井底之蛙A Frog at the Bottom of a Well

A Frog at the Bottom of a Well（成语 井底之蛙 英文）


A frog making his home on the uneven bottom of a shallow well......once told a big turtle from the East Sea:"Oh, how happy I am! If I come up and out, I am free to gambol on the curb, and if I want to have a rest, I can retire into a hole down there in the broken wall.When I plunge into the water, it is deep enough to reach my armpits and support my chin; when I step the mud, it is thick enough to hold my feet and cover up my insteps. Look at the wigglers crabs and tadpoles; they can't be compared with me. Besides, I have all the water of the well for myself, and great is my pleasure in frolicking here. Why don't you come down to have a look, once in a while?"

Intrigued, the turtle of the East Sea began climbing down, but before his left foreleg could enter, his right one was caught on the curb. He hesitated and then retreated, but he told the frog about the sea, saying:" The sea is so vast that to talk of a thousand li does not describe its breadth; it is so deep that to talk of a thousand fathoms does not describe its depth. In the days of Yu(1), there was a flood nine out of ten years, but the sea never had more water than it could contain. In the days of Tang(2), there was a drought seven years out of every eight, but the seashore remained as it was, without any loss. So no length of time brings it any changes and no amount of water, either more or less, affects its vastness. Here lies the great joy of living in the East Sea."

The turtle's speech so astonished the frog in the well that it immedjately realized its own smallness and was at a complete loss.


__________remark___________
(1) referring to the Xia Dynasty(C.21st-16th century BC).
(2)referring to the Shang Dynasty(C.16th-11th century BC).


井底之蛙(chinese idioms)


　　有一只青蛙长年住在一口枯井里。它对自己生活的小天地满意极了，一有机会就要当众吹嘘一番。有一天，它吃饱了饭，蹲在井栏上正闲得无聊，忽然看见不远处有一只大海鳖在散步。青蛙赶紧扯开嗓门喊了起来：“喂，海鳖兄，请过来，快请过来！”海鳖爬到枯井旁边。青蛙立刻打开了话匣子：“今天算你运气了，我让你开开眼界，参观一下我的居室。那简直是一座天堂。你大概从来也没有见过这样宽敞的住所吧？”海鳖探头往井里瞅瞅，只见浅浅的井底积了一汪长满绿苔的泥水，还闻到一股扑鼻的臭味。海鳖皱了皱眉头，赶紧缩回了脑袋。青蛙根本没有注意海鳖的表情，挺着大肚子继续吹嘘：“住在这儿，我舒服极了！傍晚可以跳到井栏上乘凉；深夜可以钻到井壁的窟窿里睡觉；泡在水里，让水浸着两腋，托住面颊，可以游泳；跳到泥里，让泥盖没脚背，埋住四足，可以打滚。那些跟头虫、螃蟹、蝌蚪什么的，哪一个能比得上我呢！”青蛙唾沫星儿四溅，越说越得意：“瞧，这一坑水，这一口井，都属我一个人所有，我爱怎么样就怎么样。这样的乐趣可以算到顶了吧。海鳖兄，你不想进去观光观光吗？”海鳖感到盛情难却，便爬向井口，可是左腿还没能全部伸进去，右腿的膝盖就被井栏卡住了。海鳖慢慢地退了回来，问青蛙：“你听说过大海没有？”青蛙摇摆头。海鳖说：“大海水天茫茫，无边无际。用千里不能形容它的辽阔，用万丈不能表明它的深度。传说四千多年以前，大禹做国君的时候，十年九涝，海水没有加深；三千多年以前，商汤统治的年代，八年七旱，海水也不见减少。海是这样大，以至时间的长短、旱涝的变化都不能使它的水量发生明显的变化。青蛙弟，我就生活在大海中。你看，比起你这一眼枯井、一坑浅水来，哪个天地更开阔，哪个乐趣更大呢？”青蛙听傻了，鼓着眼睛，半天合不拢嘴。