Listen to this articlexǐliàn 洗炼
Make Writing Succinct
精简词句，提炼要义。洗炼是一种文字干净、主旨鲜明的文学风格。“洗”指清洗矿石、去除杂质，喻指删除芜杂文字；“炼”指金属的冶炼提纯，喻指提炼文章的精义或本真性情。作为一种写作方式，它包括炼意和炼辞两个方面，较之南朝刘勰（465？—520）的“熔裁”有更明确的要求；作为一种文学风格，它要求文章的词句必须与情志理高度配合而又简明扼要。
This term means that wording should be refined to highlight the essential message. Terseness is a mark of neat and thematically explicit writing. The idea originates from the process of cleansing metal ores for the removal of impurities, or from that of smelting metals. Figuratively, it refers to an authorial effort to capture the core message by cutting out redundant wording. As a way of writing, this involves the refinement of both content and wording; it sets a more clear-cut requirement on writers than the idea of “fusion for greater brevity,” which was proposed by Liu Xie (465?-520) of the Southern Dynasties. As a literary style, it calls for full agreement between wording, aspiration, and philosophical thought, as well as for conciseness.
引例 Citations：
◎岂若澡雪灵府，洗练神宅，据道为心，依德为虑，使迹穷则义斯畅，身泰则理兼通，岂不美哉！（《宋书·顾觊之传》）
（如何比得上洗涤灵魂，修炼精神，依据道培育心志，依据德思考问题，即使行迹窘迫而道义通达，身体舒泰而事理皆通，这难道不很美好吗？）
Wouldn’t it be far better to cleanse our souls, forge our character, nurture our aspiration or ponder any question under the guidance of Dao? That being the case, even if life remains tough, we will still feel morally accomplished. So long as we are in good health and understand things well, then everything is fine, isn’t it? (The History of Song of the Southern Dynasties)
◎犹矿出金，如铅出银。超心炼冶，绝爱淄磷（lìn）。空潭泻春，古镜照神。体素储洁，乘月返真。载瞻星辰，载歌幽人。流水今日，明月前身。（司空图《二十四诗品·洗炼》）
（像在矿石中炼出黄金，如从铅块里提取白银。专心反复冶炼，只为达于纯粹。如同清澈的春水直泻空潭，如同清晰的古镜映照物的神韵。体悟素朴真谛，蓄养纯洁天性，乘御皎洁月光，返归天宫仙境。瞻望天上星辰，吟唱幽居之士。清澈如同今日的春水，纯净就像明月的化身。）
This is like extracting gold from ores, or silver from chunks of lead. We smelt repeatedly for the sole purpose of attaining perfect purity. It is also like precious spring waters cascading down into an empty pool or a shining ageold mirror showing the charm of objects. We appreciate truth in all its simplicity, preserve our natural purity, and return to the celestial palace amid the beautiful moonlight. We look up at the sky full of stars, chanting in tribute to recluses of old. They are as precious as today’s spring water and as pure as an incarnation of the bright moon. (Sikong Tu: Twenty-four Styles of Poetry)
◎不洗不净，不炼不纯。惟陈言之务去，独戛戛乎生新。（孙联奎《诗品臆说》）
（不淘洗就不纯净，不提炼就有杂质。只有坚决删除陈词滥调，才能生出独特的新意。）
Nothing will be clean until it is cleansed. Nothing will be pure until it is refined. Only by ridding ourselves of any banality, can we become truly original. (Sun Liankui: A Random Interpretation of “Twenty-four Styles of Poetry”)
