The work of Sisyphus, the meaning and origin of phraseological units. Sisyphus's work: the meaning and origin of ancient phraseological units. Sisyphean labor - useless efforts repeated over and over again
What is our native Russian language? It cannot be seen, it cannot be touched. It's as if he doesn't exist. Fortunately, he was, is and will be. He is the thread that unites contemporaries and connects hundreds of generations. He is that thread, invisible but strong, which can stretch or get tangled, but will never break. This is ours general tool, designed to give form to our experiences, emotions, thoughts and feelings. Among his many techniques, it is impossible not to mention phraseological units. What is this? Let's find out...
The meaning of the phraseological unit “Sisyphean labor”
In any language, and Russian is no exception, there are so-called phraseological units. “What are they and what do they eat them with?” - you ask. The name is tricky, but nothing complicated, on the contrary - interesting and exciting. Phraseological units, or phraseological units, are ready-made combinations of words, stable expressions, such as “beating the buck” or “throwing pearls before swine”, which not only help the speaker to accurately and vividly express his thoughts, emotions and attitude to what is happening, but are also true decoration of the tongue. Their distinguishing feature- ambiguity, that is, their direct meaning is surprisingly transformed into an allegorical one, often the opposite of the literal reading.
From this point of view, it is interesting to see the significance of this sustainable combination, like “the work of Sisyphean.” Literally - a reference to the cunning and resourceful ruler of Corinth, Sisyphus, who after his death, according to ancient Greek myths, was sentenced by the gods to forever high mountain heavy stone. However, the figurative meaning of the phraseology “Sisyphean labor” sounds different - exhausting and useless work, fruitless efforts, a waste of energy and time.
Origins of verbal formulas
Everything in the world has its own origins, its own beginning and its own history. Every sound, every letter, every word. We may know about it, guess, or, conversely, not have the slightest idea. However, you must agree, it is better to know than not to know. And not only because it is necessary, and this will benefit you, it will broaden your horizons, and everyone around you will consider you an intellectual. No, not for that at all. But because any knowledge and search for truth, the search for what is worth, what is hidden behind every spoken sound, gives deeper knowledge, understanding of the structure of the world and, ultimately, oneself. In linguistics, the science of language, there is a special direction - phraseology, one of the tasks of which is precisely the study of the sources of origin of certain figurative expressions. Based on this, all phraseological units of the Russian language are divided into native Russian and borrowed.
Borrowed phraseological units
In the Russian language, a large group of phrases consists of so-called borrowed phraseological units, that is, those that came to us from other languages and cultures. These include phraseological tracings or semi-calques, otherwise - expressions that received a literal translation when moving from one language to another and at the same time did not lose their figurative meaning: « blue stocking" - bluestocking (English), "a good (cheerful) mine at bad game" - faire bonne mine au mauvais jeu (French), "a hand washes a hand" - Manus manum lavat (Latin), etc. A special class consists of aphorisms from biblical and evangelical texts, vivid quotes from foreign literature, as well as winged expressions from Roman and ancient Greek mythology. It is to the latter that the phraseological unit under consideration belongs.
“The Work of Sisyphus”: meaning and origin
Sisyphus is the ruler of Corinth in ancient Greek mythology, the son of the god Aeolus, the ruler of all winds. Legend says that Sisyphus was, on the one hand, a wise and prudent man, and on the other, cunning, dexterous, resourceful and cunning, for which he was subsequently punished. The gods endured and forgave him for a long time for his atrocities, the treasures obtained by deception, and robbery. However, everything has an end, and one day the god of death Tanat came to Sisyphus to escort the king to the dark underground kingdom of Hades, where the souls of all the dead reside. Sisyphus could not come to terms with the order established by Zeus and violated it by shackling Thanat.
Time stopped on earth, people stopped dying, offerings to the gods of the kingdom of shadows were not made, and the original harmony was disrupted. Then Zeus the Thunderer sent the fearless god of war Ares, who freed Thanat and sent the soul of Sisyphus underground to the kingdom of Hades. But even here Sisyphus did not renounce himself, his earthly passions, and did not submit to the will of the gods. He asked his wife not to perform funeral rites after his death and not to present gifts and sacrifices to the gods. The wife of her husband listened and fulfilled his request. Hades was indignant and sent Sisyphus to earth to bring his wife to reason. The ruler of Corinth happily went home and remained in his luxurious palace, throwing endless feasts and showing off his tricks.
And again Tanat went for the soul of Sisyphus. This time he tore out the soul of a rebellious man and sent him underground forever. For his self-will and obstinacy, the gods assigned Sisyphus a severe punishment - to forever roll an unliftable stone up a high, steep mountain. But it was not the desperate efforts that were terrible, but their futility. As soon as the most cunning of all mortals reached the very top, the stone inevitably fell out of his hands and rolled down noisily. And Sisyphus gets to work again. After thousands of years, the name of King Sisyphus and his hard work, lifting a stone to the top of a mountain, lose their direct meaning and in the aggregate they acquire something different, figurative, which, in essence, consists of an attitude towards the events described in the myth and from the feelings and emotions experienced when reading the legend. It turns out that in Russian “Sisyphean labor” is a phraseological unit, the secondary meaning of which is wasted effort, meaningless labor, eternal torment.
Other languages
As a rule, ancient catchphrases are international expressions. “Sisyphean labor” - fruitless labor - is no exception. This phraseological unit has its analogues in English- Sisyphean labors, in French - le rocher de Sisyphe, in Greek - Σισύφειο έργο, and in many others. It is interesting to note that in the listed languages it retains the image of the rebellious king Sisyphus, on the basis of which the figurative expression arose, which means that both its meaning and lexico-grammatical structure are completely preserved. Sisyphean labor in all languages and cultures denotes a hopeless undertaking, a waste of time, a futile endeavor.
What does the expression "Sisyphean labor" mean? The meaning of the phraseological unit Sisyphus's work?
Phraseologism Sisyphean work is also called monkey work, from which the very meaning of the expression follows - unnecessary or stupid, stupid work that a person performs. It is noteworthy that Sisyphean work arises on the initiative of the person himself and he is not forced to do it, but due to pride or stupidity, a person continues to try to prove something to someone by doing meaningless actions, although he can stop at any moment.
The Krinthian king Sisyphus became famous thanks to his numerous robberies of travelers, deceiving the gods, he imprisoned the god of death Thanatos when he came for him. In revenge, the gods punished the king by constantly rolling a heavy stone up a mountain in the next world, but, barely reaching the top, the stone falls down, and Sisyphus has to begin his work again.
The expression denotes futility of effort, work that is hard, but ultimately does not bring results.
Sisyphean labor is meaningless, useless, but difficult and exhausting work. It deprives a person of time and energy, but does not bear fruit in the form of any noticeable result. The expression owes its appearance to an ancient Greek myth.
Now by Sisyphean labor we mean work that is basically useless and very tedious to do, but the boss forces you to do it, and as you know, you can’t argue with him. If there was even any benefit in such work, even the most difficult one, then it would already be described by the phraseology of cleaning the Augean stables. But Sisyphean labor is useless, because from ancient Greek history we know that the gods punished a certain king of one of the many cities of Greece after death for lack of faith - he was forced to constantly push a round and heavy stone up the mountain, which, having reached the top, inevitably rolled down to another side and Sisyphus had to start all over again.
Phraseologism Sisyphus's work means never-ending And stupid(ineffective, useless) Job.
The expression comes from the great and immortal work of Homer Odysseus. Sisyphus - King of Corinth. He deceived the Gods and challenged them with his unbelief, for which he was punished by them. The eleventh canto of the work describes how Odysseus headed to the kingdom of Hades and met along the way Sisyphus, punished by the Gods, who must lift a large stone to the top of the mountain. Sisyphus tried his best to roll the stone up the mountain, but he, barely reaching the top, rolled back. And this happened again and again, the unfortunate king returned down and started all over again.
The expression Sisyphean labor came to us from ancient Greek myth. Poor Sisyphus was punished by the gods for disobedience and, as punishment, he had to roll a huge stone to the top of the mountain, the stone always rolled down and the unfortunate man did the job again and again. The phrase means useless work that does not bring results. There is a related expression, Carrying water in a sieve.
The expression Sisyphus' labor comes from ancient Greek mythology. The gods, in order to punish Sisyphus, forced him to roll a large stone to the top of the mountain, and when the stone was almost at the top, it rolled down again and Sisyphus had to start all over again. In the end, all his efforts turned out to be useless.
This is where the expression Sisyphean labor came from, as a designation for useless efforts that do not bring any results.
Simply put, Sisyphean labor is unnecessary and useless work; this statement can be applied to many things. It's good that in real life there is only one difference, very important, at any moment we can understand that we are doing something useless and stop, according to myth, Sisyphus could not do this, it was his eternal punishment. Somehow it turns out to be too cruel. There are several versions of myths and legends why the cunning Sisyphus was so cruelly punished, in all these legends there is one common feature- the man tried to deceive and outwit the Gods themselves, for which he received his severe punishment. It is not good to deceive, especially those whom it is practically impossible to defeat.
Phraseologism Sisyphean labor means useless and hard work. Derived from the Greek myth of Sisyphus, who turned absolutely everything he touched into gold. Having ended up in hell for his sins, he was chosen the most severe punishment - pushing a huge stone up the mountain, which kept rolling down as soon as Sisyphus almost reached the top.
Historians have a very ambiguous attitude towards the character of ancient Greek legends, the Corinthian king Sisyphus. This ruler was the son of the god of the winds named Aeolus. Since Sisyphus had divine roots, he was very smart, cunning and vindictive. He built a city which he called Corinth and became its ruler. The city flourished, numerous trade caravans and ships entered it. Over time, Sisyphus became very rich, there were legends about his treasures. Now he began to look down on some beggar gods from Olympus, for which he was punished.
Rumors reached Sisyphus that the god Zeus had stolen a beautiful girl, the daughter of the river god named Asopus. As soon as this news reached the ears of the ruler of Corinth, he immediately told Asopus himself about this. This snitching greatly angered Zeus and he sent death itself for Sisyphus. However, Sisyphus was the son of God, so he managed to catch death and put it in chains, thus simultaneously saving all people from death.
This time, not only Zeus, but also all the gods of Olympus were angry with Sisyphus. The god of war, Ares, decided to deal with the rebellious ruler, he grabbed him and took him to a deep dungeon. However, his beloved wife Merope saved him and he fled back to Corinth. Then it was time to get down to business. Hermes Trismegistus himself took charge, he caught this nimble king and returned the captive underground again.
For his pride and disobedience, the gods of Olympus doomed Sisyphus to eternal torment. They came up with a sophisticated torture for him: the Corinthian had to lift a huge block of stone up a mountain, as soon as it reached the top, it immediately fell off and ended up at the foot of the cliff. The king had to start all over again.
Since the punishment of the gods of Olympus was painful not only because of the heavy stone that had to be rolled up the mountain, but also because of the meaninglessness of this work. Therefore, the expression “Sisyphean labor” began to mean not so much hard, but completely meaningless work.
Some people use synonyms for this expression, such as: “monkey labor” and “Sisyphus stone.” The ancient Greeks are generally a storehouse of all kinds of proverbs and sayings, many of which are still used today, including the phraseology “Sisyphean labor”.
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Publication date:05/07/2018
Today we will look at a stable expression that came into our speech from Ancient Greece. The phraseological unit "" has been used in speech for more than 2000 years. In this article you will learn the meaning of this phraseological unit, understand in what cases it can be used, and also learn very interesting story its origin. In addition, we will tell you in detail about who Sisyphus is and why his work became the basis for the catchphrase.
The meaning of the phraseological unit “Sisyphean labor”
Sisyphean labor is hard, meaningless and constantly repetitive work. It is worth noting that with the help of this phraseological unit one can designate both hard physical labor that does not bring any results, and mental routine work.
The phraseology “Sisyphean labor” can be applied by a person both in relation to his own work and in relation to the fruitless hard work performed by another person.
In the case of using an expression in relation to one’s work, the phraseological unit often expresses indignation or hopelessness, and if the phrase is used to characterize the actions of a third party, then in this way sympathy or condemnation, and sometimes a grin, is more often expressed.
Who is Sisyphus?
The legendary king and founder of the ancient Greek city-polis of Corinth found himself in various incidents. His constant qualities were level 80 cunning and incredible resourcefulness. Sisyphus managed to outwit even the gods themselves, which they did not forgive him for.
The hero in question catchphrase became this way because he himself had divine origin. According to myths, he was the son of the wind god Aeolus. Thanks to his cunning, Sisyphus acquired great wealth, after which he ceased to respect the gods. This led to disastrous consequences.
There are several versions of the beginning of Sisyphus’ disagreements with the gods. According to some sources, he learned that the main ancient Greek god Zeus had kidnapped and hid the kidnapped daughter of the river god Asopa on the island. The latter agreed to conduct a river “water pipeline” as a reward for information about her whereabouts. As a result, after the daughter was handed over, fresh water began to flow into Corinth.
And Zeus was angry with Sisyphus for his cunning and sent the god of death Thanatos to him. But the hero of our article turned out to be difficult: he waylaid the enemy and put him in chains. Because of this, people stopped dying altogether. But Thanatos was still rescued from captivity, and Sisyphus was sent to the underground kingdom of the dead, Hades.
However, he managed to escape from there thanks to his wife. The fact is that she did not perform the funeral ritual at his request. The gods sent Sisyphus to punish his wife, but he instead remained in the human world to live for his own pleasure.
But everything comes to an end. The gods brought the cunning king back to Hades and forced him to roll a large stone up a mountain for his disobedience. But he constantly rolled back. And Sisyphus was forced to do his work again and again ad infinitum. This is where the famous image was born.
The history of the origin of phraseological units?
This story was told by Homer in his poem “The Odyssey” (it took shape about 2800 years ago). But the phrase itself was first used later by the Roman poet Propertius, who lived in the 1st century BC. The meaning of the phraseological unit “Sisyphean labor” has been fixed in accordance with the myth - these are difficult and absolutely meaningless actions, which are regularly repeated.
The catchphrase was used in the context of the most different situations, as in ordinary life, and in works of art. The expression has become mostly bookish and is rarely used today in colloquial speech. Its analogues are “monkey labor” and “carrying water in a sieve.”
Reflection in culture
The image of Sisyphus, due to its clarity and accuracy, was often used by artists, playwrights, writers and poets. The first dramatic works appeared in ancient times. The plot was also embodied on canvas by painters, for example, the Italian Titian.
A famous philosopher and existentialist writer Albert Camus published the essay “The Myth of Sisyphus” in 1943. It presents the most modern look on this story as a whole. The apparent uselessness of the work of the hero of the study, when examined in detail, turns out, in the writer’s opinion, to be meaningful in its own way. Even in fruitless work one can find satisfaction, Camus concludes.
The ancient culture of the world is full of deep archetypal symbols that arose from myths, legends, and epics. The expression “Sisyphean labor”, which came into the Russian language from Homer’s ancient Greek poem “The Iliad,” has become a stable and common noun. For many people, when the phrase is mentioned, an image appears: a man, with the last of his strength, rolls a stone to the top of a mountain.
What is Sisyphean labor?
Every person has responsibilities to themselves, loved ones, and through hard work people achieve improvement in their situation - in their dreams, when doing hard work there is a result built in the mind that is inspiration. The ancient expression “Sisyphean labor” is hard and fruitless work devoid of meaning and perspective. The futility and futility of efforts cause despair in a person, just like the ancient Greek king Sisyphus in his endless attempts to erect a stone on the top of Mount Tartarus.
Sisyphus's work - mythology
How it came about catchphrase The work of Sisyphus - the myth of the ancient Greeks tells about this. King Sisyphus was the first mortal to use cunning and treachery in his relationships with the gods. The ruler of Corinth so reveled in his power, loot and blasphemy that when his time of death came, he decided to outwit the gods and continue to rule, for which he paid very cruelly and was forced to roll a heavy stone up the mountain in the kingdom of Hades, which fell down with a roar every time. There are several versions of the myth of Sisyphus:
- The ruler of the Corinthians deceived the god of death Thanatos (Hades) into chains. People became immortal, which did not suit the gods. Zeus sends his son Ares (god of war), who frees the god of death. Thanatos, angry, takes the soul of Sisyphus. The king warned his wife not to have a magnificent funeral, and Hades, without waiting for the offerings, was forced to release the cunning king so that he could persuade his wife to offer gifts to the gods. Sisyphus not only did not return to the underworld, but also boasted about how he was able to deceive Thanatos. Hermes returned Sisyphus and the gods punished him with hard work.
- Because of enmity with his brother Salmoneus, Sisyphus raped his daughter Tyro, who subsequently gave birth to two children who, according to Apollo’s prediction, would take revenge on Salmoneus. Tyro, having learned this, destroyed the children in anger. The incident with Tyro and a series of other wicked acts led to the rage of the gods who created punishment for him, which went down in history as the expression “Sisyphean labor.”
Sisyphus's work is a legend
The work of Sisyphus has become a legend, and a person involuntarily compares himself with this ancient Greek king when he is engaged in hard, exhausting work. Thanks to efforts, people become closer to their dreams, but do huge expenditures of resources always lead to the realization of desires? Two Kings Sisyphus and Tantalus - what unites them? The expressions of Sisyphean labor and tantalum's torment are often applicable in cases where wasted labor creates the appearance of the proximity of the desired, but does not become a real result.
