Proverb lore in Stubbes's Anatomie of Abuses.
Recognizing the powerful influence of proverbial material, Philip Stubbes, in his Anatomie of Abuses, utilizes the proverb as a means of winning an audience. In his attack of abuses, as he saw them in both ecclesiastical and secular groups, he employs the proverb and the sententious remark in the hope of inducing his countrymen to reform. The present investigation reveals that Stubbes uses at least 162 different proverbs in the Anatomie. Of this number, 61 different proverbs have been previously authenticated in the proverb dictionaries of Tilley, Smith, and Apperson. To be specific, 8 are listed by Smith, 8 by Apperson, and 60 by Tilley; but all those in Smith and all except one in Apperson are also found in Tilley. Thus, 101 additional proverbs have been established: they are authenticated by parallels in these proverb dictionaries. Besides, there are 228 sententious remarks in the Anatomie that have been spotted and listed in this thesis: they seem to be employed in a proverbial manner. It is of special interest to note the proverbs used in common by Stubbes and Shakespeare. This study reveals that Shakespeare uses 55 proverbs in common with those in the Anatomie. In his attck of abuses Stubbes included the theatre, which we know was Shakespeare's primary interest. It is therefore quite probable that the youth Shakespeare read the Anatomie and was of course necessarily impressed by Stubbes's use of proverbs. Thus, one perceives that Stubbes realized the inherent value of proverbial material and did not hesitate to use it in his Anatomie. Also, one cannot help feeling that the Anatomie had some influence on the "budding giant of English literature"--William Shakespeare.
Stubbes, Phillip. Anatomie of abuses., Stubbes, Phillip -- Quotations., Proverbs in literature., Proverbs, English.
Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations