In the sentence, the banana is used as a metaphor for the lover, and the lilac is used as a metaphor for the woman herself, which is a metaphor for the two of them being in the same place in a different place, and both of them are in sorrow for not being able to meet each other.
From the Tang Dynasty poet Li Shangyin's book Two Songs of Gifts
Original text
Two Songs of Gifts
Upstairs in the dusk I desire to rest, and the jade staircase is cut off from the moon like a hook.
The banana does not spread out the lilac knot, and the spring winds are sad for each of us.
Translation
The desire to go up to the high floor alone at dusk is still on, the staircase is cut off and the lover doesn't come, and the crescent moon is like a hook.
The heart of the banana is not yet unfolded, and the lilacs are not yet dissolved, and they are all worried at the same time towards the spring breeze.
Notes
(1) Looking forward to the end of the day: looking at the dusk, but soon it will be dark. The moon is like a hook.
(2) The Jade Staircase: the gorgeous staircase is broken and there is no way to get up.
(3) The banana is not unfolded: the heart of the banana is tightly wrapped and not unfolded. Clove knot: after the clove blossomed, its seeds were muted and knotted in a thick shell.
Works Appreciation
The poet uses the technique of scenery to set off her inner feelings from the scenery that the main character of the poem sees, such as the lack of moon, bananas and lilacs. In the first four words of the poem, the time and place are stated: "Upstairs at dusk". The next three words describe the woman's actions: she walks to the top of the building, wants to look into the distance, but then stops sadly.
"The moon is like a hook" was written as "a hook in the moon", with the same meaning. It not only emphasizes the loneliness and bleakness of the environment, but also has a symbolic meaning: the moon's lack of fullness is like a pair of lovers who can't meet. Three or four lines still through the scene to further reveal the woman's inner feelings. In the second line, the missing moon like a hook is the view of the distant sky that the woman sees when she looks up; these two lines are the view of the near ground that the woman sees when she looks down.
High and low, far and near, staggered. The banana here is the banana heart has not unfolded banana, a little later than the poet's children under the age of 2 years in the poem "not show banana" in the "heart is still rolled timid spring cold", is written this scene; here the lilacs, is not the petals of the lilacs in full bloom, but the buds of the knot knot not open. They *** with the cold spring wind at dusk, sadness. This is not only a true depiction of the scene in front of the woman, but also a borrowed object to write a person, with the banana metaphor lover, with the lilac metaphor for the woman herself, a metaphor for the two people in a different place concentric, are not allowed to meet with each other and sorrow. The sadness of things, rise, deepen the sadness of people, is "Xing"; the sadness of things, that is, the sadness of people, and is "than". Banana lilac is the poet's careful arrangement, but also that the eye saw, casually, seemingly extra natural.
About the Author
Li Shangyin (ca. 813-ca. 858) was a poet of the Tang Dynasty. His name was Yishan, and he was known as Yuxi Sheng (玉溪生). He was a native of Hanoi, Huizhou (present-day Qinyang, Henan). He was a graduate of Kaicheng (the year of Emperor Wenzong of the Tang Dynasty, 836-840). He served as a prefectural lieutenant, a secretary-lang, and a magistrate of the Dongchuan Festival. He was ostracized because of the Niu-Li Party Controversy, and he was a scribbler for the rest of his life. His poems on history and history were mostly devoted to the ancient world to satirize the current political situation, and his untitled poems were very famous. He was good at the rhythms and poems, and had a unique style with sophisticated conception and gentle and melodious feelings. However, he had the problem of using too many canons and obscuring the meaning of his poems. He was known as "Wen Li" together with Wen Tingyun, and "Little Li Du" together with Du Mu. There is Li Yishan Poetry Collection.