Research Article

"A Dog's Revenge" Comparative Viability of an Early Modern Verbal, Pictorial, and Dramatic Proverb

Number: 17 June 28, 2024
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"A Dog's Revenge" Comparative Viability of an Early Modern Verbal, Pictorial, and Dramatic Proverb

Abstract

This article presents a comparative study of three media modalities by which the proverb “a dog’s revenge” is presented in the sixteenth and seventeenth century Latin, German, and English contexts. A proverb can be briefly defined as a short pithy saying in general use. However, when one moves beyond a linguistic interpretation to an analysis of the material, these concise sayings that many people know and use assume an instability similar to aphorisms, sententia, maxims, dicta, or other short forms. By comparing the materials of the short proverbial saying “A dog’s revenge” in Erasmus’ Adages (1532), Mathius Holzwart’s emblem book Emblematum Tyrocinia (1581), and William Shakespeare’s seventeenth century drama, Cymbeline (1611), this article emphasizes the viability of the proverb beyond speech acts. Whether oral, graphic, pictorial, dramatic, or some other medium, focus on a proverb’s materiality shows that the life of a proverb is woven into its citationality in various media and materials, not just speech. Unpacking the tension between the signified meaning of proverbial speech and its material form also reveals the potential inviability, or death of the proverb through alternate uses, forgetfulness, or disuse.

Keywords

Ethical Statement

I report no conflict of interest or ethics issues with this article.

References

  1. Austin, John. How to Do Things With Words. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1962.
  2. Bath, Michael. Speaking Pictures: English Emblem Books and Renaissance Culture. New York: Longman, 1994.
  3. Black, Max. Models and Metaphors: Studies in Language and Philosophy. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1962.
  4. Butler, Judith. Bodies That Matter: On the Discursive Limits of Sex. New York: Routledge, 1993.
  5. Cave, Terence. The Cornucopian Text: Problems of Writing in the French Renaissance. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979.
  6. ———. Thinking with Literature: Towards a Cognitive Criticism. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016.
  7. Daly, Peter. Literature in the Light of the Emblem: Structural Parallels between the Emblem and Literature in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1998.
  8. Derrida, Jacque. “Limited, Inc.” Evanston: Northwestern University Press, 1988.

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Comparative and Transnational Literature

Journal Section

Research Article

Early Pub Date

June 28, 2024

Publication Date

June 28, 2024

Submission Date

March 30, 2024

Acceptance Date

May 10, 2024

Published in Issue

Year 2024 Number: 17

APA
Kısmet Bell, J. (2024). "A Dog’s Revenge" Comparative Viability of an Early Modern Verbal, Pictorial, and Dramatic Proverb. KARE Uluslararası Karşılaştırmalı Edebiyat Dergisi, 17, 45-58. https://doi.org/10.38060/kare.1461888
AMA
1.Kısmet Bell J. "A Dog’s Revenge" Comparative Viability of an Early Modern Verbal, Pictorial, and Dramatic Proverb. KARE Uluslararası Karşılaştırmalı Edebiyat Dergisi. 2024;(17):45-58. doi:10.38060/kare.1461888
Chicago
Kısmet Bell, Jameson. 2024. “‘A Dog’s Revenge’ Comparative Viability of an Early Modern Verbal, Pictorial, and Dramatic Proverb”. KARE Uluslararası Karşılaştırmalı Edebiyat Dergisi, nos. 17: 45-58. https://doi.org/10.38060/kare.1461888.
EndNote
Kısmet Bell J (June 1, 2024) "A Dog’s Revenge" Comparative Viability of an Early Modern Verbal, Pictorial, and Dramatic Proverb. KARE Uluslararası Karşılaştırmalı Edebiyat Dergisi 17 45–58.
IEEE
[1]J. Kısmet Bell, “‘A Dog’s Revenge’ Comparative Viability of an Early Modern Verbal, Pictorial, and Dramatic Proverb”, KARE Uluslararası Karşılaştırmalı Edebiyat Dergisi, no. 17, pp. 45–58, June 2024, doi: 10.38060/kare.1461888.
ISNAD
Kısmet Bell, Jameson. “‘A Dog’s Revenge’ Comparative Viability of an Early Modern Verbal, Pictorial, and Dramatic Proverb”. KARE Uluslararası Karşılaştırmalı Edebiyat Dergisi. 17 (June 1, 2024): 45-58. https://doi.org/10.38060/kare.1461888.
JAMA
1.Kısmet Bell J. "A Dog’s Revenge" Comparative Viability of an Early Modern Verbal, Pictorial, and Dramatic Proverb. KARE Uluslararası Karşılaştırmalı Edebiyat Dergisi. 2024;:45–58.
MLA
Kısmet Bell, Jameson. “‘A Dog’s Revenge’ Comparative Viability of an Early Modern Verbal, Pictorial, and Dramatic Proverb”. KARE Uluslararası Karşılaştırmalı Edebiyat Dergisi, no. 17, June 2024, pp. 45-58, doi:10.38060/kare.1461888.
Vancouver
1.Jameson Kısmet Bell. "A Dog’s Revenge" Comparative Viability of an Early Modern Verbal, Pictorial, and Dramatic Proverb. KARE Uluslararası Karşılaştırmalı Edebiyat Dergisi. 2024 Jun. 1;(17):45-58. doi:10.38060/kare.1461888

 

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