Proverbs in stories
Carpenter thinks with an ax
Vanya and his grandmother watched the work of the carpenter, who renovated the fence and porch opposite Vanya's window.
- Look, Vanya, - said the grandmother, - the carpenter threw the flabby boards from the fence. Strong boards remained in place, but between them there were gaps of different widths. To close the gaps, the carpenter took new boards and began to hew them, in accordance with the width of the gaps. Now the carpenter has planted the new boards between the old ones. And so they sat tightly between the old ones, as if they had been sitting here for centuries. Now, even with a hammer, not a single board will jump out. And no need for nails. Not nails hold, but a good fit.
Now the master set to work on the porch. The roof on the porch was like an old hat: it didn’t give a sight, it climbed into my eyes. Two pillars dug into the ground propped up the roof. The carpenter dug both pillars and pulled them out of the ground. It turned out that the pillars were badly rotted. The carpenter roughened up all the rot and cut the posts lightly from the bottom. Further, in place of the lower slender step, he puts a good one. At the ends of the log he cut out the nests and in one fell swoop planted both pillars in these nests.
So everything was cut and hewn in proportion, as if these pillars had grown out of the log and with their tops raised the roof of the porch. The porch now looks dashing and dapper.
Now the carpenter decided to bring the porch pillars into full beauty. He carved the belts on the posts, as if wearing bracelets. The links between the belts are rounded at the top and bottom. It turned out that the pillars were made up of jugs. Everything is simple and simple, but how elegant! A simple tackle is an ax, but in skillful hands every business will be born beautifully. It is incorrectly said that, for example, a painter is an artist, and a carpenter, a joiner is just a worker.
The painter will depict what he thinks with paint, brush. We can say that a painter thinks with a brush.
The same can be said about the carpenter. The carpenter will do what he has in mind with an ax. Hence the proverb: "The carpenter thinks with an ax."
Pick one berry - pick a box
Vanya had a grandmother - kind and friendly. She talked to the kids cheerfully, she would console and make everyone laugh. She talked to old people judiciously. A friendly smile was always on her face. The old men said: "At least what a misfortune, but this old woman will think okay, she will say quietly." One old man once said to Vanya:
- Your grandmother is made of songs, made of proverbs.
- My grandmother knows how to draw, - said Vanya.
- This is a special case. Your grandmother has the title of "master of painting". She knows how to do plastering and painting, and knows all kinds of paint, and understands wood species. In the club, the artists consulted with her on what paint to use, so that it was durable and beautiful.
Once Vanya tried to find out:
- Grandma, what did you talk about with Mitya the parquet flooring engineer? You nodded your head and said: "It is true that work loves not a good fellow, but an unmoved one." You also said: "The eyes are afraid, the hands are doing." What did Mitya tell you about?
- Mitya talked about his work. Really curious.
Mitya is an artist. But he does not work with paint, not with brushes. It decorates boxes, tables, cabinets with a wooden pattern.
Mitya has thin planks made of wood of various species at hand. There is mahogany, black oak, cinnamon wood. Each tree has its own color.
These boards were sawn into squares, checkers, circles. And Mitya pastes the pattern on a box or cabinet with these checkers. He sits these wooden leaves together with glue.
Sometimes the pattern is simple: the stripes go from top to bottom, but Mitya came out beautifully and elegantly. The path is black, brown, then the path is black, then red, white.
These tracks are repeated in the same order. Thanks to the transparency of the colored wood, any item appears richly decorated.
Recently, the master instructed Mitya to glue the tabletop - the top board of the table - and said:
- This is an order from the academy. The deadline is two weeks.
Mitya set to work eagerly. I thought about the drawing and one day I finished the upper corner and I myself was delighted with my work.
For a whole week Mitya was glad that he was entrusted with such an important job. Wakes up early in the morning and lies in bed until noon. In his imagination he sees the work finished, admires it, throws up his hands with joy: dressing, dancing and singing. He would sit down at the table for a minute, pick up the necessary boards, but joy washes him away. He runs into the street, meets friends: - Think, guys, professors and academicians will admire my art.
Run to the movies in the evening.
For a week, work has not moved a half-dollar. On Saturday evening Mitya was suddenly tired of having fun. He took off the newspaper that covered the board, and was embarrassed and frightened. The finely crafted pattern stood alone like a flower against the bare ground.
Mitya threw up his palms:
- What have I done! The deadline is one week. I won't have time for anything ...
An hour later the master, passing by the yard, saw Mitya sitting on the porch.
- Mitka, are you crying?
“Master, I betrayed your trust.
- Go show me your work.
We went into Mitya's room. Looking at the countertop, the master said:
- What you have done has been done excellently and beautifully.
- Master, dear, what areas do I need to grab every day in order to be on time? The work will be a mess, but I'm used to it beautifully and thoroughly.
- Listen to me, Mitya. I am your boss and I give you a work rate: every day, glue and finish on the board as much as your palm will cover. No less, no more. And the work will move forward, and you will do the finishing slowly, according to your taste.
Mitya diligently, like a student, began to carry out the lesson given by the master.
At first, Mitya did not believe that with such a low rate he would have time to finish the job on time. Fit the plates to one another carefully - the mosquito of the nose will not undermine. But he will glance over how much more empty space stays and gets scared. However, the eyes are afraid, but the hands do.
And Mitya's hands were golden.
The palm quietly moved along the board, and following the movement of the artist's hand, the board turned into a blooming garden.
Per day ahead of time Mitya finished his work. I smoothed it with an iron and turned it out with a wolf's tooth.
The master admired the work for a long time, then silently hugged Mitya ...
The proverb "The master's work is afraid" appeared long ago and for a reason.
Today, for some reason, I wanted to reflect on its meaning.
First of all, I wanted to dot the i's when interpreting two concepts - business and master.
By deed, most often they mean some kind of work, an activity being carried out, or just some kind of assignment that must certainly be performed.
Master Is a person who knows how to do something very well. This is not just a worker, this is a skilled worker in some profession. He already knows pretty well what he has to accomplish. It is assumed that whatever he undertakes will be done well and quickly.
Well, now let's get back to our proverb. So, "the master's work is afraid."
A business Is an inanimate noun. And the verb “fear” can actually be used with a living object. Someone may be afraid of something. To be afraid means to be very excited while waiting for an action that should be directed at the “afraid” object.
Can a case, being an inanimate "nothing" be afraid? Of course not.
Why, then, did these two parts of speech meet in one phrase?
I would be very grateful if we all together offer different options for the meaning of this proverb.
Dmitry Z.'s answer from Volgograd
In fact, Russian proverbs are sometimes very difficult to explain, sometimes people even distort their meaning and apply them out of place. Take as an example the proverb "the master's work is afraid" - what does it really mean, what is its real essence?
This adage is usually used when a person is praised for some quality work done. Also, the expression is appropriate when a person is just getting started, in his own words he shows that he can cope with the task.
They say that this business is subject only to a real specialist, only he can perform this work with the appropriate quality. At its core, in the Russian language you can find many similar proverbs, albeit less known and used. As an example - "in skillful hands, things are going well."
It is worth making a reservation about the erroneous interpretation of this winged expression, which is not so rare. Some believe that the meaning of the statement lies in the fact that any work avoids the master, bypasses him and falls on the shoulders of beginners.
They say that a specialist can do everything, he doesn't get a decent job at all. Cases of such a misunderstanding are far from isolated, and any philologist and just a literate person can dispute this version.
In conclusion, I would like to note that it is very important to find your favorite pastime in life. And then you will not be afraid of him, but you!
Philologist, candidate of philological sciences, poet, member of the Writers' Union of Russia.
Date of publication: 24.10.2019
We speak with admiration about skilled and talented people. Still would!
A job well done deserves unconditional praise. In Russia, there have always been many clever craftsmen, experts in their field.
What is even the gunsmith Alexei Surnin, who served as the prototype for the famous Lefty for the writer Nikolai Leskov!
About such talented workers, the proverb “The master's work is afraid” was coined. Let's talk about the details of its origin and the nuances of its use.
The meaning of the proverb
Expression "The work of the master is afraid" used as praise when they want to emphasize the impeccability of a particular task.
No matter how difficult the work may be, an experienced person will perform it brilliantly, because the ability to cope with non-standard requests is a sign of superior skill.
When a specialist makes repairs in an old kitchen with an original layout, the hostess has many concerns. Will it be possible to rebuild the sink, will there be a cutting area, will there be room for flowers on the windowsill?
After the completion of the repair, women's joy has no boundaries: a difficult task was solved taking into account all the wishes. "The master's work is afraid!" - she will say with admiration, paying tribute to the professionalism of the specialist.
It is appropriate to say a similar phrase to the address of a hairdresser who turns a shapeless head of hair into a chic hairstyle, or a doctor who in a matter of weeks puts a serious patient on his feet.
The needlewoman, who "figured out" a multi-storey cake two hours before the arrival of the guests, can also be called a master of her craft. But you never know around clever women and craftsmen who save, teach, feed, dress, warm, heal people, decorate the world with their imagination, hard work and skill? Any work in their hands is on fire, any business is good.
The origin of the proverb
The collection of proverbs and sayings of the Russian people, written down by V. I. Dal, acquaints us with the complete, now abbreviated version of the proverb: "The work of a master is afraid, but another master of the work is afraid."
Two-part composition is inherent in many wise sayings, because the difference in phenomena is easier to trace in contrast. For example, the well-known saying “Silence is golden” has a continuation. "And the word is silver," adds folk wisdom.
In our case, a good master has an antipode - a bad, lazy “master” who is afraid of work, does not want to do it. The fact that the case is perceived by native speakers as a living being is very curious.
It turns out that not only people are intimidated by the volume of tasks assigned to them. The case itself may be "afraid"! Whom? Yes, the one who, without delay, "with feeling, with sense, with arrangement" will take it.
It turns out that in addition to skills and abilities, a good specialist needs decisiveness, self-confidence, an attitude that the task will be completed by any means.
Synonymous expressions
Among the many synonyms expressing gratitude to the craftsmen, there are several of the most striking in our native language:
- in (someone's) hands the work burns like fire;
- in skillful hands the matter is going well;
- (do anything) without a hitch, without a hitch.
Foreigners do not skimp on unusual compliments either:
- Das Werk lobt den Meister (German) - the work praises the master;
- He works best who knows his trade (eng.) - the one who knows his business works best;
- Bon berger tond et n'ecorche pas (fr.) - a good shepherd mows and does not move;
- L'opera loda il maestro (it.) - the work glorifies the master.
Say what you like, but they will judge us according to our deeds. It is important to find your calling in time - then any occupation will be a joy, you will want to cope with any new challenges perfectly. Most importantly, do not be intimidated by the work. Better let her be afraid of you!
Loading ...