Consider the famous phraseological unit "Augean stables" .
This phraseological unit refers us to ancient Greek myths about Hercules.
Are given the meaning, origin and sources of phraseological units, as well as examples from the works of writers.
The meaning of phraseology
Augean Stables - a contaminated room; business is in disarray
Synonyms: disorder, unplowed field
IN foreign languages There are direct analogues of the phraseological unit “Augean stables”:
- Augean stables (English)
- Augiastall (German)
- écuries d'Augias (French)
Augean stables: the origin of phraseology
It is believed that ancient greek hero Hercules (to the Romans - Hercules) undertook to clean the stables of Augeas, king of the Greek region of Elis, in one day. According to some reports, the huge Augean stables had not been cleaned for 30 years and were overflowing with manure. And there were 3000 bulls and many goats in them.
Hercules broke the wall surrounding the barnyard on two opposite sides and diverted the water of two rivers, Alpheus and Peneus, into the resulting gaps. The stormy waters of the rivers quickly carried away all the accumulated sewage.
At this point the sixth labor could have been solemnly completed, but there was a problem. From the very beginning, Augeas agreed to give Hercules a tenth of his herds if he managed it in a day. Of course, he was sure that Hercules would not succeed. And when it happened, Augeas showed greed and refused his word to Hercules.
And in vain. Hercules is not to be trifled with. During two campaigns, he killed Augeas, his sons (except for the honest Philaeus, who recognized the justice of Hercules' demands) and some warlike relatives.
Source
This myth was first set forth by the ancient Greek historian Diodorus Siculus (1st century BC), and the expression “Augean stables” became popular in ancient times: it was used by Seneca (“Satire on the death of Emperor Claudius”), Lucian (“Alexander ") and others.
Examples from the works of writers
The favorite hero of the Greeks was Hercules, who became famous for cleaning out the Augean stables and thus giving the Greeks an unforgettable example of cleanliness. In addition, this neat guy killed his wife and children. (N.A. Teffi, “Ancient History”)
The latest, already completely encouraging, news: the re-registration of party tickets has been announced, that is, the cleaning of the Augean stables. (A. N. Tolstoy, “Walking through Torment”)
Alice hid in the low building of the laboratory to leave her bag there and change clothes, and when she came out, she angrily declared: “This is not a laboratory, but the Augean stables!”
Hercules, who was waiting for her at the entrance, did not answer anything, because he had never read Greek myths, and besides, he knew only edible words. (K. Bulychev, “A Million Adventures”)
What useful conclusion emerges from this whole story? Probably like this: you really need to be talented person for one-day cleaning of the premises turned into a famous feat that has come down to us through many centuries in the myth and phraseology “Augean stables.”
Well, more specifically, the conclusion is that even if you are as strong as Hercules, it’s still It's better to think first , and do not immediately grab the shovel.
Augean stables
Augean stables
From ancient Greek mythology. The hero Hercules (Roman - Hercules) once cleaned out the vast stables of the Elis king (Elis - region of Greece) Augeas, which had not been cleaned for 30 years. Hercules did not act as expected of him: he did not use his strength, but the energy of two rivers - Alpheus and Peneus. First he blocked them with dams, and then directed the water to the stables. A powerful stream washed away all the impurities, and thus Hercules completed the job in just one day. This was the seventh labor of Hercules during his time in the service of King Eurystheus.
This myth was first stated by the ancient Greek historian Diodorus Siculus (1st century BC), and the expression became popular in ancient times: it was used by Seneca (“Satire on the death of Emperor Claudius”), Lucian (“Alexander”) and etc.
About a neglected problem, disorder in business, etc.
Encyclopedic Dictionary winged words and expressions. - M.: “Locked-Press”. Vadim Serov. 2003.
Augean stables
In Greek mythology, the Augean stables are the vast stables of Augeas, the king of Elis, which were not cleaned for many years. They were cleansed in one day by the hero Hercules (Hercules): he directed a river through the stables, the waters of which carried away all the manure. This myth was first reported by the Greek historian Diodorus Siculus (1st century BC). The expression “Augean stables” that arose from this is used to denote a very dirty room, as well as severe neglect, litter, disorder in matters that require great effort to eliminate; it became winged in ancient times
Dictionary of catch words. Plutex. 2004.
Synonyms:
See what “Augean stables” are in other dictionaries:
The mythological king of Elis, the son of the sun, had stables in which there were 3,000 bulls, and which had not been cleaned for 30 years, and only Hercules could clean them by drawing a river through them: hence something unusually neglected, polluted,... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language
Disorder Dictionary of Russian synonyms. Augean stables noun, number of synonyms: 1 disorder (127) ASIS Dictionary of Synonyms. V.N. Trishin... Dictionary of synonyms
Modern encyclopedia
In Greek mythology, the huge and heavily polluted stables of the king of Elis, Augeas, were cleansed of uncleanness in one day by Hercules, who directed the waters of the river into them (one of his 12 labors). IN figuratively extreme disorder, neglect... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary
The huge and heavily polluted stables (not cleaned for 30 years) of King Augeas of Elis, cleansed of uncleanness in one day by Hercules, who directed the waters of the Alpheus River into them (see the labors of Hercules). // N.A. Kuhn: KING AUGIA'S ANIMAL FARD (SIXTH LABOR) (Source: ... ... Encyclopedia of Mythology
In Greek mythology, the huge and heavily polluted stables of the king of Elis, Augeas, were cleansed of uncleanness in one day by Hercules, who directed the waters of the river into them (one of his 12 labors). In a figurative sense, extreme disorder, neglect. Political... ... Political science. Dictionary.
Augean stables- AUGEAN STABLES, in Greek mythology, the huge and heavily polluted stables of King Augeas of Elis, cleansed of impurities in one day by Hercules, who directed the waters of the river into them (one of his 12 labors). In a figurative sense, extreme disorder, ... ... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary
Ushakov's Explanatory Dictionary
AUGEAN STABLES. see stable. Ushakov's explanatory dictionary. D.N. Ushakov. 1935 1940 ... Ushakov's Explanatory Dictionary
Augean stables- translation Something very neglected, requiring great job to tidy up. In Greek myth. one of the labors of Hercules was cleaning the stables of King Augeas (with the help of a flood). Strength is strength, but ingenuity doesn't hurt... :) wing. sl. In Greek... ... Universal additional practical explanatory dictionary I. Mostitsky
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This phrase is associated with ancient Greek mythology, namely with the sixth labor of Hercules. " Augean stables“mean something excessively neglected, requiring restoration of order. Moreover, either in the literal sense (the room is too dirty), or figuratively (neglected affairs at the enterprise, in the institution).
In short, the feat of Hercules was that, using his incredible strength, he cleaned out the large stables of King Augeas. The name of the place itself, which no one cleaned up for a very long time, became a household name. This figure of speech is regularly used in various literary works or popular science and journalistic texts (for example, “Augean Stables of Academic Marketing”).
History of the origin of phraseological units
The myth in its now known version was first told by the ancient Greek historian Diodorus Siculus (lived in the 1st century BC). According to his version, Augeas was the son of the sun god Helios and the king of Elis. He agreed with Hercules that the hero would clean his stables, which no one had cleaned for about 30 years. According to the myth, there were up to 3,000 head of cattle in the premises, mostly bulls; it is noteworthy that there were no horses in the stables. In gratitude for the cleaning services, Augeias promised to give 10% of his herd to Hercules.
Hercules showed ingenuity and broke the walls of the stable. And then the hero directed the riverbeds to this place, which are called Alpheus and Penei. For short time all the manure was washed away.
However, despite this, Augeas refused to issue the pre-agreed reward. This subsequently led to a conflict, which different versions The myth ended differently. In the first version, Hercules killed Augeas and his children (except for one, Philaeus, who began to rule Elis). In the second version, Augeas remained alive, despite armed clashes with Hercules.
Thus, the meaning of the expression “Augean stables” is associated with a truly very polluted place. Its cleaning in real life will require heroic efforts or large financial investments.
Any person, even without literary education, should know what they are Augean stables and their significance. The story is like this.
IN ancient greek mythology King Augeas had huge herds. All of them were kept in special stables. Here it is necessary to clarify that stables are usually intended for horses. However, Augeas had mainly bulls and goats there.
For many years (according to some sources, 30 years) manure was not removed from these stables, so there was terrible chaos there. In order to clean the farmyard from a lot of dirt, King Augeias hired famous character– Hercules (aka Hercules). It was this task that became one of the tasks, because the work was beyond the power of anyone else.
How did Hercules cleanse the Augean stables? Our hero was not only incredibly strong, but also smart. Therefore, in order not to clean out neglected buildings manually, he cunningly diverted water from two rivers there, which simply washed away all the manure from there.
For this feat, Augeas had to pay a tenth of all his numerous herds. However, he did not do this. And really, why is this, because the stables have already been cleaned!
True, then the mighty Hercules killed him.
Augean stables - the meaning of phraseology
Surely you can already guess what the expression “Augean stables” means. This follows quite logically from the previous text. But we will explain. Three meanings should be highlighted.
Now you know what the Augean Stables are, as well as the meaning of this phraseological unit.
Nowadays people use huge amount phraseological units. Some of them appeared quite recently, while the origin of others is lost in the darkness of history.One such expression is “Augean stables”. This idiom means an untidy room, or more precisely, it means a huge mess present in it. The same phrase can be applied to the personal life of a neglected person, as well as to his affairs.
The history of the expression "Augean stables"
The ancient Greeks had a legend, according to which the very powerful god Helios had a son named Augeias. To entertain his child, Helios drove a huge herd of horses to him, as well as large number other cattle.Helios thought that his son Augeias would finally come to his senses and begin raising and improving the breed. However, his son was still a slob.
He was much more attracted beautiful girls and merry feasts. So, in pursuit of pleasure, he forgot about his poor animals. It’s scary to imagine what was going on in his stables.
Augeas finally decides to sort out his household, but how to clean out the stables, which were literally floating in a huge puddle of manure?
Augeas asks Hercules to help his trouble. Hercules was not only a mighty warrior, but also a very wise man. The blood of the gods flowed in his veins, he was the son of Zeus.
He understands that it is possible to clean the stables, but it will take a lot of time. He solved this problem by changing the course of the Alfea River and directing it towards the dirty stables.
When rough waters They took all the uncleanness out, Augeas was very grateful to this cunning warrior.
Only the legendary Hercules could cleanse the Augean Stables. This work is considered his fifth labor.
First time Cleaning" Augean Stables"Hercules, mentioned by the historian Diodorus Siculus. He wrote a wonderful work in three parts.
- In the first part he mentioned such countries as: Greece, North Africa, Scythia, India, Mesopotamia and Egypt.
- In the second part he talks about the history of the world, or rather short excerpt starting with the Trojan War and ending with the campaigns of Alexander the Great.
- In the third book he continues the story, continuing with the campaigns of Alexander the Great and ending with the campaign of Julius Caesar in Gaul.
Historians suggest that all the books of Diodorus Siculus are simply copies with minor amendments of more ancient texts by authors such as Herodotus, Megasthenes, Polybius, etc.
The idiom "Augean stables" became popular in ancient Greece.
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