Down by the salley gardens
William Butler Yeats
Down by the Salley gardens
My love and I did meet;
She passed the Salley gardens
With little snow-white feet.
She bid me take love easy,
As the leaves grow on the tree;
But I, being young and foolish,
With her would not agree.
In a field by the river
My love and I did stand;
And on my leaning shoulder
She laid her snow-white hand.
She bid me take life easy,
As the grass grows on the weirs;
But I was young and foolish
And now I'm full of tears
”Down by the salley gardens“,是叶芝早年的诗作。他的早年诗歌韵律优美,感情细腻,辞藻华丽,象征意味浓郁,明显受到英国浪漫主义和法国象征主义诗歌的影响。 这首诗象民歌那样语言质朴,可咏性强。其次,这首诗在时态的运用上也有独特之处。全诗除了最后半行用现在时以外都是用过去时态。这说明过去对人们的现在具有十分重要的意义。在诗的最后,诗人用一般现在时是意味深长的。虽然对现在情况的描述只有五个词便戛然而止,但是,由于诗人把这几个词放在全诗最突出的位置,所以给人以意犹未尽的感觉,读者可以通过这几个词来感受“我”的广阔的心灵世界