生当作人杰

生當作人傑
shēng dāng zuò rénjié
quotation

Meanings

  1. 1 in life one should be a hero among men
  2. 2 Li Qingzhao's iron-jawed line - refusing to live or die as a coward

Examples

HSK 7-9
Tā yǐ " shēng dāng zuò rénjié " jīlì zìjǐ, tóushēn gōngyì shìyè.
He pushed himself with 'in life one should be a hero among men' and threw himself into charity work.
HSK 7-9
Lǐ Qīngzhào yí jù " shēng dāng zuò rénjié ", bǐ duōshǎo nánzǐ de shī gèng yǒu qìgài.
Li Qingzhao's line 'in life one should be a hero among men' has more spine than many a male poet's verse.

Tips

history
Opening of 《夏日绝句》 by 李清照 (Li Qingzhao, Song dynasty): 生当作人杰,死亦为鬼雄。至今思项羽,不肯过江东. A biting rebuke of the Song court fleeing south - written as the empire was collapsing, praising 项羽 (Xiang Yu) for choosing death over flight.
usage
人杰 = 'hero among men / outstanding person,' still a productive word today (e.g. 人杰地灵).

Stroke Order

生 shēng
当 dāng
作 zuò
人 rén
杰 jié