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| Icarus/Fly too close to the sun; Daedalus |
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| Greek mythology; Icarus and Daedalus escaped the island of Crete by means of wings; Father tells him not to fly too close to the sun; he gets too consumed by the thrill of flying and dies in the Aegean Sea; Today means to fail or be destroyed because of lack of caution or excessive ambition |
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| writer during time of Roman empire and angry with imperial government which kept people happy by distributing free food and providing entertaining spectacles (@ Colosseum); also angry with people easily kept in line; Today refers to policies designed to prevent unrest (keeping people happy and deflecting concern) |
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| god in the machine; classical theater; crane w/ harness for actor (lowered from ceiling and a god would unexpectedly appear); solve a seemingly hopeless problem and save hero or heroine; today means a surprising turn of events which makes things turn alright; often considered overly convenient way to end a story |
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| Latin for "blank slate"; coined by John Locke (philosopher); used to refer to a person unaffected by experience; today refers to something or someone unmarked or uninfluenced |
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| Greek mythology; wicked king who offended gods; condemned to suffer eternal hunger and thirst in Hades; water up to his chin but when he bent to drink waters receded; fruit hung over head but wind moved it when he tried to reach; today: tantalized- offered something which is then withheld |
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| not in my backyard; today means while people may be aware of the necessity of some unpleasant realities (prisons, landfills, and chemical plants) they insist that those places be located away from where they live |
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| Hans Christian Andersen's story; 2 tailors say clothes are invisible to anyone unfit for office or stupid; swindlers show him his clothes and he pretends to admire them; no one will admit that they can't see the clothes; small child shouts out the truth; today means someone points out the falseness or pretentiousness of something especially when others are afraid to point out the truth |
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| something negative; awkward, clumsy, or of doubtful sincerity; left side of shield is "sinister side"; today means a compliment that's insulting or rude in some way |
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| book of Exodus; Moses receives 10 commandments and smashes them at the sight of the calf; Mt Sinai; today means and idol or object worshiped even though it is not worthy |
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| Greek mythology; Damocles-courtier to Greek king who constantly flattered the king; king holds a banquet and lets Damocles sit in his chair; king suspends sword from ceiling by single thread over Damocles; he wanted Damocles to be aware of impending dangers that come with being a king; today means awareness of impending danger |
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| because they're rare and special; not beasts of burden and toil; Sciam- (legend) so valuable they became property of King Sciam; very costly so he gave them as gifts to people who displeased him; brought financial ruin to recipient; today means an object that has no use and represents inconvenience or burden |
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| Roman emperor Nero (blamed Christians); while a fire consumed half of Rome, he played his violin or fiddle; complete indifference and disregard; today means to display indifference in the midst of disaster or emergency |
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