Parables and Proverbs
PARABLES AND PROVERBS. Proverbs are brief, memorable sayings that offer ethical direction in specific situations from generation to generation. They are a feature of almost all cultures, historically, as well as today. The proverb is tailor-made for primary oral cultures where, with no system of inscription, what cannot be remembered is lost, but even in contemporary literary cultures new sayings continue to be coined. A parable is a more expansive cousin to the proverb. It is a short narrative fiction that expresses a moral or religious lesson. Like the proverb, parables are memorable and inspire listener participation: applying the parable to situations in one's daily life.
Key Features of Proverbs
Proverbs arise out of the experience and observation of repeated patterns in daily life. A famous definition attributed to Miguel de Cervantes holds that "a proverb is a short sentence founded upon long experience." Proverbs are useful in contexts outside of their time and place of origin, most often serving to inculcate traditional values of self-control, hard work, and cautious speech. They are, however, also capable of subverting traditional wisdom. A proverb which, though of rather recent coinage, reflects traditional values, "Life is short, play hard," is subverted by "Life is short, pray hard."
A key quality of a proverb is that it is able to transcend the situation of its origins to illuminate situations in the lives of contemporary hearers.
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