wittiness of proverbs

[Charles Doyle]

Yes. Remember: The essence of proverbs is memorability. So they make ample use of all the devices of poetry itself (rhyme, alliteration, meter, imagery, irony, witty turns of phrase). In fact, we might regard a proverb as a minimal folk poem.

--Charlie
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---- Original message ----
>Date: Wed, 28 Nov 2007 14:04:56 -0500
>From: "Baker, John" <JMB at STRADLEY.COM>
>
>        Some are.  Consider:
>
>                Marry in haste, repent at leisure.  (Unusual use of "leisure.")
>                Many a mickle maks a muckle.  (Unusual words.  I understand that "mickle" is misused in the proverb and actually is a synonym of "muckle.")
>                Handsome is as handsome does.  (I started to say, "Adjective used as noun," but I'm not really sure what's going on here. Anyway, unusual use of "handsome.")
>                Promises, like pie-crust, are made to be broken. (Different senses of "broken.")
>
>        And, of course, many proverbs rely on rhyme or alliteration for their effect (see Ron's examples).
>
>John Baker
>
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On Behalf
>Of RonButters at AOL.COM
>
>Are proverbs generally witty in this way? A stitch in time saves nine?
>Rolling stones gather no moss? It takes two to tango?
>
>
>In a message dated 11/28/07 11:06:33 AM, cdoyle at UGA.EDU writes:
>
>
>> Paremiologishly speaking, I'd say part of the wit of the proverb "You can't unring a bell" consists in the rarity (if not, indeed, the presumed nonexistence) of "unring" as a word.
>>
>> --Charlie

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