Alex O’Brien & Ryan Readinger
Ms. Peifer
English 10 IB Hour 5
April 19 2009

Wang Wei’s purpose in “The Farms at Wei River” is to express the beauty of farm life and his longing to go back to that way of life. His purpose is achieved through the use of nature imagery, imagery of farm life, and wishful words.
Wei expresses the beauty of farm life with nature imagery through out the majority of the poem. “Pheasants cry, barley sprouts flourish; silkworms sleep, the mulberry leaves are sparse” (Wei 5 - 6) Wei recalls minor details of the small beauties of nature, things one would never normally notice, i.e. silkworms sleeping. The fact that Wei remembers such insignificant details suggests that he thinks of his times on the farm quite frequently and misses them deeply. Also, Wei being able to conjure such vivid memories of such casual details leads one to believe that he thinks of these things as very beautiful.
Wei uses imagery from the farm life to portray is desire to return to the life he finds so beautiful. “Farmers with shouldered hoes approach meet each other and chat – linger. This I must admire: leisure and peace.” (Wei 7 – 9) Wei speaks of a simple day-to-day occurrence of the farm life. Wei admires the peace and leisure, suggesting that the way he lives his life now has neither. The admiration shows that Wei truly does miss the farm and the simple wonders he took for granted when he lived there.
Wei uses wishful words to express his craving to return to the farm way of life. “And wistfully hum ‘O to go back!’” (Wei 10) Wei states blatantly that he wants to go back to the farm. His words make his purpose very clear in this instance. Wei clearly is longing to go back to the farm life but is restricted for some reason or another.
In “The Farms at Wei River”, Wang Wei’s purpose is expressed mainly through imagery and the tone of his words. He uses imagery to describe the simple pleasures of farm life and the suttle beauties of it. He uses tone to imply that he misses it greatly.