explicit and implied comparisons (literary devices in the Classic of Poetry)
Technical term from classical Chinese poetics, referring to the rhetorical techniques of 比 (explicit comparison) and 興 (implied comparison or evocative imagery) as used in the Shijing. Extremely rare in modern Japanese outside of scholarly contexts.
noun, nari-adjective (archaic / formal)
interesting; strange; unreasonable; lowly; cowardly
Archaic adjective (nari) with a range of negative or pejorative meanings, including 'strange', 'unreasonable', 'insignificant', and 'cowardly'. The exact sense depends on context and is now obsolete; modern equivalents vary by meaning (e.g., 面白い, 変だ, 理不尽だ, 卑しい, 卑怯だ).
In commentaries on the Classic of Poetry, the concept of 比興 is often discussed.
古い文献に「比興なる振る舞い」とあるが、現代では通じない。
Old texts contain phrases like 比興なる振る舞い, but it is not understood today.
From Chinese 比興 (bǐxìng), a term in classical Chinese literary criticism referring to two of the six principles of the Shijing. The archaic Japanese adjective usage likely developed from an extended or figurative application of the term, but the exact derivation is uncertain.