The winged expression of "woe to the vanquished"

It's so established in our world that the ball is ruled by the powers that be. Often they decide how to live a simple people. In such cases, the winged expression "woe to the vanquished" is used. In this article we will consider what this stable phrase means, where it came from and how it is used in speech.

The meaning of the expression "woe to the vanquished"

Phraseology has a negative interpretation. It means the threat of a person, a group of persons or a system to worsen the situation of those who depend on them. Woe to the defeated - to those who are under the authority of someone or something. They lose their voice, their rights, they have to obey others. Where did this cruel expression come from? This question will be considered further.

History of the origin of expression

A large phraseological dictionary edited by Rose T. V. reveals the etymology of this stable expression.

There is a legend that the Roman historian Titus Livius told the world. According to him, in 390 BC one of the Gallic leaders conquered Rome. He forced all the inhabitants to pay him a thousand pounds of gold. The Romans had no choice but to pay this greedy chief. However, many doubted that the weights weighing the gold they brought showed the correct weight. Then Brenn in retaliation put his sword on the device, exclaiming: "Woe to the defeated!" By this behavior he showed the people that they do not argue with the powers that be. And punctuation leads to disastrous consequences for the losers themselves.

From here also the expression "put the sword on the scales" went.

Many times, these unjust words were repeated and repeated by fierce conquerors, who are accustomed to forcing others to obey their will by force.

Examples of using an expression

Many writers, journalists and publicists use in their works, speeches, the idiom of "sorrow defeated". It shows the hopelessness of the situation of those who are under someone's oppression. As an example, let us cite an excerpt from the youthful novel by Mikhail Yurievich Lermontov "Vadim". "People, when they suffer, are usually submissive. But if they managed to lose their burden, then the lamb turns into a tiger, oppressed becomes an oppressor and pays a hundredfold - and then the grief is defeated. "

In print media, this expression is often used for headlines. It is able to attract readers, to show the main problem, which is mentioned in the publication. Especially often this expression is used in materials telling about war crimes and predatory actions.