Idiom Explanation:
DongShi imitates someone frowning, it is a metaphor for imitating others without knowing what is really good about them.
Pronunciation:
东施效颦
dōng shī xiào pín
Origin:
《庄子·天运》：故西施病心而矉（通‘顰’，皱眉）其里，其里之丑人见而美之，归亦捧心而矉其里。其里之富人见之，坚闭门而不出；贫人见之，絜（通‘挈’，带领）妻子而去之走。彼知颦美，而不知颦之所以美。
Story:
Xi Shi was one of the “Four Beauties” in Chinese history, a native of the State of Yue during the Spring and Autumn Period, and her every move was very attractive, but unfortunately her health was not good and she suffered from heartache.
One time, she was washing clothes at the river and on her way home, she suddenly had pain in her chest, so she covered her chest with her hand and frowned. Although she looked very uncomfortable, the villagers who saw her were praising her, saying that she looked more beautiful than usual like this.
In the same village, there was a girl named Dong Shi, because of her ugly appearance, she heard that people in the village praised Xi Shi for her beautiful appearance of covering her chest with her hands and frowning, so she also followed Xi Shi’s example of covering her chest and frowning, moving slowly in front of people, thinking that this would be praised. She was already not beautiful, plus deliberately imitating the actions of Xi Shi when she was in heartache, she looked strange, but made the people of the village even more disgusted.
Some people in the village saw her approaching and hurriedly closed the gate. Others hastened to pull their wives and children far away, and they despised Dong Shi even more than before! This is how the idiom of “东施效颦” was derived.
Similar Idioms:
- 邯郸学步
- 照猫画虎
