Hotdogs & Dogsands; Ice Cider

Andrew J. Moody amoody at ASU.AASA.AC.JP
Thu Apr 20 09:50:03 UTC 2000


At 5:23 AM -0400 00.4.20, Bapopik at AOL.COM wrote:
> FLEA'S HEART
>
>    The Japan Times, 19 April 2000, pg. 21, col. 2:
>
>    A heavyset man weighing more than 100 kg, (new Prime Minister Yoshiro--ed.)
>Mori is reputed to have a "flea's heart"--a reference to his indecisiveness.
>
>    Flea's heart?  Yes, a flea is small, but isn't the heart in proportion?  Is
>"flea's heart" a popular proverb in Japan or elsewhere?

>From the Japanese expression "nomi no shinjou" [a flea's heart]. Someone who
has a flea's heart is thought to be afraid to take action because, after
all, a flea's heart must be small.
Andrew J. Moody
Associate Professor of Linguistics
Aichi Shukutoku Univeristy, Japan



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