Worth a Thousand Words Cultural, Literary, and Political Proverb Studies
Produktdetaljer
Biografisk notat
Wolfgang Mieder is university distinguished professor emeritus of German and folklore at University of Vermont. He has published well over one hundred books, including Behold the Proverbs of a People: Proverbial Wisdom in Culture, Literature, and Politics, published by University Press of Mississippi, and is the leading expert on proverbs in the world. He is the founding editor of Proverbium: Yearbook of International Proverb Scholarship."Proverbially, it is a picture that traditionally is ‘worth a thousand words,’ but in these powerful studies, it is eminent folklorist Wolfgang Mieder’s profound insights, riveting writing, and deep wisdom that merit innumerable accolades. Indeed, this book is his ‘timely deed that is worth ten thousand words.’ It builds nicely on the expansive foundation of previous collections, and choice ideas, to an understanding of everyday speech and its special significance for the way that people think and act. This set of essays connected well under the memorable linkage of words and worth may be his most original and varied to date. The reflective sage that he is, Mieder’s words here might also be his most relevant to issues political and cultural facing people around the world today." - Simon J. Bronner, author of <i>The Practice of Folklore: Essays toward a Theory of Tradition</i>
Within these sections, a wide array of proverbs and the topics they express are addressed and shown to still be relevant to the political and cultural landscape of today. Worth a Thousand Words discusses the global spread of American proverbs and the reliance of proverbs in politics and everyday life in America and internationally. It also examines proverbs in literature such as Don Quixote and Destined to Witness, as well as proverbs in fairy tales.
Proving the pen is mightier than the sword, Mieder’s book demonstrates the ubiquity of proverbs. By recognizing and documenting the proverbial linguistic patterns of our culture, people, and systems, Mieder shows us how creative language serves as the guideposts for a free and idealistic world for ages past and ages to come.