Sometimes you have happened to feel the expression “Remove the chestnuts from the fire“To refer to a situation or a person, it is a way of saying that it has nothing to do with chestnuts and autumn, but it serves to indicate who draws a personal advantage from a situation by running to others any risks in solving it.
The way of saying derives precisely from the chestnut, the result that surprisingly occurs in many linguistic expressions with metaphorical valuetestifying to a long popular tradition which over time has evolved to welcome communication needs and survives still today. Among the most common ways of saying we find, for example, “Take in the chestnut “ (grasp someone on the fact), “dry chestnuts “ (not very important things), “pulling one chestnut “ (in the football field, pull a powerful kick to the ball).
The most noble origin of the expression “Remove chestnuts from the fire” is literary and is commonly traced back to the famous writer Jean de la Fontainelived in seventeenth century France and loved for his tales full of teachings. The fairy tale “The monkey and the cat“He features a monkey as protagonist who crushes a nap next to a hearth where they are blushing of chestnuts. Greed up to their sight, but intimidated by the fire, he decides to involve the home cat and persuading him to” cavate the chestnuts from the fire “. The cat, Vanesio and led him from the compliments of the monkey, is convinced and risking” Thanks to the length of its claws.
From this fairy tale therefore derives a way of saying Which emphasizes the risk that you run in front of a possible reward obtained, without bothering much. An expression that has become so popular in others too European languages:
- In France they say Tirer Les Marrons du Feu
- The Spanish Sacar Las Castañas del Fuegor
- In Portugal Tirar as Castanhas do Fogo (com a mão do gato).
In other words, those who “remove the chestnuts from the fire” do not get their hands dirty: let others work and above all to risk, ready to collect only the fruits. It is not surprising that this image, so simple and widespread, has rooted in popular speech of multiple European languages.
