Bøger af Wolfgang Mieder

Proverbs, though anonymous, speak with great authority, and politicians from classical to modern times have deployed them effectively in their rhetoric. In looking at political proverbs in the twentieth century, Wolfgang Mieder--the leading expert on proverbs today--offers proof of the power of these bits of borrowed wisdom to serve any master or any purpose, for good or ill. Mieder first singles out Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf, in which the Führer used proverbs to advocate the deadly goals of Nazism. Pitted against Hitler's rhetoric is that of Winston Churchill, who was, Mieder demonstrates, as gifted with the proverb as any leader in this century. He moves next to America and Harry S. Truman, whose proverbial plain English won him the trust of the people. The politics of the Cold War made ample use of proverbs as well, a trend Mieder illustrates through cartoons and caricatures of the time. He also traces the origin, history, meaning, and use of two proverbial slurs, one against Native Americans ("The only good Indian is a dead Indian") and the other against Asian Americans ("No tickee, no washee.") The Politics of Proverbs offers a historical view, but also shows that new proverbs are continually coined and passed into common parlance, and old proverbs are updated to suit modern situations. Mieder's lively and instructive examples show how anyone, whether on the political grandstand or the back porch, can exploit the supposed wisdom of proverbs to justify his or her opinions and actions. By exposing the use and function of the proverb in political rhetoric, this book alerts readers to the possibilities and dangers--and the expressive power--of these not so quaint sayings.

The book is based on eight thousand pages of former President John F. Kennedy's printed communications, including his books, innumerable speeches, addresses, press conferences, debates, and letters. The first part is dedicated to detailed interpretations of the use, function, and meaning of the many proverbs, proverbial expressions, sententious remarks, and other formulaic language. Themes include: Kennedy's concern for appropriate language and elevated style; his visionary inaugural address, which was based to a large degree on formulaic language; his frequent employment of wisdom from the Old and New Testaments; his use of folk proverbs in the call for justice, freedom, and peace; his interest in animal metaphors to reflect human behavior; and his maritime expressions as indicators of life's ebb and flow. The second part of the book provides a comprehensive index of the many passages that include sententious and proverbial references, listed in their verbal contexts. Overall this study shows that John F. Kennedy was indeed a highly gifted communicator on the national and international stage, whose effective political discourse was informed to a considerable degree by proverbial language. The title proverb of this book - "A rising tide lifts all the boats" - was one of his favorites, and might well serve as a fitting symbol of his uplifting optimism in his struggle for freedom and peace throughout the world.

Dictionary of Authentic American Proverbs offers a comprehensive reference guide for distinctly American proverbs. Compiled by Wolfgang Mieder, a key figure in the field of proverb studies, this compendium features nearly 1,500 proverbs with American origins, spanning the 17th century to present day, including a scholarly introduction exploring the history of proverbs in America, the structure and variants of these proverbs, known authors and sources, and cultural values expressed in these proverbs. Along with a comprehensive bibliography of proverb collections and interpretive scholarship, this dictionary offers a glimpse into the history of American social and cultural attitudes through uniquely American language.

This book is the first comparative study of English, German, French, Russian and Hungarian anti-proverbs based on well-known proverbs. While anti-proverbs can be considered as variants of older proverbs, they can also become new proverbs reflecting a more modern worldview.

This is the first study of authentic modern American proverbs without including proverbs of British origin. It discusses the origin, nature, and meaning of modern American proverbs based on about 1500 texts.

"Right Makes Might" is a collection of recent essays on historical and contemporary use of proverbs by American politicians, the American worldview, and American politics by globally recognized folklorist, Wolfgang Mieder.

The thirteen chapters of this book comprise an intriguing and informative entry into the world of proverb scholarship, illustrating that proverbs have always been and continue to be wisdom's international currency. Scholar Wolfgang Mieder shows that proverbs matter in culture, literature, and politics, and remain part and parcel of oral and written communication.

Martin Luther King distinguished himself as one of the greatest social reformers of modern times. His many verbal and written communications in the form of sermons, speeches, interviews, letters, essays, and several books are replete with Bible proverbs as Love your enemies, and He who lives by the sword shall perish by the sword.

"First published in 1987 by University Press of New England"--Title page verso.

An international bibliography that registers 10,000 paremiological and phraseological publications from around the world that have appeared during the past two centuries. It covers fields such as anthropology, art history, communication, cultural studies, ethnography, folklore, gender studies, history, linguistics, literature and philology.

This book tells the story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton's and Susan B. Anthony's lives and work by way of enlightening proverbial paragraphs dealing with women's rights.

Comprises a survey of the multifaceted nature of proverbs as colorful expressions of folk wisdom. This book deals with the definition and classification of proverbs, including such matters as proverb markers and meanings, origin and dissemination, traditional forms related to proverbs, and types of proverb collections.

From sales pitch to propagandistic tool, the author looks at how we adapt proverbs to change social attitudes - the original wording of proverbs changes to fit modern advertising slogans or political rhetoric and late medieval woodcuts illustrating proverbs to find their modern equivalents in political cartoons and comic strips.

Few folklore figures are as famous, enigmatic, and influential as the Pied Piper, the notorious catcher of rats and children. Written for students and general readers, this book surveys the origin and history of the Pied Piper legend and discusses its significance in literature, art, film, popular culture, and political criticism.

Written by the foremost authority on proverbs, this reference gives high school students, undergraduates, and general readers a concise yet comprehensive overview of proverbs in world culture. The volume begins with definitions and classifications of proverbs and a discussion of their origin and dissemination.