, which inherited the charm of Sima Xiangru. In order to describe strangeness, he relies on the treasure of Yushu; In order to describe pavilions towering into the sky, it is said that ghosts and gods will also fall. Ban Gu talks about flounder in Xi Du Fu, Zhang Heng talks about Hai Ruo God in Xijing Fu and so on. These statements are not only difficult to check in reason, but also not detailed enough in exaggeration. In addition, such as Yang Xiong's "Hunting Feather Fu", it is said that Fu Fei, who wants to whip Luoshui, wants her to send dining tables to Qu Yuan and others; Zhang Heng's Feather Hunting Fu once said that Xuan Ming, the water god, should be imprisoned in the Great Northern Wilderness. However, the kind Luo Shen is neither a ghost nor a ghost; And Xuan Ming, the water god, is not a demon; Are they too careless to describe it in such an unrealistic and arbitrary way? This writing only exaggerates things in order to increase the momentum, but it obviously violates justice. However, when describing the landscape of mountains and seas and palaces, these works can fully show that grandeur; Bright colors are like a harmonious fire, and the towering balcony is full of flying momentum: all these are exaggerated ways to express the shape of things and the strangeness of things with the help of decorative literary talent. So later, many talented people carried forward this ethos, relying on this momentum. They soar, destined to fly; Rush enthusiastically and be ashamed of walking slowly. If they write about prosperity, even the beauty of spring is not as beautiful as this; Even the desolate cold valley is not so depressed if it is written as decline. Write happily, and the words seem to come together with laughter; Write sadness, the tone seems to come at the same time as crying This can really express what is hidden in the heart but not obvious very vividly, which can simply open the eyes of the blind and shock the deaf.
(3)
If exaggeration can grasp the main points of things, it can effectively express the author's thoughts and feelings; If you exaggerate too much and go against common sense, it will make the text divorced from reality. If we can absorb the profound meaning from The Book of Songs and Historical Records in content, avoid excessive exaggeration in Yang Xiong's and Sima Xiangru's ci in form, and embellish it without violating the facts, it will be a masterpiece.
(4)
In short, must the use of exaggeration follow certain rules? Exaggerated language should soar like a Dapeng, not as slow as a bird landing. When a writer chooses this language, he should turn over the sea to look for pearls and push down Kunlun Mountain to seek beautiful jade. The standard is exaggerated, and there is nothing wrong with the decoration.
Chinese Translation and Translation of Classical Chinese