What is the meaning of "er" in "The River bends straight and laughs"?

The word "er" in Hequ Zhicuo Zhixiao means "harmony" and "harmony", indicating a progressive relationship.

A clever old man on the bend laughed at him and stopped him. This is an allegorical essay "Yu Gong Yi Shan" written by Liezi, a thinker in the Warring States Period.

Original paragraph:

Hequ Zhicuo stopped laughing and said, "What a shame! With the strength of age, you can't destroy a hair on the mountain. What are things like dirt and stones? " The foolish old man in Beishan said, "Your heart is firm but not broken. You were never a widow or a weakling. Although I am dead, I have a son; Children have grandchildren, and grandchildren have children; A son has a son and a son has a grandson; There are countless children and grandchildren, but the mountains do not increase. Why bother and injustice? " Hequ died knowing his mistake.

Translation:

The wise man on the bend laughed at the foolish old man and stopped him from doing so, saying, "You are so stupid! With your remaining years and strength, you can't even move a grass on the mountain. What can you do with mud and stones? "

Gong Yu of Beishan sighed and said, "Your heart is so stubborn that you can't begin to understand, even orphans and widows can't compare with you. Even if I die, I still have a son; Son gives birth to grandson, grandson gives birth to son; A son has a son and a son has a grandson; Children and grandchildren are endless, but mountains do not increase. Are you afraid of digging rough? " There is nothing to answer about knowing beans in a meandering river.

Extended data:

First, the creative background

The Warring States period is a period of great social change, and it is also a period of academic thought contending. Fable, as an important part of the essays of the philosophers, has become a powerful weapon for the philosophers of the Warring States to clarify their political views, academic thoughts and arguments.

Liezi is a collection of fables and fairy tales created under this background. This article is selected from the fifth chapter of Liezi Tang Wen. It tells the story of Yugong digging a mountain despite difficulties and finally moving it away by the Emperor of Heaven. It also shows that under the condition of extremely underdeveloped productive forces at that time, people can only fantasize about conquering nature with the help of a god with superhuman strength.

Second, appreciate

This article is an allegorical story with simple materialism and simple dialectics. Its theme is constant road. By shaping the image of the foolish old man and through the dialogue between the wise old man and the foolish old man, the stupidity of the wise old man and the wisdom of the foolish old man are displayed, telling people that only perseverance can succeed.

It reflects the majestic spirit of the ancient working people in China to transform nature, shows the confidence and perseverance of the ancient working people in China, and shows that we must persistently overcome difficulties, which is of great inspiration to people.

In addition, this fable has a very important objective significance. First of all, it has the idea that man can conquer nature. In the relationship between man and nature, the tendency of valuing man over nature is very obvious. Secondly, when Yu Gong refuted Xu Zhi, his analysis of the relationship between mountains and people actually contained progressive philosophical thoughts, telling us that the relationship between things can be transformed under certain conditions.

Baidu Encyclopedia-Gong Yu Yishan