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Prompt: Compare the poem 'Hastily' by Xuan Dieu and 'The Waves' by Xuan Quynh to discover the poets' yearnings for love and the desire for life.
Compare 'Hastily' and 'The Waves' to discern the poets' aspirations for love and life.
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Love and aspirations are constant 'elements' in every individual's life. It is in the longing for love and being loved, the yearning for life, and cherishing existence that the true value of life is realized. Perhaps, more than anyone else, poets, individuals deeply engaged with life and attuned to the zeitgeist, understand this profoundly. Hence, we see verses crafted to articulate the sentiments and fervor of countless lives, expressing the earnest and intense emotions of people who want to be heard. 'The Waves' and 'Hastily' are such poems, embodiments of the yearning for love, the desire for life, and dedication.
Both Xuan Quynh and Xuan Dieu are acutely aware of the relentless flow of time, trying but unable to halt its passage.
'Though life may be long
Years still pass by swiftly'
Life may be lengthy, but time never lingers, silently rushing through the finite essence of human existence. It's the anxiety before time, the bittersweet reflection on the years of life—simultaneously fearful and nostalgic.
'Like the vast sea over there
Clouds still drift far away'
No matter how expansive and boundless the sea is, it cannot prevent clouds from drifting; both remain unable to meet.
And Xuân Diệu is no different, fearing time, rushing and striving:
'Spring is approaching, meaning spring is passing by,
Spring is still young, meaning spring will age,
And when spring ends, it means I will also be gone.
My heart is wide, yet the measure of heaven is cramped,
Not granting the extended youthful time for mortals,'
He fears youth will slowly fade away, leaving behind only regrets and melancholy. Time, as always, flows on, spring cyclically arrives and departs. People suddenly realize that youth is not everlasting, age advances, and when spring concludes, it signifies my departure. Recognizing time waits for no one, acknowledging the fleeting nature of youth, the author becomes more conscious of their own existence. A heightened desire to love and live emerges, to avoid regrets in life, regrets for the years gone by. Xuan Quynh portrays a deep, sincere love—a passionate love from a timid, hesitant girl, yet one that demonstrates courage in love:
'How can it dissolve
Into a hundred small waves
Of the vast sea of love
To endlessly ripple for a thousand years'
One wave alone cannot create the vastness of the ocean; it must harmonize with the rhythm of the sea, with the powerful surge of a thousand waves, continuously reaching the shore of the immense ocean. Similar to the love she expresses, it cannot be kept solely for oneself; it must be a love as vast as the great sea, as expansive as that ocean, a love between us, for humanity, for every person in the world. It is not just the sea of nature but also the sea of love, the ocean of love, and that love endures forever, immortal, infinite like human life, human existence. A longing for love that is lofty, beautiful, and extraordinary. Love seems to be an eternal, intensely passionate yearning, throbbing in the heart of every person, in the heart of youth.
And Xuân Diệu, in a similar vein, the more he fears time, the more he realizes the transience and limited nature of human life. The more he recognizes life's brevity, the more urgently he urges people to live hurriedly, to race against time, and to savor the essence and beauty of the earth and sky. To relish the exquisite aroma of life. It is a desire to accomplish extraordinary feats, strange aspirations to preserve the absolute beauty of nature, ensuring the sun never fades, and the fragrance of flowers does not hastily dissipate:
'I want to extinguish the sun
So the colors don't fade away
I want to restrain the wind
So the fragrance doesn't fly away'
And here, the desires fully embraced, the longing to possess all cherished flavors:
'I want to embrace
All the new life budding
I want to weave through clouds and wander with the wind
I want to intoxicate with the flight of butterflies in love
I want to linger in an evening kiss
....
Oh rosy spring, I want to take a bite of you'
