In April 2022, the headline poet of the Caotang poetry magazine was Lu Weiping. "Caotang" published 11 poems by Lu Weiping under the title of "I gradually accepted my mediocrity". According to the introduction, this Lu Weiping is obviously also a "famous poet", who has published many poetry collections and won many awards.
The image comes from China Poetry Network
Since "Caotang" is titled "I gradually accept my mediocrity", let's look at this poem. In this poem, "I" is small, like a busy ant. "I" is a failure, there is "a bitter medicine of failure". Because of accepting mediocrity, "I" no longer worry and no longer seek.
The image comes from China Poetry Network
Lu Weiping's poem has one thing in common with other headline poets in April, that is, it expresses the desire to be "Buddhist" or "lie flat". I wrote an article saying that I think this trend is not very appropriate, but why do the poems of the headline poets in the major publications in April have such a tune?
In lu weiping's poem, "the mediocrity of mediocrity is the peace of peace / The mediocrity of Lu Weiping / The mediocrity of mediocrity is the mediocrity of mediocrity / The unquestionable mediocrity of the masses", which reads a bit like a tongue twister. It is very much a bit of the "famous poet" Tai Basket published in the "Poetry Journal" that "the sprinkler truck is called a sprinkler when it sprinkles water / the sprinkler truck is called a sprinkler when it is not sprinkled".
Lu Weiping (Image from the Internet)
Lu Weiping's poem shows that he seems to have accepted his mediocrity. But the last line of the poem reveals his pride, "Just as I have already accepted someone more mediocre than I am." This sentence shows that the author is not actually mediocre, nor does he really accept his own mediocrity. Compared with those who are "more mediocre than me", the author is actually very "not mediocre".
At the end of this group of poems, there is Lu Weiping's article "Riding a Horse and Finding a Horse", expressing his views on writing poetry. "To write poetry is to ride a horse to find a horse, to ride one horse to find another." Lu Weiping's goal in writing poetry is to "let things obscured by traditional meaning return to things themselves, and let forgotten meaningless things, because my poems have a reason and right to exist." ”
Lu Weiping (Image from the Internet)
That is to say, Lu Weiping's goal is to be "anti-traditional", to give "meaningless things" a reason for existence and rights. "I ride a horse to find a horse, and the horse I find is the horse I am riding, and I am also the rider that I am looking for on the horse I am riding." Looking around, I finally found that what I already have is the best.
"Caotang" is very intimate, behind this group of poems, there is another article, is the "famous poetry critic" Zhang Hougang wrote ""Mediocre Poetics" oriented to existence - commenting on Lu Weiping's group poem "I gradually accepted my mediocrity". Zhang Hougang gave Lu Weiping's poems a name, "Mediocre Poetics." Zhang Hougang believes that mediocrity is a kind of power, a life proposition, and a state of life.
Zhang Hougang (Image from the Internet)
Zhang Hougang believes that Lu Weiping's writing in the poem "Ordinary Ping Lu Weiping's Ping" is a self-liberating and confident gesture. For accepting his own mediocrity, Zhang Hougang is greatly appreciative. "For individual life, accepting mediocrity requires strength, evidence of spiritual strength, and a new birth, giving birth to a new, inner self." In the eyes of poets and poetry critics, how can mediocrity become so tall?
Indeed, each of us is actually very mediocre, belonging to people who are more mediocre than Lu Weiping. Lu Weiping became a "famous poet", what about us? Nothing. On the surface, Lu Weiping seems to accept his mediocrity, but in fact he is showing off his "non-mediocrity". He is not mediocre, he is enjoying "success", enjoying "the joy of the sun shining into the study", it is almost a cup of coffee.
Lu Weiping (Image from the Internet)
Today's "famous poets" always like to write one set and do one set after another. It is one thing to write in poetry, and it is another thing to live one's own life. This kind of "division" is, to put it bluntly, "moaning without illness" and "speaking sadly for the sake of giving new poems". They show in the poem a completely different appearance from reality, is this the poet's means of survival?