- What use does society give to the saying?
- 1- It is useful to know the culture of a people
- 2- Use in literature
- 3- Use in everyday conversations
- 4- It serves to win discussions
- References
A saying serves to transmit knowledge with metaphors and expressiveness, to express some principles and wisdoms that are transmitted from generation to generation.
A saying can be marked as a written or spoken expression of the language that is easily remembered for its meaning or structure.
Usually, the saying is a short, well-known sentence that contains wisdom, truth, morals, and traditional values. These values are expressed in a metaphorical, fixed and memorizable way and passed from generation to generation.
The same words are always used, and they seem to be simple and obvious when we hear them.
They increase effective communication in daily speech, in political speeches, also in the mass media, and in literature.
What use does society give to the saying?
1- It is useful to know the culture of a people
The culture of a particular place is reflected in the sayings; customs, religion and traditions are implicit in them.
Since ancient times, human beings used these metaphors to share their experiences and wisdom.
They were born from practical cases that were developed according to the environment and culture of each place, and examples of common contexts such as livestock, agriculture, family or home were used.
For example, some sayings such as: "A gift horse, you don't look at your teeth", "Every day a grain put, and you will do a lot", denote rural life.
Many times, they were mutating until today they cannot be understood literally, nor even glimpse their origin, such as the sayings: "There is no your aunt" or "Viva la Pepa".
Sayings are still being created today as formulas to express new social and human visions.
2- Use in literature
As a literary effect, some authors twist or intertwine sayings to create anti-sayings and, in this way, add literary figures to their works.
Although sayings have also emerged from literature. The Bible is a huge source of popular sayings, among which we can name "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth," "Every tree is known by its fruit," "No one is a prophet in her land."
Other authors have created phrases that later became popular, such as "He who reads a lot and walks a lot, sees a lot and knows a lot", by Miguel de Cervantes.
3- Use in everyday conversations
It is used to teach and educate. They have a didactic role and contain expert advice for readers, how they should do something when they have a difficulty. Being easy to memorize, teaching is incorporated into life:
Among the teachings he leaves behind, wisdom and sagacity are the most widespread among ordinary people. Usually the sayings are metaphorical and indirect, to express the message in a less harsh way.
4- It serves to win discussions
This happens because the sayings are so familiar that they often have audience acceptance without question or criticism, just naming them is enough argument.
References
- Wolfang Mieder. (2009). The Nature Of Proverbs. 10/07/2017, from Forbes Website: forbes.com
- LiteraryDevices Editors. (2013). Proverb. Retrieved 10/7/2017, from Literary Devices web: literarydevices.net
- Frank J. D'Angelo College Composition and Communication Vol. 28, No. 4 (Dec., 1977), pp. 365-369 Published by: National Council of Teachers of Englishjstor.org
- Editor. (2011). Proverbs. 10/07/2017, from Grammar World Website: grammar-world.com
- Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. (2013). Proverb. 10/07/2017, from Encyclopædia Britannica Website: britannica.com.