In this cute little story, the wind and the sun compete with each other to see whose powers are greater.
This is a good article for understanding the use of the character 比 bǐ, because the character is used in multiple ways in this story.
First, this character is used when comparing one thing to another. In the story, we see the sentence, 我比你强！ or “I am stronger than you.” More literally, this translates to “I (我) compared to (比) you (你) am strong (强)！You can use 比 to compare all kinds of things. For example, here are 5 simple sentences using 比:
苹果比香蕉甜。Apples are sweeter than bananas.
哥哥比弟弟高。Older brother is taller than younger brother.
今天比昨天冷。Today is colder than yesterday.
猫比狗小。Cats are smaller than dogs.
中文比英文难。Chinese is harder than English.
You can also use the character 比 as a verb which means “to compete”. This makes a lot of sense if you think about it, because when you compete, you are essentially comparing one competitor’s skill to another competitor’s skill. In the story, we see the sentence, 我们来比一比吧。This means “let’s have a little competition!” Or, more literally:
我们 – We
来 – Come [on and]
比一比 – Compete a bit
吧 – (signals that the sentence is a suggestion)
We also see the character 比 in the last sentence as well – can you figure out what it means in that context?
Key vocab
太阳 – tài yáng – sun
强 – qiáng – strong
比 – bǐ – to compare
外套 – wài tào – coat
脱 – tuō – to take off
吹 – chuī – to blow
温暖 – wēn nuǎn – warm
力量 – lì liàng – strength
赢 – yíng – to win
风和太阳
很久以前，风和太阳是好朋友。有一天，他们开始聊天儿。
风说：”我比你强！我可以让大树都怕我。”太阳笑了笑，说：”我不这样想。我们来比一比吧。”
这时候，一个男人走在路上，他穿着一件很厚的外套。太阳说：”谁能让他把外套脱下来，谁就赢了。”
风说：”太容易了！”风开始用力地吹。但是风吹得越大，男人把外套穿得越紧。风吹了很久，最后累了，停下来了。
然后太阳出来了。太阳慢慢地、温暖地照在男人身上。男人觉得越来越热，他笑着把外套脱下来了。
风明白了：有时候，温暖比力量更有用。
The Wind and the Sun
Long ago, the wind and the sun were good friends. One day, they got to chatting.
The wind said: “I am stronger than you! I can make even big trees afraid of me.” The sun smiled and said: “I don’t think so. Let’s have a little competition.”
At that moment, a man was walking on the road, wearing a very thick coat. The sun said: “Whoever can make him take off his coat wins.”
The wind said: “Too easy!” The wind began to blow hard. But the harder the wind blew, the tighter the man held his coat. The wind blew for a long time and finally got tired and stopped.
Then the sun came out. The sun slowly and warmly shone on the man. The man felt hotter and hotter, and he smiled and took off his coat.
The wind understood: Sometimes, warmth is more useful than strength.