Chapter 44 The Tree on the Edge of the Cliff: The Destiny and Poems of Zeng Zhuo and Niu Han, Members of the "Hu Feng Group"

In 1958, more than 550,000 people across the country were classified as "rightists". More than half of them lost their public positions, and a considerable number were sent to reeducation through labor or supervised labor. Some people were displaced and their families were destroyed.A few people were lucky enough to be retained by the original unit, but most of them were employed by non-directors. In 1962, the central government also issued a document, proposing that the "rightist" elements be decapitated in stages and batches, and be dealt with leniency.But the "Cultural Revolution" broke out, and the "rightists" sank to a lower level.It will take another 16 years to be rehabilitated.

The decade of the "Cultural Revolution" was a decade of blood and tears for the "rightists". During the "Cultural Revolution", some "rightists" (most of them were intellectuals) recorded their personal experience in poetry. The great "rightist" Hu Feng was released from prison in 1965 before the "Cultural Revolution". After the "Cultural Revolution" began, he was imprisoned again. In 1970, he was sentenced to life imprisonment for writing "reactionary poems" and "writing reactionary poems on the portrait of Chairman Mao" (in fact, there was no paper in the prison, and Hu Feng wrote poems in the blank space of the newspaper).Hu Feng was not allowed to appeal, nor was he allowed to read the verdict.The so-called "writing reactionary poetry" refers to Hu Feng's "Huai Chun Shi Shu Huai".These poems were created around 1957. During the "Cultural Revolution", Hu Feng was imprisoned in the Chengdu Detention Center. In 1957, Hu Feng, in order to solve the problem of having no paper and pen in prison and forgetting his poems, borrowed Lu Xun's poem "Used to the Long Night for Spring" and used its original rhymes-silk, flag, poem, and clothes, and composed them in four rhymes. poems to recite.Taking flag rhyme as an example, Hu Feng once wrote: "Looking at the holy flag dimly in the eyes", "Drawing a red flag against the enemy and ourselves", "Happy to see the same color flag in the clear sky", "Hanging the Wannian flag on the wall", etc., describing the longing for forgiveness, missing The emotional journey of a young son, the joy of getting out of prison, and a new life.

The "July School" poets Niu Han and Zeng Zhuo, who were the main members of the "Hu Feng counter-revolutionary clique" and were once arrested and imprisoned, were also "unfortunate grievances are like flowers and lives are like silk". During the "Cultural Revolution", the two were censored, imprisoned, exiled and reformed through labor. Zeng Zhuo, born in 1922, is a native of Wuhan, Hubei. In 1939, he began to publish works in Chongqing and Guilin, including novels, movie scripts, reviews, etc. In 1941, he participated in the editing work of "Poetry Kendi" in Chongqing. As the main poet of the "July School", he published a collection of poems.In 1970, Zeng Zhuo wrote "The Tree on the Edge of the Cliff": "I don't know what kind of strange wind blows a tree over there-the end of the plain, on the cliff near the deep valley." This strange wind , referring to the strong wind of the "Cultural Revolution", which blew the author onto the hanging rock near the deep valley.In the midst of all dangers, the "tree" heard: "the noise of the forest in the distance and the singing of the stream in the deep valley". Although the "tree" is lonely, it "looks lonely and stubborn".

its curved body left the shape of the wind It looks like it's about to fall into a deep valley But it seems to spread its wings and fly... It was because of the stubborn and firm will that he did not fall into the abyss.However, its appearance was "distorted" by the gale of the times.This is a strange picture: when storms and bad luck come, they fight tenaciously to withstand the wind, and at the same time spread their wings to fly to a bright future.Here is a summary of the typical posture and common experience of intellectuals in the "Cultural Revolution" era.The short poem condenses the spiritual realm that the intellectuals entered during the "Cultural Revolution" era.

Niu Han, formerly known as Shi Chenghan, was born in Dingxiang County, Shanxi Province in 1923. He began to publish poetry in 1941 and is an important member of the "July School". The long poem "Ordos Grassland" published in 1942 is his representative work.After liberation, Niu Han served as the head of the poetry and prose group of the People's Literature Publishing House in 1954. In 1955, he was classified as a Hu Feng element and suffered from imprisonment.During the "Cultural Revolution" era, Niu Han experienced and witnessed the destruction of many valuable lives. He was deeply moved and wrote "Mourning a Maple Tree" in the autumn of 1973.

It was the tallest maple tree, which was felled one morning in autumn, and the nearby villages and fields could feel and hear the sound of the maple tree falling; The birds, the bees, and the boats by the lake all trembled... The poet smelled the fragrance of the maple tree, this "fragrance makes people sad", and the fallen maple tree "looked more majestic and beautiful than when it stood. "The poet saw that the annual rings of the maple tree were sawed, and tears poured out in circles. The hills beside the tree seemed to shrink a lot, and he lowered his head. This is a song that celebrates "life", the maple tree is so beautiful, and the destruction of a beautiful life is heartbreaking.

felled a maple tree felled a life connected to the earth This is a beautiful life connected to the earth, a life infinitely attached to nature. The era of the "Cultural Revolution" was an era in which personal values ​​were ignored.This poem with profound historical connotations deeply describes the human tragedy during the "Cultural Revolution".