The Russian language, like all other languages of the world, has its own we alth, and it is passed down from generation to generation. This value is stable expressions, the meaning of which has been laid down for a long time and is clear to everyone: proverbs, sayings, phraseological units. Each language has its own sayings, and sometimes the same proverb is translated from one language to another, even changing characters. Recently, in politics, to describe the situation in the world or in a particular country, the saying "both the wolves are full and the sheep are safe" has been used.
Using proverbs, sayings and phraseological units in his speech, a person shows that he knows the culture of the people well. After all, it is from folk tales that many stable expressions are taken, which are remembered and loved for their brightness and imagery. When a person correctly, and most importantly, competently uses steady turns in speech and writing, this is a signeducation and speech etiquette. When a speech turnover is used out of place, in the wrong area of use or with the wrong meaning, this can lead to a speech error and an incident in a conversation. Using phraseological units, it is necessary to take into account the style of conversation, semantic load and stylistic properties.
On television and in journalism, to describe political changes, the phraseologism "both the wolves are full and the sheep are safe" is often used. The meaning of this expression and the problem being described do not always coincide. Where does this expression come from and what does it mean?
Proverb or saying?
The words "proverbs" and "sayings" are often used together, and many believe that they have the same meaning. On the one hand, this is correct. If we say that "the wolves are full, the sheep are safe" is a proverb, no one will argue and claim that this is a proverb. After all, these two phenomena carry a hidden meaning, they are concise, concise in content, sometimes rhyme, indicate shortcomings or encourage a person.
There is no clear classification of catchphrases, but there are some definite differences.
A proverb is a complete sentence that emphasizes some action and is built according to some logic. There is a moral in a proverb, a teaching about something, a background to something. Most often there are two parts, and the second is, as it were, a conclusion from the first. Some proverbs have an author, it is known where this is taken from.
For example, the following proverbs can be cited: "don't say gop,until you jump over", "not knowing the ford, do not poke your head into the water", "go slower - you will continue".
Sayings are not sentences, they are some kind of expression to describe a phenomenon or pattern. There are no actions here, but the fact of what happened is simply described. There is no morality or doctrine. Sayings are taken from folk sayings or the author is unknown.
For example, the following sayings can be cited: "two boots - a pair", "paper will endure everything", "the law is not written for fools".
"And the wolves are full, and the sheep are safe": the meaning of the phraseologism
Phraseologisms are stable expressions that are always used in a figurative sense. For phraseological units, the use of hyperbole and allegory is natural. They also have accuracy in the presentation of the fact, some phraseological units are used in order to show life experience, position and attitude to the world. These expressions are stable and do not change. Some phraseological units are taken from folk wisdom, their authors are unknown, while others are well known for their discoverers.
Phraseologism “both the wolves are full and the sheep are safe” has the meaning of simulated, visible well-being, where as if no one was harmed.
From the foregoing, we can conclude that this statement is most likely not a proverb, but belongs to the category of sayings or phraseological units.
The meaning of the saying
Very good and vital saying "both the wolves are full and the sheep are safe" has an ambiguous meaning. Wolf and sheep are usednot only in sayings and phraseological units, but also are the heroes of various fairy tales and tales. Even in the biblical stories, the sheep was the prototype of the righteous and trusting person, and the wolf was the prototype of the sinner and seducer. These are two sides that can never agree, they always have contradictions.
This is a saying about wisdom, about the fact that you can always painlessly get out of a hopeless situation. You can agree on something, sometimes step over your principles, but at the same time not lose or sacrifice anything. During its use, the saying "both the wolves are full and the sheep are safe" has been slightly transformed, the ending "and eternal glory to the shepherd" appeared. After all, it is the shepherd who suffers during this struggle between the wolf and the shepherd.
In the modern world, this saying is used to describe people who achieve different goals, and everyone thinks that he is right, does not want to make concessions. And the shepherd is a person who has found a compromise solution to the problem without offending either side.
Etymology of the origin of the expression
As already mentioned, wolves and sheep were mentioned in the Bible, but it is known that these animals entered the proverb from ancient metaphorical sayings, where wolves and sheep or lambs were opposed. The expression came into the Russian language from those places where there were most pastures with sheep, from the endless Salskaya or Mozdok steppe. The shepherds knew about the problem of missing sheep from the flock and immediately said fewer heads. After all, for the loss of sheep, the shepherd mustcompensate the owner for the cost of the animal. This is where the smart shepherd came from.
The use of the words "wolf" and "sheep" in other popular expressions
In many phraseological turns of the type "both the wolves are full and the sheep are safe" the meaning of the phraseological unit is almost the same as the meaning of the proverb. But there are still a large number of set expressions with the word "wolf". The brightest and most used is the "wolf in sheep's clothing." This expression is also taken from the biblical stories and shows that a bad person can pretend to be kind in order to achieve his plans, but nothing good can be expected from this.
"The wolf will not collect the sheep." "The wolves smell where the sheep sleep." These two phraseological units also describe the discrepancy between the characters of the two animals, the fact that sheep are the prey of wolves, and they will never become friends.
