When we hear from someone a well-aimed expression that coincides with our feelings or opinions, we say: “Not in the eyebrow, but in the eye!” The meaning of the last stable phrase will be analyzed today.
The legend of the good Ivan the Terrible
The most interesting thing about this question is where the expression came from. There are two theories: one tells of the good Ivan the Terrible, the other is based on the figurative perception of the world.
In the time of Ivan the Terrible, the Cossacks had the so-called second ration, which was received by the wives of the soldiers. Among the warriors there was such a legend about his origin. The Cossacks owe an additional salary to one young man, whose name history, unfortunately, has not been preserved, but his feat is not forgotten by descendants. According to legend, the Cossack struck the evil Tartar with his arrow, but hit him not in the eye, but in the eyebrow. The battle was won, and the Cossack became a hero. But not only was he not happy, but, on the contrary, was afraid, because the warrior promised his king that he would get into the enemy’s eye, but instead only an eyebrow was struck. Knowing the severe nature of Ivan Vasilyevich, these fears were not in vain ... But the tsar behaved nobly and awarded the second ration not only to the wife of this Cossack, but also to all Cossack wives.
The target and its center as an “eye”
Another hypothesis of the origin of the expression "not in the eyebrow, but in the eye", the meaning of which we are figuring out, is also associated with a bow and arrow, but in a more specific sense. The reader, hopefully, has ever seen a target, if not, then take a look at the photo above. So, the brow will be that circular line that frames the center of the target, and its “eye” is the bull’s eye. Accordingly, the meaning of phraseology “not an eyebrow, but an eye” can be conveyed to one of Ace Ventura’s favorite phrases: “Directly to the bull's eye!” This hypothesis is not only more realistic, but also more elegant. In order to believe in the good Ivan the Terrible, you must try, but to imagine the target and its center in the form of an eye and an eyebrow - the task is relatively simple.
Time makes direct meanings portable
Only reenactors, lovers of antiquity and athletes can boast that they shoot from the bow, while the rest have to be content with the figurative meaning "not in the eyebrow, but in the eye." The expression is recalled almost automatically when a person hears a well-defined characteristic. For example, the sentence "Love is sacrifice ..." is unlikely to cause a storm of emotions. But Ernest Hemingway’s aphorism “Physiology is always a trap” is quite suitable for exclamation. However, this is a matter of taste, much depends on value orientations and the level of cultural development. Life is charming in that it is diverse. The last maxim does not claim to be a revelation. Our task is to consider the expression “not in the eyebrow, but in the eye”, meaning and origin, and the reader’s business is to have this knowledge at one’s discretion.