Meaning & Analysis
The proverb is a hyperbolic expression signifying that a subject is so confusing, obscure, or nonsensical that even the Devil, a figure representing ultimate cunning and knowledge, would be unable to comprehend it.
Insights
Ultimate Incomprehensibility
This phrase serves as the ultimate declaration of incomprehensibility. It metaphorically places a situation, text, or problem beyond the absolute limits of any conceivable intelligence, suggesting it is fundamentally unknowable.
Limits of Rationality
It reflects the boundaries of human reason and logic. If a being famed for its super-human intellect is baffled, it implies the matter is not just difficult but inherently irrational, chaotic, or paradoxical.
Human-Made Chaos
The proverb can be used to describe profound human folly or convoluted bureaucratic systems. In this sense, 'it' is a mess so tangled by human hands that it defies the logical analysis even of a master of deceit.
Cultural Benchmark for Cunning
The Devil is used as a cultural benchmark for supreme cunning and intelligence. Invoking his inability to understand something establishes its ultimate complexity, shifting the frame of reference from classical figures like Apollo to a more immediate, Christian-influenced symbol of intellectual power.
Psychological Expression of Frustration
This proverb functions as a psychological outlet for overwhelming frustration. By externalizing the failure of comprehension onto a supernatural entity, the speaker expresses the sheer mental exhaustion of grappling with something that seems utterly illogical or impenetrable.
Diabolical Complexity
The proverb reflects a specific cultural context where the Devil represents not just evil, but also a mastery of hidden or complex knowledge ('cabal'). Its usage highlights a worldview where certain problems are so convoluted they seem to belong to a supernatural or diabolical realm of complexity.
Rhetorical Devices
Hyperbole
The core of the proverb is hyperbole, exaggerating the difficulty of a subject by claiming it would stump even the Devil, thereby emphasizing its extreme complexity in a vivid and memorable way.
Symbolism
The Devil is employed as a powerful symbol of supreme, almost limitless, intelligence and cunning. His failure to understand anything serves as a potent metaphor for absolute unintelligibility.
Idiomatic Expression
The phrase is a strong idiomatic expression used to convey intense frustration and bewilderment. Its meaning is derived from shared cultural folklore about the Devil's capabilities rather than a literal belief.
Transcription
Quotations
The Latin says, Ne Appolo quidem intelligeret, but the English would say of an obstruse thing, The Devil himself can't understand it.
For a thing to be extreme difficult to interpret and unfould, a meer Cabale: the English say, The Devil himself can't tell what to make on't.
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
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