借古讽今

借古諷今

jiègǔfěngjīn

idiom

Meanings

1 to use the past to criticize the present
2 to satirize current affairs through historical allusion

Characters

to borrow / by means of

Examples

这部小说借古讽今，针砭时弊。

Zhè bù xiǎoshuō jiègǔfěngjīn, zhēnbiān shíbì.

This novel uses the past to criticize the present, exposing current ills.

他写文章常常借古讽今。

Tā xiě wénzhāng chángcháng jiègǔfěngjīn.

He often uses historical allusions to satirize the present in his essays.

Tips

usage

A go-to label in Chinese literary criticism for satirical essays (杂文 záwén) and historical dramas. Lu Xun (鲁迅) is the canonical practitioner — his essays attacked 1930s society through ancient stories.

memory

Read it as a chain: 借 (borrow) 古 (ancient) → 讽 (satirize) 今 (present). 'Borrow the old to mock the new.'

Stroke Order

借 jiè

古 gǔ

讽 fěng

今 jīn