大庭广众 dà tíng guǎng zhòng in public

Explanation

大庭广众指聚集很多人的公开场合。形容公开的场合，人很多。

A public place with many people.

Origin Story

战国时期，齐威王自诩爱士，问尹文：“齐国为什么没有士人？”尹文答道：“士人，忠孝信义者也。”齐威王认同。尹文又问：“在大庭广众之下受辱而不敢反抗的，是好士人吗？”齐威王说：“不好。”这则故事说明，真正的士人，应当有担当，敢于在大庭广众之下维护正义，而不是畏畏缩缩，忍辱负重。齐威王看似爱士，实则只喜欢那些阿谀奉承之辈，这与他问话的初衷背道而驰，也暗示了当时的社会风气。故事以问答的形式展现，简洁明了，阐明了“士人”的真正含义，以及对当时社会现实的批判。故事也反映了战国时期士人群体的地位和作用，他们并非单纯的文人，而更像是有理想有抱负的社会精英，他们关注国家的命运，敢于为正义而发声。

zhàn guó shí qī, qí wēi wáng zì xǔ ài shì, wèn yǐn wén: “qí guó wèi shén me méi yǒu shì rén?” yǐn wén dá dào: “shì rén, zhōng xiào xìn yì zhě yě.” qí wēi wáng rèn tóng. yǐn wén yòu wèn: “zài dà tíng guǎng zhòng zhī xià shòu rǔ ér bù gǎn fǎn kàng de, shì hǎo shì rén ma?” qí wēi wáng shuō: “bù hǎo.” zhè zé gù shì shuō míng, zhēn zhèng de shì rén, yīng dāng yǒu dān dàng, gǎn yú zài dà tíng guǎng zhòng zhī xià wéi hù zhèng yì, ér bù shì wèi wèi suō suō, rěn rǔ fù zhòng. qí wēi wáng kàn sì ài shì, shí zé zhǐ xǐ huān nà xiē ā yú fèng chéng zhī bèi, zhè yǔ tā wèn huà de chū zhōng bèi dào chí, yě àn shì le dāng shí de shè huì fēng qì. gù shì yǐ wèn dá de xíng shì zhǎn xiàn, jiǎn jié míng liǎo, chǎn míng le “shì rén” de zhēn zhèng hài yì, yǐ jí duì dāng shí shè huì xiàn shí de pī pàn. gù shì yě fǎn yìng le zhàn guó shí qī shì rén qún tǐ de dì wèi hé zuò yòng, tā men bìng fēi dān chún de wén rén, ér gèng xiàng shì yǒu lǐ xiǎng yǒu bào fù de shè huì jīng yīng, tā men guān zhù guó jiā de mìng yùn, gǎn yú wèi zhèng yì ér fā shēng

During the Warring States period, King Wei of Qi boasted about his love for scholars and asked Yin Wen: "Why are there no scholars in Qi?" Yin Wen replied: "Scholars are those who embody loyalty, filial piety, honesty, and righteousness." King Wei agreed. Yin Wen then asked: "Is someone who is humiliated in public and does not dare to fight back a good scholar?" King Wei said: "No." This story illustrates that true scholars should take responsibility and dare to uphold justice in public, instead of hiding and enduring humiliation. King Wei pretended to love scholars but actually only liked those who flattered him, which contradicted his original intention and also hinted at the social atmosphere at the time. The story is presented in the form of a question-and-answer dialogue, which is concise and clear, and illustrates the true meaning of "scholars" as well as the criticism of the social realities at the time.

Usage

常用来形容公开、人多的场合。

cháng yòng lái xíngróng gōng kāi, rén duō de chǎng hé

Often used to describe a public place with many people.

Examples

• 在如此大庭广众之下，他居然敢公然行凶！

  zài rúcǐ dà tíng guǎng zhōng zhī xià, tā jūrán gǎn gōngrán xíng xióng!

  In such a public place, he actually dared to commit murder!

• 他当众宣布退学，这在当时的大庭广众之下引起了轩然大波。

  tā dāng zhòng xuānbù tuì xué, zhè zài dāngshí de dà tíng guǎng zhōng zhī xià yǐnqǐ le xuān rán dà bō

  He publicly announced his withdrawal from school, which caused a great uproar in front of so many people at that time

Related Idioms

• 光天化日

• 众目睽睽

Opposite Idioms

• 暗中摸索

• 偷偷摸摸