To emphasize that the atmosphere in any team depends on the personality and behavior of the leader, they say the phrase known to everyone: "The fish rots from the head." The proverb exists not only in Russian, but also in almost all languages of the world.
The origins of metaphor
There are several versions of the origin of this statement. Most often, he is attributed to the ancient Greek scientist and writer Plutarch, who lived at the end of the I – beginning of the II century of our era. Presumably, the expression "fish rots from the head", the meaning of which originally had a figurative meaning, is found in the voluminous work of the ancient philosopher "Comparative Biographies." In this work, Plutarch gave characteristics to the outstanding personalities of his time - Greek and Roman politicians, rulers and generals.
In studies conducted by foreign linguists, it is argued that the phrase "fish rots from the head" was first mentioned in the literature of the XVII century. According to Professor Wolfgang Mieder, author of The Meaning of Parables: From Traditional Wisdom to Notorious Stereotypes, the appearance of a saying that sounds literally like “the smell of rotting fish begins to spread from the head” dates back to 1674. The expression is mentioned in a treatise called the New England Travel Report. The medieval significance of the metaphor also had an allegorical interpretation: problems in a team of people united by some common cause arise through the fault of the bosses.
Is this statement true in terms of biology?
Having opened the school textbook of natural science, you can read that fish, like most living things, have a brain. This body, however, is very poorly developed, so the behavior of the cold-blooded inhabitants of rivers and seas is based on unconditioned reflexes. If you think about the literal meaning of the expression "the fish rots from the head", we can assume that the dead crucian or pike first begins to decompose the brain.
But this is far from the case. Any connoisseur of the anatomical structure of fish will say: putrefactive processes occur in the intestine, that is, in the part of the fish carcass populated by bacteria and microbes that enter the body with food. Indeed, stale fish is easily recognizable by the swollen abdomen and softened skin through which the rib bones are visible. Was the ancient Greek philosopher wrong, and medieval travelers were mistaken after him, claiming that the fish rots from the head?
Folk observations
Citizens who are used to buying fish in stores already gutted or freshly frozen may not know the way to determine the quality of this healthy product. Fishing enthusiasts and experienced housewives who prefer to buy carps and breams in the market know that the freshness of fish can be recognized long before the fish belly begins to swell.
To do this, just raise the gill covers and examine the respiratory system. Red and pinkish gills - evidence that the fish were caught no earlier than one or two days. The white, and even more so gray color of the gills indicates the staleness of the product. Often, from under the head covers of fish starting to deteriorate, you can catch a faint, but rather unpleasant odor.
Recall that in the writings of Plutarch and later variations the phrase “the fish rots from the head” sounds like “the fish starts to smell from above”. On the basis of this, the validity of this statement becomes apparent. We can safely say that there is no discrepancy between the literal and figurative meaning of the proverb.