A disciple asked Confucius for the meaning of the following verse:
Her coquettish smiles,
How dimpling they are;
Her beautiful eyes,
How beaming they are;
O fairest is she,
Who is simple and plain.
"In painting," answered Confucius,"ornamentation and colour are matters of secondary importance conpared with the groundwork."
"Then art itself," said the disciple, "is a matter of 'secondary' consideration?"
"My friend," replied Confucius,"You have given me an idea.Now I can talk of poetry with you."
中文：子夏问曰：“ ‘巧笑倩兮，美目盼兮，素以为绚兮。’何谓也？” 子曰：“绘事后素。” 曰：“礼后乎？” 子曰：“起予者商也！” 始可与言《诗》已矣。”
注释：一位学生问孔子下面这些诗句的意思：
她迷人的笑容，
酒窝浅浅；
她美丽的眼睛，
欢悦扑闪；
噢，她是最美的，
朴素而简单。
“在绘画中，”孔子回答说，“与它的本质相比，装饰和色彩是次要的。”
“那么，艺术本身，”这位学生说，“也是个应被看做‘次要’的东西吧？”
“我的朋友，” 孔子回答说，“你启发了我。现在我可以和你谈论诗了。”
