How to distinguish upper and lower couplets

Sticking Spring Festival couplets is an ancient traditional folk custom in China. Since it is a tradition, you should pay attention to being old when posting. This stress is: "People stand towards the door, with their right hands up and their left hands down". In other words, the first part should be attached to the right hand side and the second part should be attached to the left hand side. Because, according to the traditional reading method, direct writing is read from right to left. However, in recent years, I found that many people ignored this old accent because of the influence of writing from left to right, and posted the upper and lower couplets upside down-the lower couplet on the right and the upper couplet on the left. This kind of post not only violates the tradition of posting Spring Festival couplets, but also is very awkward to read because it suddenly reverses the antithesis and the relationship between levels.

There are four tones in Chinese characters, and the difference between the upper and lower couplets is mainly the tone of the last word. All homophones are the upper part, and homophones are the lower part. Simply put, "the upper part is the lower part." The four tones of Chinese characters "one or two tones" are flat tones, and "three or four tones" are voiced. If the last word of a couplet is "three tones" or "four tones", then this couplet is the first couplet and the other couplet is the second couplet.

==========================

Common sense of couplets:

Couplets are called "couplets", commonly known as pairs. Concise and profound, neat and balanced, word for word, is a unique art form of Chinese language. It can be said that couplet art is a cultural treasure of the Chinese nation. The types of couplets can be divided into Spring Festival couplets, wedding couplets, birthday couplets, elegiac couplets, decorative couplets, industry couplets, communication couplets and miscellaneous couplets (including humorous couplets ...). The length of couplets varies, only one or two words are short; It can be hundreds of words long. There are various forms of couplets, such as pairs, pairs, flowing pairs, couplets, set sentence pairs and so on. But no matter what kind of couplets and forms are used, they must be available.

The following functions:

First, words should be equivalent and sentences should be consistent. In addition to deliberately leaving a place for a word to achieve a certain effect, the number of words in the upper and lower couplets must be the same, neither more nor less.

Second, we should be straightforward and harmonious. The traditional habit is to "pucker up and fall flat", that is, the end of the last sentence of the first couplet is puckered up and the end of the last sentence of the second couplet is flat.

Third, the part of speech is relative and the position is the same. It is generally called "virtual to virtual, real to real", which means that nouns to nouns, verbs to verbs, adjectives to adjectives, quantifiers to quantifiers, adverbs to adverbs and related words must be in the same position.

Fourth, the content should be related and run through from top to bottom. The meaning of up and down links must be interrelated, but they cannot be repeated. In addition, the traditional practice of hanging couplets must be written straight and pasted vertically, from right to left and from top to bottom, and cannot be reversed. The horizontal criticism closely related to couplets can be said to be the title and center of couplets. Good reviews can make the finishing point and complement each other in couplets.

On the Best Couplet Structure

The basic sentence patterns of couplets are transplanted from parallel prose and metrical poems, so they have a beautiful metrical structure from the beginning. In the long-term development process, through trade-offs, integration and optimization, antithetical couplets have already had different sentence patterns and structures from poems, songs and parallel prose, forming an independent style. In this paper, binary sequences are used to represent the couplet structure, in which "0" is a parallel couplet, "1" is an ambiguous couplet, ","is used to break sentences, and "/"is used to distinguish upper and lower couplets.

The basic sentence patterns of couplets, four characters and six characters come from parallel prose, and five characters and seven characters come from metrical poems. Parallel prose mostly uses four words and six languages, so the Song people call it "four or six", but there are also five or seven words. It is also five or seven words, and the rhythm of parallel prose is different from that of metrical poetry. This is often easily overlooked by people. For example, the famous sentence "Lonely sunset in Qi Fei/autumn water * * * the sky is one color" in Wang Bo's Preface to Wang Teng Pavilion is a seven-character couplet with the rhythm of10-1/01. The six-character sentence 001100/111is equivalent to parallel prose and function words, so don't use the seven-character rhythmic sentence 0065438+. The rhythm of Wang Bo's famous sentences and the rhythm of "Cui Ye and Yun Fei compete for picking/Zhen Ke and the layer of ice fresh" in Lingqiu Bamboo Slips (see Hua Fu by Li Tiaoyuan) are11-00/1. Compared with the two, the characteristics of parallel prose sentences are clear at a glance.

The oldest Spring Festival couplets mentioned by Ji Xiaolan are "Spring Festival in Qing Yu/Festival in Changchun" written by Meng Chang in the middle of Shu (see couplet Conghua), and the horizontal line on the couplets is 00 10 1. In rhyme, "this special parallel format is often used in the seventh sentence" (see Wang Li) In fact, Meng Yong uses the parallel sentence pattern, and its rhythm is 00-1-01-00, which is equivalent to the four-sentence pattern 001/. "When I was a prince, I wrote a poem" Heaven hangs down/the ground meets Changchun "(see China Dictionary of Couplets), which shows that this couplet has changed from a four-sentence style to a parallel prose style, which is beautiful. If we don't understand this situation of early couplets, it is obviously a great misunderstanding to use the sentence pattern of five-character rhyme 0011100 to determine that the word "Yu" is illegal.

The couplets in The Complete Works of Zhu Zi are extracted from Conghua Couplets, and some sentence patterns are obviously from Si Liu. For example, the Minglun Church in Songxi County will "learn to be an official if you are excellent, and if you are lucky, you will be a dragon and tiger, and if you are lucky, you will be a people, and if you are rainy, you will be thunderous", allowing the same function word to be relative. This couplet is a clear proof of transplanting parallel prose sentences. But the same relative phenomenon in function words has been eliminated.

The rhythm and antithesis of metrical poems in the Tang Dynasty have been perfected. Therefore, five-character couplet and seven-character couplet generally adopt rhythmic sentence pattern, not parallel prose sentence pattern. In long couplets, five-character and seven-character parallel prose sentences have not completely disappeared, but are being replaced by regular verse, or by one-character or three-character plus four-character sentences.

There are two types of five-character rhyme: A-type1110 and B-type 0001100. There are also type A 0011001110 and type B11000/kloc-0. Treat them all as couplets, and the contradiction is not obvious in the case of short couplets. However, further investigation shows that only one of these two sentence patterns is needed in the long-linked structure, and there are sufficient reasons to prove that only type B is qualified as a linked sentence pattern. Because:

1。 Type a and type b have the same quality.

The difference. In the conjunction system, the four-character and six-character only have type A: 0011100 and111/00/kloc. In this way, monotony can be avoided, and changes can be added (see "Couplets" 1998 No.2, Generation of Couplet Sentences).

2。 The translation of type B sentence is simpler than that of type A sentence. If the number of times a sentence is flat or flat is called the transformation number, then the five-character B type 000111100 and the four-character 00 165438+. Qiyan Type B11000111/Ada 1 10065438. Therefore, in the combination of different sentence patterns, five-character type B can be regarded as four characters, seven-character type B can be regarded as six characters, while type A has no such characteristics.

3。 B-type sentence pattern is close to parallel prose sentence pattern in structure and easy to transform into each other. The two examples mentioned above fully illustrate this point. Therefore, the use of type B in five words and seven languages can unify the sentence patterns of regular poems and parallel prose and form the sentence patterns of couplets.

In modern times, couplets writers prefer to write couplets in B-type with five words and seven languages, which greatly promotes the optimization and simplification of couplets' sentence patterns, thus forming a complete couplet sentence structure. That is: one word 1/0, two words1/00, three words A-type 001110 or B-type 01/. Wuyan 0011100, Ada1101/00/kloc-0.

We don't deny the value of five-character seven-language A-type sentence pattern in short couplets. This can only prove that they are essentially metrical poems, not couplets. Similarly, five-character and seven-character parallel prose sentences cannot be regarded as couplets. For a long time, couplets have failed to occupy a place in the history of literature, which is of course related to the fact that scholars regard couplets as "tricks"; In all fairness, it is also an important reason to write couplets with parallel prose or regular poems. Of course, this is inevitable in the early days. Without its own sentence structure, couplets can't form an independent style, but can only become vassals of parallel prose or regular poems. It is the basis of choosing the best couplet structure to understand the connection and difference between couplets, parallel prose and regular poems. The remaining question is: Does the sentence combination of couplets have an optimal structure?

The long couplet structure is nothing more than the combination of different sentence patterns (including collar and lining), or the repetition of the same sentence pattern, or the combination of the above two. However, this combination is not random. The key lies in the hierarchical arrangement of sentence feet.

The sentence patterns of couplets are derived from the parallel prose of poems and songs, while the arrangement of sentence feet is mainly borrowed from the parallel prose. Because the rhyme of poetry is restricted by rhyme, only parallel prose emphasizes antithesis and leveling, without rhyme, which is very close to couplets. For example, the first paragraph of Ji Xiaolan's Preface to Jiang Yun's Biezhi is: "The world is turning; All kinds of karma are illusory. The grass in Fei Ying grows very long, and the flowers in the world wither early; Old cicadas in Guangxi are cold, and the sky and the moon are changeable. Sad loess, a few pieces of jade and heavy beads; Buried bones are green hills, but eventually gold is sold and stones are broken. In a flash, Gotama borrowed the metaphor of bananas; Dreaming and forgetting, Zuo Zhuang cares about butterflies. Good is also good; Or not. " (See Ji Xiaolan's Poems) This 18 sentence is divided into 5 groups, each with 4 or 2 sentences, and its ordinal structure is 00 1 1100; 1 100,00 1 1。 00 1 1,00-0- 1 100; 1 100, 1 1-0-00 1 1。 00 1 1,0- 1 1-0-00; 1 100,0-00-0- 1 1。 00 1 1,00 1 1-0-00; 1 100, 1 100-0- 1 1。 00 1 1; 1 100。 If the function words are removed, it becomes: 00 1 1,1100; 1 100,00 1 1。 00 1 1,00 1 100; 1 100. 1 100 1 1。 00 1 1, 1 100; 1 100,00 1 1。 00 1 1, 00 1 100; 1 100, 1 100 1 1。 00 1 1; 1 100。 This kind of foot arrangement based on four characters and formed by group confrontation is exactly what couplets need.

As mentioned above, in sentence combination, five-character type B can be regarded as four characters, and seven-character type B can be regarded as six characters. As long as the feet of sentences are the same, the rules of combination are the same. In fact, any sentence combination is rooted in the four-character basic combination mode (abbreviated as four-character mode), namely: 001,1 100,1100,001/. The advantages of this mode are: the longest sequence period (16), rich timbre changes and easy self-tuning. However, the simple flat-footed alternation 1 100, 001,1100,001. Liu Xie said in Wen Xin Diao Long, "Lu Yun also said that four sentences are not as good as four." Although Liu Xie's original meaning refers to changing rhyme, it also applies to sentence combination. In a word, the four-character basic combination pattern is the best couplet structure, from which any couplet combination can be generated.

As far as the arrangement of footings is concerned, you can stick a couplet on each side, for example, a seven-character couplet: comparing the structure of the West Lake with the beauty of Jia Cong tea (the couplet of Lotus Xiangju Teahouse in Hangzhou West Lake)11165438. Two sentences on each side of the couplet, such as the structure of the nine-character couplet: Fudan cited stars, the perfect combination of pearls/Lily Lyu adjusted in time, Yujie Jinhe (the door couplet of Paiyun Temple in Beijing Summer Palace)1165438. 0011/001,1 100, that is, the last two sentences of the four-character pattern; Match the couplets with three sentences on each side, such as seventeen words: autumn is full in the southeast, from Chibi, boating with guests is boring/river flows day and night, then ask Violet, then till, raising my cup, I asked the bright moon (Li

The structure of Zhenjun Anqing Daguan Pavilion is1100, 1 1 100,11000/65400. 00 1 1 100，as 1 100， 1 100，0 1 1/00 1。 Another example is the 15 couplet: who will stay if you don't come to the moon? It is divided into two dust, and the water/peak is spring, and there is nowhere to be found. Cherry red, banana (Zhou Zongce) structure 001100.

, 00 1 1,00 1 1/ 1 1000 1 1, 1 100, 165438.001/0011,1 100,1/00, that is.

The first three sentences; Four sentences on each side of the couplet, such as 19: drinking Jianye water, eating Wuchang fish, driving thousands of miles, gathering incense officials/opposing Wei Zihua everywhere, withdrawing the golden lotus torch, paying homage at nine o'clock, but flying to the imperial city in what year (see "couplet conghua") structure 001kloc-0/,65438. 1 100 1 1/ 10 100, 00 1 1, 00 1 1, 00 165438. 1 100, 00 1 1/ 1 100, 00 1 1, 00 1 1, 165438.

Whether the arrangement of flat feet is repeated in a four-character pattern for couplets with more than four sentences on each side depends on the situation. Because the parallel prose sentence pattern is simple, the couplet sentence pattern is complex; Parallel prose has no sentence repetition, and couplets have sentence repetition; Parallel prose antithesis is limited to four sentences, and the forms of couplets on the same side are diverse. These differences between couplets and parallel prose require greater flexibility in the arrangement of sentence feet than parallel prose. For example, Sun Zui's couplet of Daguanlou in Kunming can be described as a swan song. The arrangement of sentence feet completely conforms to the four-character grid, but it is not always repeated, and the first floor remains unchanged. Due to the limited space, I won't go into details here.

In a word, the best structure of couplets is gradually formed in the process of development. Thanks to the continuous efforts of writers of couplets in past dynasties (including contemporary), couplets not only have a more complete and diverse sentence system than parallel prose and metrical poems, but also have a more flexible and changeable metrical structure. Couplets are the essence of poetry, not empty words.

Appendix: Examples of the Best Couplet Structure

A word on each side:

Four-character couplets 0011/00 Wei Chu You Liao/Yu Sisheng (Yuan Xiugang Zhang Zhongjie Changsha Yuelu Academy Door Couplet) Five-character couplets 001165438.

11001/001100 Want to make the West Lake more beautiful than Xizi/Hangzhou Yongjia Tea Room (Su Dongpo sentence)

Two sentences on each side:

Sisi 1 100, 00111,1 100 Bachelor Purple, Shangshu Hongxing/Zhonglang Luqi, Taitai. 00011/0011 100, marked with snails, 100 foot moon mirror/rainbow light, crystal curtain (Jade Belt Bridge in Beijing Summer Palace).

May 4th movement11/kloc-0,0010011,100, Lily Lyu, Fudan, stars gathered.

Hughes 1 100,1001111,00/kloc-0.

On June 4th, 001100,001111,1/0/00 sets/kloc.

Siqi 1 100,110001/00 1 100/kloc.

Seven or four 0011100,001100011,100 5 km Qin.

56 1 1 100,11/0001100 800 Lihushan

Liu Wu 001100,001111,1/00 May there be lovers in the world.

57 1 1 100, 1 1000 1 1/000 1 1, 00 165438.

75 00 1 1 100,00 1 1/ 1 1000 1 1, 165438.

As can be seen from the above, the couplet structure of two sentences on each side, the same sentence combination or different sentence combinations with known order is unique.

Three sentences on each side:

1。 Three sentences with the same positive and negative combination: 3330011,1100,001,1100,00/.

2。 Two identical sentences and a different sentence combination 337 1 10,1100011,when there is a car, there are fish in it, which is contemporary. I don't want to go home this season (provided by Wang Junshi) 44700 1 1,1111. I am loyal to my country and to the Qin Dynasty. 00 1 1 100 Sao can become a classic, and strategy can become history. Da tiao (Changsha Qujia Temple) 74400110101065438. A flowing water 1 1001,1 100,1100 is nowhere to be found in spring, cherry red and banana green (Zhou Zongce) 50000. 110011autumn is all over the southeast. Since Chibi, boating with guests is no longer interesting. 000 1 1,00 1,00 165438+.

3。 Three different sentence combinations 547 1 1 100,100, 1 10001/kloc-0.

Couplet structure provided by Lu Zhenlun