FOR ENGLISH PERIOD

1. Presented by S.SANJEEV

3. a) What are proverbs?
b) Definition of a proverb.
c) Sources of a proverb.
d) Interpretations of proverb.
e) Features of a proverb.
f) Conservative language of a proverb.
g) Use of a proverb.
h) Variations of proverbs.
i) Examples of a proverb.

4.  Proverb is a short memorable phrase that
gives advice about life.
 Proverbs can contain traditional beliefs about
life.

5. Lord john russel observed poetically that a
"proverb is the wit of one, and the wisdom of
many."But giving the word "proverb" the sort of
definition theorists need has proven to be a
difficult task, and although scholars often
quote Archer Taylor's argument that
formulating a scientific "definition of a
proverb is too difficult to repay the
undertaking... An incommunicable quality
tells us this sentence is proverbial and that
one is not.

6. Proverbs come from a variety of sources. Some
are, indeed, the result of people pondering
and crafting language, such as some
by Confucius, Plato, Baltasar Gracián,
etc. Others are taken from such diverse
sources as poetry, stories, songs,
commercials, advertisements, movies,
literature, etc.

7. Interpreting proverbs is often complex, but is
best done in a context. Interpreting proverbs
from other cultures is much more difficult
than interpreting proverbs in one's own
culture. Even within English-speaking
cultures, there is difference of opinion on
how to interpret the proverb.

8. Proverbs in various languages are found with a
wide variety of grammatical structures.

9.  Imperative, negative - Don't beat a dead
horse.
 Imperative, positive - If the shoe fits, wear
it!
 Parallel phrases - Garbage in, garbage out.
 Rhetorical question - Is the Pope Catholic?
 Declarative sentence - Birds of a feather
flock together.

10. Because many proverbs are both poetic and
traditional, they are often passed down in
fixed forms. Though spoken language may
change, many proverbs are often preserved
in conservative, even archaic, form. In
English, for example, "betwixt" is not used by
many, but a form of it is still heard (or read)
in the proverb "There is many a slip 'twixt
the cup and the lip."

11.  In conversation
 Proverbs are used in conversation by adults
more than children, partially because adults
have learned more proverbs than children.
Also, using proverbs well is a skill that is
developed over years. Additionally, children
have not mastered the patterns of
metaphorical expression that are invoked in
proverb use.

12.  In literature
 Created proverb from J. R. R. Tolkien’s Lord
of the Rings on a bumper sticker.
 Many authors have used proverbs in their
writings, for a very wide variety of literary
genres: epics novels , poems,short stories.

13.  Counter proverbs
 There are often proverbs that contradict
each other, such as "Look before you leap"
and "He who hesitates is lost", or "Many
hands make light work" and "Too many cooks
spoil the broth".

14.  Metaproverbs
 In many cultures, proverbs are so important
and so prominent that there are proverbs
about proverbs, that is, "metaproverbs". The
most famous one is from Yoruba of Nigeria,
"Proverbs are the horses of speech, if
communication is lost we use proverbs to
find it", used by Wole Soyinka in Death and
the King's Horsemen.