卖炭翁 - 白居易
寒夜勞作賣炭，折射底層悲苦與社會不平
賣炭翁，伐薪燒炭南山中。
The old charcoal seller, cutting wood and burning it on South Mountain.
滿面塵灰煙火色，兩鬢蒼蒼十指黑。
His face is coated with dust and soot, hair at the temples graying, fingers stained black.
賣炭得錢何所營？身上衣裳口中食。
What does he hope to secure with money from selling charcoal? Merely clothes on his back and food for his mouth.
可憐身上衣正單，心憂炭賤願天寒。
Alas, his clothing is thin, yet he fears low charcoal prices—so he hopes for colder weather.
夜來城外一尺雪，曉駕炭車輾冰轍。
At night, a foot of snow falls outside the city; at dawn, he drives his charcoal cart along icy ruts.
牛困人飢日已高，市南門外泥中歇。
His ox is weary, he himself is hungry, and the sun stands high; he halts in the mire outside the south city gate.
翩翩兩騎來是誰？黃衣使者白衫兒。
Two riders approach in splendid attire—who are they? One in yellow robes, the other in white.
手把文書口稱敕，迴車叱牛牽向北。
Clutching official documents, they proclaim an imperial order, turning his cart around and driving the ox north.
一車炭，千餘斤，官使驅將惜不得。
A cart of charcoal, weighing over a thousand pounds—dragged away by officials, leaving him no reprieve.
半匹紅紗一丈綾，係向牛頭充炭直。
They tether half a bolt of red silk and a length of fine fabric to the ox’s head, as payment for the charcoal.
〈賣炭翁〉為白居易頗具代表性的「新樂府」詩作之一，以白描手法再現了一位老翁深夜到山中伐薪、燒炭，天明後趕到城中販賣的辛苦過程。詩人先勾勒出老翁面容與衣飾的狼狽：尘灰覆面、兩鬢花白、衣單指黑，顯示貧苦生活的真實境況。接著，因炭價低而希望天寒的矛盾心理，突出底層百姓在維生壓力下的無奈：若氣候不夠嚴寒，炭的需求就不會大，他就無法賣得好價錢。此處可見經濟需求與人道關懷的對立—他身處寒冷却仍“願天寒”，既心酸又無可奈何。
後半段將鏡頭轉向官方徵用：老翁終於拖著牛車來到城外，卻碰上黃衣使者與白衫兒聲稱“敕令”而強行把炭徵走，只象徵性地以「半匹紅紗、一丈綾」充作炭直，等於剝奪了老翁辛苦得來的所得。這種不合理征用與衙役橫行，映照出社會的不平與官僚貪婪，貧民努力一整年的血汗，往往就被輕易剝奪。
白居易在詩中運用了通俗易懂的語言，與具體鮮明的場景敘述，意在透過「老翁賣炭」的故事，喚醒讀者對弱勢百姓遭遇的同情與認識，同時批判朝廷的苛政和貪腐。正如他提倡「文章合為時而著，歌詩合為事而作」的理念，此詩既具藝術感染力，也負載對社會現狀的反思。在面對一車炭卻得不到應有收益的老翁時，我們也看到詩人對官民對立的悲憫與憤懣：底層百姓卻常常被上位者視為可隨意剝奪的對象，悲劇周而復始。
重點
• 以日常勞動場景，揭示貧民渴望天寒來提高炭價的無奈
• 透過「官使驅炭」的細節，批判朝廷與官吏對底層壓迫
• 通俗敘事筆法富有震撼力，體現白居易「新樂府」的社會關懷精神