Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs, Editor’s Preface

\ \ \ \ The fifth edition of the Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs represents the latest stage in Oxford University Press’s coverage of proverbs and reflects the changes that have taken place in the quarter-century since the Concise Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs first appeared. The Concise itself grew out of the monumental Oxford Dictionary of English Proverbs, first published in 1935 and substantially revised by F. P. Wilson in 1970. A massive work of historical scholarship, the Oxford Dictionary of English Proverbs cast its net over the corpus of English literature and brought together a rich haul of metaphor, idiom, and proverb from all stages of the language. From the outset, however, the Concise was intended to fulfil a different need from the larger volume, in its focus on contemporary usage and on what the late twentieth-century English-speaker regarded as a proverb—as John Simpson explains in his Introduction. It is this conception that underlies the present dictionary.

\ \ \ \ Research for the Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs has shown that the proverb in Britain and North America is as vital and varied as ever. The resources of the Internet play an increasing role, not least in providing evidence for the continued currency of an appreciable number of older proverbs for which previous editions had offered no citations dating later than the nineteenth century. Over forty additional proverbs have been included in this edition, many of them from African, Middle Eastern, and Far Eastern traditions. Some of these are apparently modern coinages; others have venerable roots but have recently been revived.

\ \ \ \ For this edition some citations of older proverbs have been deleted, but material showing different forms of the proverb has been retained. Some proverbs settle quickly to a standard form; others seem to be more susceptible of variation, and by citing variants it is possible to trace their evolution. The notes on the individual proverbs draw attention to such points of interest.

\ \ \ \ Proverb usage once again shows itself an index of linguistic and social change. Whereas many older proverbs use ‘man’ for the human subject, modern users often attempt to avoid such non-inclusive language, preferring ‘someone’ or ‘a person’. While examples of up-to-date usage have been found for nearly four hundred of the proverbs in this book, it seems clear that other proverbs are starting to undergo obsolescence by reason of social change. Expressions of the received wisdom of a patriarchal agrarian society that organized itself according to the rhythms of the seasons and the Church’s calendar become antiquarian oddities in a modern environment. Thus a woman, a dog, and a walnut tree, the more you beat them the better they be offends a slew of twenty-first-century sensibilities, while Candlemas day, put beans in the clay has little to say to an urban secular society.

\ \ \ \ On the other hand, recent pithy expressions of universal predicaments (when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail) or general truths (justice delayed is justice denied) demonstrate a good proverb’s ability to circulate, thrive, and evolve in a variety of contexts. Cartoonists and humorists can assume the easy familiarity of their audience with proverbs, as is shown by recent examples of the opera isn’t over till the fat lady sings and two heads are better than one. Although proverbs may be used as clichés by the linguistically lazy, very frequently they are used in contexts that show the user’s often sophisticated awareness of their resonance.

\ \ \ \ Over the years many people have been kind enough to demonstrate their interest in this work by drawing my attention to proverbs or discussing them with me. Others, notably William F. Deeck, have provided invaluable citations. I thank them all for their involvement and encouragement.

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\ Jennifer Speake

\ Oxford

\ December 2007