Apothegm

Apothegm (a’-po-th-e-gem): One of several terms describing short, pithy sayings. Others include adage, gnome, maxim, paroemia, proverb, and sententia.

“If you have a jar, you have a lid.” For hundreds of years this saying has been used in Belgium to catch criminals. It is like the American saying: “Where there’s smoke there’s fire.” The “smoke” might be a robber’s loot. The “fire” may be the robbery. It is all complex and deeply enmeshed in drawing inferences. Instead of simply asking, “Where did you get that?” The saying projects a sophisticated nuance that dazzles the perpetrator, keeping them from fleeing while they try to figure out what you mean.

Sayings have been used to great effect over the course of human history. In fact, they have been around since prehistoric times. There is a cave painting in France that depicts a cave person talking a bite out of a roasted hairy mammoth. Clearly, it is telling us “Don’t bite off more than you can chew.” This sage advice reaches through eons to affect our decision-making in the 21st Century. How many times have you employed it to keep from overdoing something—like cooking dinner and doing the laundry at the same time. Don’t bite off more than you can chew! Remember that the next time you agree to take care of your brother’s pet bird when he goes on vacation!

What about “In the valley of the blind the one-eyed man is king”?

This saying is highly insulting and perpetuates disparaging myths about seeing-impaired people. It goes hand-in-hand with Nietzsche’s unremitting belief that only Superman is equipped to control the world by bragging about how about great he is with his two eyes and hands and arms and legs and feet. Bah!

People with one eye have achieved success in life, even to the point of being portrayed on playing cards as the “One-Eyed Jack.” One-eyed people can excel in almost all walks of life. Although they respect them, they don’t need blind people to promote their interests.

Anyway, what about “Visitors and fish stink after 3 days?” This was coined by Simon, one of Jesus’ fishing buddies. Some say he had Judas in mind. Anyway, like a lot of things he did and said, Ben Franklin stole this saying, attributing it to himself in his book “Big Ben’s Wise Sayings.” Alas, the stinking fish allusion has become an anomaly with the advent of refrigeration. However, it is still possible to catch a whiff from canned cat food, sardines and pickled herring. Also, the advent of Air B&B has trashed the three day rule, with hosts allowing unlimited sojourns in their dwellings. This shows there is nothing timeless about sayings—the human condition, like everything else, changes.

I’ve never been able to “See the forest for the trees.” I just don’t think you can “see” a forest, except maybe from an airplane or helicopter. That said, I’m going to fade away—back into oblivion where some mode of public transportation will carry me home where my heart is.

Definition courtesy of “Silva Rhetoricae” (rhetoric.byu.edu)

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