The excerpt from the high school textbook "Encouraging Learning" by Xunzi is as follows:

The gentleman said: You can't stop learning.

Green, derived from blue, and green from blue; ice, derived from water, and cold from water. The wood is straight and the rope is in the middle, and the róu is like a wheel, and its bend is regular. Although there is (yòu) violence (pù), those who no longer stand up are those who make it happen. Therefore, if wood is supported by a rope, it will be straight; if metal is sharpened, it will be beneficial; if a gentleman is knowledgeable and examines himself every day, he will know how to act without making mistakes.

I think about it all day long, but it is not as good as what I learned in a moment. It is better for me to stand on my knees and look forward, than to get a better view by climbing high. When you climb high and make moves, your arms are not lengthened, but the sight is far away; when you call along the wind, the sound is not faster, but the sound is louder. A fake horse can travel thousands of miles without benefiting from its feet; a fake boat can run a thousand miles without benefiting from the water. A gentleman's birth (xìng) is not different, he is good at pretending to things.

When soil accumulates, mountains are formed, and wind and rain flourish; when water accumulates, abyss is formed, and dragons are born; when good deeds are accumulated, virtue is formed, and the gods are satisfied with themselves, and the holy mind is prepared. Therefore, if you do not accumulate steps, you cannot reach a thousand miles; if you do not accumulate small streams, you cannot reach a river or sea. A horse can't take ten steps with one leap; a horse can ride ten times, but it's hard to give up. If you persevere, the rotten wood will not be broken; if you persevere, the metal and stone can be carved. Earthworms don't have sharp claws and teeth, nor strong muscles and bones. They eat earth and drink from the underworld. They have the same intention. A crab with six knees and two pincers is not a snake and eel that has nothing to rely on in its cave, so it means it is impatient.

Translation:

The gentleman said: Learning can never stop.

Indigo is extracted from indigo, but it is darker than indigo; ice is made of water, but it is colder than water. If the wood is straight enough to fit the straightened ink line, and it is bent into a wheel using the craftsmanship, the curvature of the wood will conform to the standard of a circle. Even if it is dried up by the wind and sun, the wood will still be It will no longer be straight because it has been processed to make it that way.

So wood can be straightened after being measured with an ink line and processed with auxiliary tools. Swords and other metal products can become sharp after being ground on a whetstone. A gentleman studies extensively and checks and reflects on himself every day. Then he will be wise and resourceful, and his actions will not be faulty.

I used to think all day long, (but) it was not as good as the knowledge (as much) I learned in a moment; I once stood on tiptoe and looked far away, (but) (but) it was not as broad as climbing to a high place to see. When you reach a high place and wave, your arms are not longer than before, but others can see you from a distance; when you call along the wind, your voice does not become louder, but the listeners can hear you clearly.

Those who use carts and horses are not good at walking, but they can reach thousands of miles away. People who use boats are not good at swimming, but they can cross the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers. A gentleman's qualifications and temperament are no different from those of ordinary people, (it's just that a gentleman is good at using external things).

When earth and rocks are piled up, they become high mountains, and wind and rain rise from here; when water flows together, they become abyss, and dragons are born from here; by accumulating good deeds and cultivating noble character, your mind will naturally become clear, and you will have The spiritual realm of the saint. Therefore, without accumulating one and a half steps, there is no way to reach a thousand miles; without accumulating small flows, there is no way to form rivers and seas.

A good horse can only take ten steps when it leaps; a bad horse can go far in a carriage for ten days (it can also go very far). Its success lies in keeping moving. (If) you stop after carving a few times, (then) the rotten wood will continue to carve. (If) you keep carving, (then) you can carve gold and stone successfully.

Earthworms do not have sharp claws and teeth, but they have strong muscles and bones, but they can eat soil upwards and drink spring water downwards. This is because they are single-minded. A crab has six legs and two claws. If there are no caves for snakes or eels, it will have nowhere to hide. This is because it has impetuous intentions.

Extended information:

Xunzi was a native of Zhao during the Warring States Period. He was a famous thinker, educator, and the third generation inheritor of Confucianism. He was known as "Confucius, Mencius, and Xunzi" in the world. . The "evil nature theory" advocated by Xunzi and the "good nature theory" advocated by Mencius formed the two major schools of Confucian mind theory.

"Encouraging Learning" is the opening chapter of the thirty-two chapters of "Xunzi". "Encouragement" means encouragement. This article takes "you can't stop learning" as the central argument, comprehensively and profoundly explains the importance of hard work and learning, and points out that learning requires perseverance, long-term accumulation, concentration, and no other concerns.

In the reasoning text, the clever use of a large number of metaphors is another outstanding feature of "Encouraging Learning".

As at the beginning, the author first uses the two metaphors of "green comes from blue" and "cold comes from water" to illustrate that acquired influence can change the nature of things and make them develop. Next, another metaphor is proposed: the straight wood in the middle of the rope has been transformed into a wheel with "just the right curve"; even if it is dried and withered, it will never return to its "straight" state.

This shows that acquired influence plays a decisive role in changing the nature of things. This takes the elaboration of the principle one step forward, and then uses the two metaphors of "wood will be straightened by ropes" and "gold will be benefited by sharpening" to draw the conclusion of the importance of "be knowledgeable and reflect on yourself every day".

Sometimes the author uses the method of contrast to organize two opposite situations together to form a sharp contrast. For example, when emphasizing the need for perseverance and concentration in learning, not only some parallel metaphors are used, but also many opposite and complementary metaphors are used.

He listed "a galloping horse can't take ten steps in one leap" and "a horse can drive ten times, but the merit lies in perseverance"; "if you persevere, the rotten wood will not break" and "if you persevere, you can carve gold and stone." ; And earthworms with "no claws and strong muscles and bones" can come and go freely in the ground, while crabs with "six knees and two pincers" cannot even dig a small hole to stay. This shows that the effects of "accumulation" and "non-accumulation" are completely opposite. In Xunzi's philosophical thought, the word "accumulation" is an important point.

Xunzi's writing method of using metaphors to reason is also rare in the prose of other pre-Qin scholars. It should be said that this is his original creation. Xu Zhongyu and Jin Qihua commented in "Selected Ancient Chinese Literary Works": In terms of language use, the article uses both long and short sentences, parallel lines between sentences, well-proportioned and well-proportioned, and is catchy to read and rich in musical rhythm.

Reference material: Baidu Encyclopedia-Encouraging Learning