The poem “Five Beautiful Poems: Yu Ji” comes from the Qing Dynasty novelist Cao Xueqin’s novel “Dream of the Red Chamber”. It is a seven character quatrain written by Lin Daiyu in the novel. The first two lines of the poem summarize the tragic historical scene of the Battle of Gaixia, while the last two lines reveal the shameful fate of the fickle generals Yingbu and Peng Yue. This poem expresses reverence and praise for Yu Ji, embodying Lin Daiyu’s own upright and stubborn ideological character. This poem uses the technique of comparison to deepen the admiration for Yu Ji by contrasting her with Qingbu and Peng Yue.
《五美吟·虞姬》出自清代小说家曹雪芹所著小说《红楼梦》，是一首七言绝句，在小说中由林黛玉所作。诗的前两句概括垓下之战的悲壮历史情景，后两句揭示了反复无常的将军英布和彭越的可耻下场。这首诗表达了对虞姬的崇敬和颂扬之情，寄托了林黛玉自己正直倔强的思想品格。这首诗运用对比的手法，通过虞姬与黥布、彭越的对比，加深了对虞姬的赞美之情。
《红楼梦》·《五美吟·虞姬》
肠断乌骓夜啸风，虞兮幽恨对重瞳。
黥彭甘受他年醢，饮剑何如楚帐中。
Yu Ji（David Hawkes 译）
The very crows are grieving as they caw in the cold night air.
She faces her beaten Tyrant King with a haggard look of despair:
Let the others wait for the hangman, to be hacked and quartered and rent;
Better the taste of one’s own steel in the decent dark of a tent.
Yu Chi（B. S. Bonsall 译）
A heart-broken bird calls. In the night whistles the wind.
Yü in the darkness laments to the double-pupilled eyes.
Ch’ing and Peng were willing another year to be chopped to pieces.
How drunk she the sword in the tent of Ch’u?
Lady Yu（杨宪益、戴乃迭 译）
Heart-broken as black steed neighing at night in the wind,
In silent grief she stayed beside her lord;
The renegades Qing Bu and Peng Yue were doomed to be slaughtered;
Better, then, in Chu’s tent to fall on her own sword.
