Xah Lee, 20040326
I ran into this poem:
雄兔腳撲朔，雌兔眼迷離，兩兔傍地走，安能辨我是雄雌？
Very funny. Here's my translation:
male hares walk-a-hobbit, female hares have befuddled eyes, a couple hares running along, how can you tell my sex?
The interesting thing is how does one translate the “撲朔” and “迷離”; what do they really mean? Some web search found me this reference:
傳統中國文學電子報第八十期 (traditional Chinese literature online periodical 80th issue) 2001-05-04 at http://www.literature.idv.tw/news/n-80.htm. (local copy)
It seems to indicate, that the lines “雄兔腳撲朔, 雌兔眼迷離” (male hare walks-a-hobbit, female hare has befuddled eyes) really describes rabbits in heat. Males, fuss about the female, while females, feign befuddlement. At which point, one can easily distinguish their sex by their deportment alone. However, when the rabbits are running along, it becomes impossible to tell their sex again.
This poem is actually the last verse of the Mulan ballad. Here's the complete ballad:
木蘭辭 唧唧復唧唧，木蘭當戶織，不聞機杼聲，惟聞女歎息。 問女何所思？問女何所憶？女亦無所思，女亦無所憶。 昨夜見軍帖，可汗大點兵；軍書十二卷，卷卷有爺名。 阿爺無大兒，木蘭無長兄，願為市鞍馬，從此替爺征。 東市買駿馬，西市買鞍韉，南市買轡頭，北市買長鞭。 旦辭爺孃去，暮宿黃河邊，不聞爺孃喚女聲，但聞黃河流水聲濺濺。 旦辭黃河去，暮宿黑山頭，不聞爺孃喚女聲，但聞燕山胡騎聲啾啾。 萬里赴戎機，關山度若飛， 朔氣傳金柝，寒光照鐵衣。 將軍百戰死，壯士十年歸。 歸來見天子，天子坐明堂，策勳十二轉，賞賜百千強。 可汗問所欲，木蘭不用尚書郎，願借明駝千里足，送兒還故鄉。 爺孃聞女來，出郭相扶將；阿姊聞妹來，當戶理紅妝； 小弟聞姊來，磨刀霍霍向豬羊。 開我東閣門，坐我西閣床；脫我戰時袍，著我舊時裳； 當窗理雲鬢，對鏡帖花黃。出門看火伴，火伴皆驚惶： 同行十二年，不知木蘭是女郎。 雄兔腳撲朔，雌兔眼迷離，兩兔傍地走，安能辨我是雄雌？
Basically, the entire Mulan fable stems from this ballad. Note the ridiculousness of it. How can a girl, in military for 12 years, and fellow soldiers didn't know she is a female? If so, she must be very unusual and manly. In modern times, she'd be a butcher dyke, or medically and psychologically certified transsexual. However, this fable went on and is kept in circulation, because the aspect of having girls in military barrack as their equals is a eternal fantasy of men, as can be seen in countless movies and fictions, where, very beautiful girls with titillating breasts and ludicrous feminized war attires that reveals much of their body, wielding swords or guns that can beat men. (e.g. in the movie Conan, Xena (the warriar princess) TV opera, countless Japanese animations, female assassins (Nikita, Kill Bill), G I Jane.) Where in reality, a female taking the job of killing is extremely rare, and only started to have some minor roles in modern times supported by technology, because guns and machinery made sheer muscle power less necessary to do killings.
Men likes these fantasies because it has no effect on reality. And, the prospect of having sexy girls in the military is good. The hungry soldiers truely needs it. While the fair sex, for the most part of human history, don't have a say in society because of the biologically developed social structure. If consulted, women in general don't have opinions on this one way or another. If anything, such fantasy glorifies their sex and they like it fine.
There is also a lecherous version of the ballad based on homonyms (same number of chars and same rhyme). Author unknow. English translation by me (Xah Lee):
木兰诗（淫淫版) Mulan Ballad (lecherous version) 唧唧復唧唧，木蘭當馬騎， clicky-clack 'n' clicky-clack; Mulan rides a horse 不聞吱嗚聲，唯聞女喘息 hearing no birds chirp; loud's a girl's gasp 問女何所溼？問女何所溢？ ask why she's wet; ask for whom she oozes 女亦無所溼，女亦無所溢 not that i'm wet, not that i'm oozing 昨夜見帳冊，賓館大點收， yesterday wot the scroll, the morgue counts deads to-be 帳單十二卷，卷卷有爺名 voluminous are twelve tomes, every tome's got dad's name 阿爺無銀兒，木蘭無長胸， dad has no money, Mulan's got no jumbo boobs 願為市鞍我，從此被人征 may the city takes me, to be served henceforth 東市買灌強，西市買黃瓜， Market East i buy douche, Market West cucumbers 南市買蠟燭，北市買皮鞭 Southen Market i buy candles, while the North brought me whips 朝辭爺娘去，暮宿黃河邊， morn farewell mom 'n' pa, eve lodge'd Yellow river bank 不聞爺兒喚女生，但聞黃色男女嗚嗯 hear not sounds of parents calling their daughter, but the carnal cries of men and a woman 旦辭黃河去，暮至黑山頭， morn log off Yellow river, eve arrive'd black mountain foot 不聞爺兒召女生，但見燕山胡騎嘿咻咻 hear not sounds of parents bidding their daughter, but the wild riders puff 'n' pant 萬里赴戎雞，關門爽若飛， ten thousand miles of military fuck; behind doors pleasure trips sublime 極樂天蠍椅，螢光小夜衣。 scorpio-orgasmo seat; fluorescent lingere 將軍百戰死，壯士十來回。 expired generals numbers in hundreds, heroic men recharged tens of rounds 歸來生兒子，天子騎明堂， on return a son is born, elevates to heroic post 連續十二爽，賞賜千百男 non-stop cum twelve times, rewarding thousands of men 可汗問所慾？木蘭不要尚書郎， emperor asked her what she wants, Mulan wants no bookworm 願借猛駝千里騎，送我到天堂 give me a hard camel ride, send me to nirvana 爺兒聞女來，出門灑豆漿， dad heard daughter's home-coming, went out 'n' sprayed milk 阿姊聞妹來，當戶理皮裝 older sis heard home-coming, forthwith donned on leather 小弟聞姊來，磨槍霍霍上豬羊 little brother heard home-coming, horning towards farm pigs 開我菊花門，坐我電動床， open my bedroom door, sit on my rumble bed 脫我黑皮袍，著我洞洞裝 doff my black leather cape, don my peekaboo gown 當初惹淋病，如今內褲黃， i had contracted syphillis, now it colored my panties 出門看夥伴，夥伴皆驚惶 go outdoor to meet fellows, comrades are all shocked 同床十二年，不知木蘭是變性郎？！ twelve years sharing bunks, and we didn't know Mulan's a transsexual?! 雄兔腳撲朔，雌兔眼迷離， male hares walk-a-hobbit, female hares have befuddled eyes 兩兔傍地走，安能辨我是雄雌？ a couple hares running along, how can you tell what's my sex?
The original Mulan Ballad with each character linked to a dictionary and character etymology tree is on the zhongwen site at: http://zhongwen.com/mulan.htm.
A English translation can be found at http://utd500.utdallas.edu/~hairston/mulan.html, supposedly from The Flowering Plum and the Palace Lady: Interpretations of Chinese Poetry by Hans H. Frankel, Yale University Press, 1976. I think it's pretty bad.
For more info about Mulan, see Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hua_Mulan
20040401
Bumped into this limericky poem:
姑娘跨下一條溝, 一年四季水長流, 不見牛羊來吃草, 只見烏龜來洗頭。
My liberal translation:
under that lass there's a trough, moist n verdant all year long, it grazes no cow nor livestock, but nourishes n suckles peckers of men.
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Page created: 2004-03. © 2004 by Xah Lee. (excluding mirrored pages or images.)