posted by murrayjames on February 14, 2014 | 4 comments
Hi guys!I came across 阴魂不散 and 百足之虫死而不僵 lately. Both appear to have the meaning of an (evil) influence/group carrying on after its leader is dead.Is there a difference between these two expressions?
Hi Murrayjames, from what I understand, this is the difference between the two expressions.
The expression "阴魂不散" comes from the notion of a deceased person whose soul for whatever reason, remains in this world instead of moving on the the next one. Therefore, you can use the expression as a metaphor for someone with whom you no longer have any contact, but whose influence in your life is still present.
你们已经分手了！她怎么还是阴魂不散呢？
On the other hand, “百足之虫，死而不僵” refers to how a centipede's legs will keep moving for a while even after it dies, and can be used as a metaphor for instituions that don't die easily or that are difficult to erradicate. For example, you could use it in reference to how the influence of Confucianism on Chinese society survives, even after the Cultural Revolution, 破四旧, etc.
泡泡中文老师们，is there anything I've missed?
@华金,Nice post. I'd never actually heard 百足之虫，死而不僵 before. Thanks for the explanation.--david
@David, Thanks!That's what I understand anyway. I'd sure welcome anyone else's insight in case there's some connotations or undertones that I've missed!
@华金，Great explanation for 阴魂不散. It can be used as a metaphor to describe old problems or bad systems or thoughts just don't go away easily. i.e.在非洲，奴隶制度仍旧阴魂不散。As for 百足之虫，死而不僵. It's commonly used as a negative expression - People or Groups who used to have money or power have been taken down, but their influence and prestige still stand for a long time. 比喻某人或集团虽然失势了，但仍存在一定的气势和能量。