Achilles heel

Which is the weakest spot on our human body? Our eyes, throat, or feet? To Achilles, it was his heel which was the most vulnerable. 

In Greek mythology, Achilles was the greatest warrior. When he was an infant, his mother Thetis, a goddess of the sea, took him to the river Styx, which had miraculous powers. To make Achilles immortal, Thetis held him by his heel and dipped him into the river. Achilles grew up to be physically invulnerable to attacks except for his heel, which was not touched by the magic waters. 

The heroic Achilles won many battles. No one could defeat him until the Trojan War. He was killed by his enemy, the Trojan prince, who shot an arrow into his heel. 

The idiom " Achilles heel " is used to describe a weakness in a person or system which can bring about failure, despite overall strength. For example, 

He was good at Maths, but carelessness had always been his Achilles heel. 

If we can find our enemy's Achilles heel, we might be able to defeat them. 

我們人體最脆弱的部位在哪裡？我們的眼睛、喉嚨還是腳呢？對阿基里斯來說，他的腳踝就是最脆弱的部位。

在希臘神話中，阿基里斯是最偉大的戰士。當他是嬰兒的時候，他的母親、海洋女神特蒂斯，帶他到充滿非凡力量的冥河「斯堤克斯」去。為了使阿基里斯擁有不朽之身，特蒂斯抓住他的腳踝， 然後把他放入冥河裡浸泡。阿基里斯長大後，全身近乎刀槍不入，除了腳踝，因為腳踝不曾沾到神奇的河水。

英勇的阿基里斯戰勝了許多戰役。他直到特洛伊戰爭才被打敗。在這場戰爭中，他被敵人特洛伊王子用箭射中他的腳踝而死去。

「Achilles heel」這個習語用來形容一個人或制度雖然整體強大，其弱點卻足以導致一敗塗地。例如： 

他擅長數學，但是粗心大意總是他唯一的致命弱點（Achilles heel）。

如果我們能夠找到我們敵人的死穴（Achilles heel），我們或能打敗他們。

  
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