绝代有佳人，幽居在空谷。

_{jué dài yǒu jiā rén ， yōu jū zài kōng gǔ 。}

自云良家女，零落依草木。

_{zì yún liáng jiā nǚ ， líng luò yī cǎo mù 。}

关中昔丧乱，兄弟遭杀戮。

_{guān zhōng xī sāng luàn ， xiōng dì zāo shā lù 。}

官高何足论，不得收骨肉。

_{guān gāo hé zú lùn ， bù dé shōu gǔ ròu 。}

世情恶衰歇，万事随转烛。

_{shì qíng è shuāi xiē ， wàn shì suí zhuǎn zhú 。}

夫婿轻薄儿，新人美如玉。

_{fū xù qīng báo ér ， xīn rén měi rú yù 。}

合昏尚知时，鸳鸯不独宿。

_{hé hūn shàng zhī shí ， yuān yāng bù dú sù 。}

但见新人笑，那闻旧人哭。

_{dàn jiàn xīn rén xiào ， nà wén jiù rén kū 。}

在山泉水清，出山泉水浊。

_{zài shān quán shuǐ qīng ， chū shān quán shuǐ zhuó 。}

侍婢卖珠回，牵萝补茅屋。

_{shì bì mài zhū huí ， qiān luó bǔ máo wū 。}

摘花不插发，采柏动盈掬。

_{zhāi huā bù chā fā ， cǎi bǎi dòng yíng jū 。}

天寒翠袖薄，日暮倚修竹。

_{tiān hán cuì xiù báo ， rì mù yǐ xiū zhú 。}

The protagonist of this poem is a woman who was abandoned during a time of war. The whole poem is divided into three sections, each containing eight lines. The first section depicts the unfortunate circumstances of the lady's family. The second section is about the lady's lament of being abandoned by her husband. The third section praises the lady's noble character, despite her misfortunes, and in maintaining her own dignity even in the hardship she endures.

绝代有佳人，幽居在空谷。

At the beginning of the poem, the character is introduced as a beautiful lady of a chaotic time, living in a secluded valley.

自云良家女，零落依草木。

Then, with the phrase "自云良家女" the woman recounts her own background and experiences. She reveals that she was born into a high-ranking family, but unfortunate circumstances brought her into the midst of social turmoil.

关中昔丧乱，兄弟遭杀戮。官高何足论，不得收骨肉。

Although her brothers held high positions, they died tragically in the chaos of war, and she was unable to even bury their remains.

夫婿轻薄儿，新人美如玉。

合昏尚知时，鸳鸯不独宿。

但见新人笑，那闻旧人哭。

In a society where personal fortunes are subject to the whims of power, fate is especially cruel to the unlucky. With her family's power lost, her frivolous husband mercilessly abandoned her, leaving her to cry alone while he revelled with his new lover. Social, familial, and personal disasters plague her story.

Through the monologue of the female protagonist, she narrates and comments on her personal misfortune and laments the callousness of the world. Her words overflow with sorrow and indignation.

Especially the metaphor of "even mating birds understand when to retire, but the mandarin ducks are not destined to stay together" (合昏尚知时，鸳鸯不独宿) and the contrast of "only seeing the new love laughing, but never hearing the old love crying" (但见新人笑，那闻旧人哭。) conveys the pain and sorrow of her experience.

在山泉水清，出山泉水浊。

However, the protagonist was not overwhelmed by her misfortunes. She abandoned the material world with its corruption and left to the mountains where the water is clean.

侍婢卖珠回，牵萝补茅屋。

摘花不插发，采柏动盈掬。

天寒翠袖薄，日暮倚修竹。

The last six lines of the poem focus on depicting the desolate living conditions of the secluded valley. The thatched hut needs repair, the emerald sleeves are thin, and she sells pearl ornaments to make ends meet. She gathers cypress fruit for food, illustrating the impoverished and distressed life of the beauty. She does not adorn her hair or wear flowers, but instead leans against the bamboo and gazes into the wind during the cold and dark days, revealing her gaunt appearance and lonely, mournful heart. Both materially and spiritually, the situation of the beauty is unbearable.

Through the use of "赋" writing technique, the poet describes the beauty's life of poverty and loneliness, while also using "比兴metaphor" to praise her noble and self-respecting character. It is true that the crude yet peaceful environment of the thatched cottage (牵萝补茅屋) and the preference for beauty without decoration (摘花不插花) have already shown the purity and simplicity of the beauty's soul. However, the descriptions of "采柏动盈掬gathering cypress fruit" and "日暮倚修竹leaning against bamboo at sunset" further link the beauty's image to the symbols of "bamboo" and "cypress," which represent noble qualities.

Thus, the poem hints to the reader: don't you think this woman, who is struggling in a difficult situation, is just like the evergreen cypress and the tall and sturdy green bamboo? Similarly, the two lines "在山泉水清，出山泉水浊the water in a mountain spring clear, and out of the mountain it is muddy" are also symbolic of the protagonist's nobility and detachment from the material world.

The poet wants to use the clarity of mountain springs to metaphorically describe the pure character of the beauty, which is related to "leaning against bamboo" and "gathering cypress fruit" in the same context.

Destiny is tragic, and sentiment is noble; these are two facets of the ideal woman that Du Fu potrays. Du Fu uses different pronouns to depict these two facets of the character. When describing the woman's fate, the poet employs a first-person narrative, with a direct and passionate tone; when praising the woman's character, the poet uses a third-person description, with a subtle and allusive style.

The direct and passionate tone evokes deep emotions and resonates with the reader; the subtle and allusive style encourages contemplation and leaves room for the reader's imagination. The combination of these two styles creates a complex and nuanced portrait of the tragic yet noble heroine.

As for the meaning of this poem, the Qing scholar Huang Sheng believed that it was written to express the poet's personal feelings and emotions about a particular person and event. The poem was composed in the autumn of the second year of the Qianyuan era (759), five years after the Anshi Rebellion broke out. Earlier, the poet was forced to resign from his post as a military officer in Huazhou due to financial difficulties. He brought his wife and children with him and traveled over the Longshan Mountains to Qinzhou.

Although Du Fu was in a difficult situation, with no fixed income or residence, he never forgot the fate of his country and his people. His experience of adversity and his unwavering spirit are similar to those of the heroine in this poem. "同是天涯沦落人，相逢何必曾相识。We are fellow travelers in this distant land, and we need not have met before." (白居易Bai Juyi, "《琵琶行》Song of the Lute") Du Fu's "《佳人》Ideal Woman" should be regarded as a masterpiece that combines objective reflection with subjective aspirations.