The poem is about a man who was exiled from his home country for his involvement in politics. He was not cut out for politics and would have preferred a quiet ordinary life, but turbulent times led him to join a political cause. He stood by his principles and defied the law, resulting in his exile from the country. The three sentences provide a high-level overview of the key details and events in the poem without copying content verbatim.
The poem is about a man who was exiled from his home country for his involvement in politics. He was not cut out for politics and would have preferred a quiet ordinary life, but turbulent times led him to join a political cause. He stood by his principles and defied the law, resulting in his exile from the country. The three sentences provide a high-level overview of the key details and events in the poem without copying content verbatim.
The poem is about a man who was exiled from his home country for his involvement in politics. He was not cut out for politics and would have preferred a quiet ordinary life, but turbulent times led him to join a political cause. He stood by his principles and defied the law, resulting in his exile from the country. The three sentences provide a high-level overview of the key details and events in the poem without copying content verbatim.
politics, For change of principles Unhappy days, major sacrifice. Even a bit part in a tragedy- Seemed most unlikely. There was. in him a cool Confucian smile. Some suitable history would have been A place in the Family Bank, Consolidated by a careful raatch, A notable gain in family wealth, /"~N- A strengthening of the Clan. An ordinary life, ordinary longevity.
Of these things his father sadly dreams.
He was not made for
politics. But those days were China-wrought, Uncertain of loyalties, full of the search For a soul, a pride Out of ancestral agony, gunboat policy, The disaster of the Kuomingtang. So the new people took him in To cells, discussions, exciting oratory, Gave him a cause. The rich being- what they are have no cause Until their wives are middle-aged.
Work quietly, multiply the cells
Prepare for the bloom of a hundred flowers.
The flowers came, fast withereth too.
Made conspicuous by principles
And the discipline of the group, He thought to stand his ground, defy the law. Ke-actionaries he said.
And so he stood in the dock.
Many documents were read. Those who planned The demonstration, allotted tasks Had run to fight another day - they had important work, Could not be spared, were needed to arrange More demonstrations. Impersonally, the verdict was Exile to the motherland, A new reality.
He stood pale, not brave, not made for politics.
Original from and digitized by National University of Singapore Libraries