Yuan Dynasty
拨不断 · 大鱼
王和卿
胜神鳌，
夯风涛，
脊梁上轻负着蓬莱岛。
万里夕阳锦背高，
翻身犹恨东洋小，
太公怎钓？
Translation
It surpasses the divine giant turtle, battering against wind and waves, lightly carrying Penglai Island upon its back. Under ten thousand miles of sunset, its brocade back rises high; when it turns over, it still resents the eastern sea for being too small. How could even Grand Duke Jiang ever fish it up?
Analysis
Unbroken Tune · Great Fish is one of Wang Heqing's exaggerated object songs. Like his Great Butterfly, it enlarges an ordinary creature into something absurd and almost mythic. But compared with the butterfly song, this piece feels more grand and heroic.The opening immediately places the fish on a mythological scale. The divine giant turtle recalls ancient legends of colossal creatures supporting immortal mountains. Wang Heqing says the fish surpasses even that being, so the creature already exceeds the natural world.Carrying Penglai Island upon its back pushes the image further. Penglai is one of the mythical islands of immortals. The fish carries it lightly, not with effort. The word lightly is essential: it makes the exaggeration more powerful by suggesting ease.Under ten thousand miles of sunset, its brocade back rises high is visually magnificent. The sunset, the open sea, and the fish's brilliant back create a vast and colorful scene. Though the poem is comic in method, this line has genuine grandeur.When it turns over, it still resents the eastern sea for being too small is the peak of exaggeration. The sea itself cannot contain the fish's movement. The fish becomes a symbol of boundless size, strength, and freedom.The final question invokes Grand Duke Jiang, the legendary fisherman and strategist. If even he cannot catch this fish, then no ordinary means can control it. The line is humorous, but also carries a tone of pride.The song can be read as more than playful description. The great fish may represent a free and unconventional spirit, too vast to be trapped by worldly hooks. It belongs to the sea and myth, not to ordinary capture.Wang Heqing's strength lies in making exaggeration vivid rather than empty. With only a few lines, he creates a creature at once ridiculous, majestic, and symbolic.
About the Author
Wang Heqing was an early Yuan dynasty sanqu writer from Daming. His dates are uncertain. A contemporary of figures such as Guan Hanqing, he was known for a witty, free, and playful temperament. His surviving songs often depict urban life, romantic situations, satire, and worldly humor. His language is lively, colloquial, and sharply observant. Wang excelled at exaggeration and comic effect, and works such as Drunk in Heaven · On a Great Butterfly and Unbroken Tune · Great Fish show his bold, humorous, and unconventional style.