To set ALL a going if it were a mile to the bottom

Insights

Reckless Expenditure

This phrase figuratively expresses the act of spending or risking everything with abandon, regardless of the consequences. It speaks to a mindset that embraces indulgence or destruction without regard for limits.

Fatalistic Abandon

Conveys a sense of resignation or willful descent into excess or collapse, as if once the course is set, one may as well go all the way—'to the bottom'—even if it's a mile deep.

All-In Mentality

The proverb can also reflect a bold or desperate commitment—once engaged, there’s no turning back, so all resources are set in motion, no matter how far or costly the outcome may be.

Shakespearean Echo

In *2 Henry IV*, Falstaff pledges to drink 'a mile to the bottom,' evoking not only literal drinking to excess but also metaphorical overindulgence, hinting at moral and physical decline cloaked in joviality.

Seventeenth-Century Commentary

The 1666 Italian proverb source, rendered in English, associates this phrase with financial ruin—‘to sink all one hath.’ It reflects a historical anxiety about prodigality and waste in a culture grappling with emerging capitalism.

Psychology of Ruin

The phrase dramatizes a psychological pattern where people, once committed to a course—whether through pride, passion, or despair—push forward to the bitter end rather than retreat. It suggests a destructive version of perseverance.

Maritime Metaphor of Depth

The image of a ‘mile to the bottom’ resonates with maritime language and danger—evoking shipwrecks, lost cargo, and the irretrievability of what is sunk. It underscores the gravity and finality of the loss implied.

Rhetorical Devices

Hyperbole

The exaggeration of ‘a mile to the bottom’ emphasizes the extremity of commitment or loss, heightening the proverb’s emotional and dramatic intensity.

Metaphor

‘Set all a going’ and ‘a mile to the bottom’ metaphorically describe the act of expending all one’s resources and falling into total ruin, using physical motion and depth to evoke psychological and material collapse.

Rhythmic Parallelism

The proverb’s cadence and contrast between action (‘set all a going’) and consequence (‘a mile to the bottom’) create a rhythmic structure that enhances its memorability and rhetorical force.