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Hyperbole
Definition of Idiom
An idiom is a phrase that conveys a figurative meaning that is difficult or impossible to understand based solely on a literal interpretation of the words in the phrase. For... read full definition
An idiom is a phrase that conveys a figurative meaning that is difficult or impossible to understand based solely on a literal interpretation of the... read full definition
An idiom is a phrase that conveys a figurative meaning that is difficult or impossible to understand based solely on... read full definition
Part 1: Book 1, Chapter 4: The Third Son, Alyosha
Explanation and Analysis—Holy Fool :
The narrator uses a simile and an old-fashioned idiom, “holy fool,” to describe how many people perceive Alexei. Noting that Alexei never seemed to care who was financially supporting him due to his general disinterest in money, the narrator states that:
[...] it was not possible, it seems, to judge this strange trait in Alexei’s character very harshly, for anyone who got to know him a little would immediately be convinced, if the question arose, that Alexei must be one of those youths, like holy fools, as it were, who, if he should chance upon even a large fortune, would have no trouble giving it away for a good deed to the first asker, or maybe even to some clever swindler who approached him. Generally speaking, he seemed not to know the value of money at all [...]
Though Alexei’s apparent apathy concerning money is “strange,” the narrator nevertheless defends him, suggesting that “anyone who got to know him” would perceive that he is “one of those youths, like holy fools,” who, if given a “large fortune,” would not hesitate to give it all away “to the first asker.” The narrator’s simile compares Alexei to a “holy fool,” a term that, especially in earlier Russian Orthodox Christianity, meant a person who had made large (and often seemingly foolish) personal sacrifices for their beliefs, often living an ascetic lifestyle. By Dostoevsky’s time, however, the moniker “holy fool” was often employed more informally as an idiom, generally identifying a person as being disabled or mentally ill. Here, the use of this idiom suggests that Alexei is generous but also somewhat naive.
Related Themes:
