Meaning & Analysis
Those who do bad things (ill doers) are also those who judge or perceive others in a negative light (ill deemers).
Insights
Perception as Reflection
A person's perception of the world is a reflection of their own moral character. Those who are themselves deceitful or malicious tend to assume that others share the same corrupt motivations.
Justification through Accusation
Wrongdoers often justify their actions by believing that everyone else is just as bad. By deeming others 'ill', they normalize their own behavior and lessen their own culpability in their minds.
Corruption Breeds Suspicion
The proverb highlights how a corrupted nature erodes the ability to recognize goodness or innocence in others. Having a malicious mind ('mala mens') inevitably leads to a malicious or suspicious spirit ('malus animus').
Moral Diagnosis
The proverb serves as a powerful diagnostic tool for social judgment, suggesting that chronic suspicion and negative assessment of others may reveal more about the accuser's own character than the accused's. It cautions one to consider the source of criticism.
Psychological Projection
This proverb is a concise folk-psychology articulation of projection, a defense mechanism where individuals attribute their own unacceptable qualities or feelings to others. The quotations, like 'He shall think you to be naught, because he himself hath been naught', confirm this long-held intuitive understanding of human nature.
Classical Heritage
The Latin phrase 'mala mens, malus animus' (an evil mind, an evil disposition), cited in the 16th-century quotations, shows the proverb's deep roots in classical and medieval moral philosophy, reflecting a timeless understanding of how inner corruption taints outward perception.
Guilt and Paranoia
The proverb implies that a guilty conscience fosters a paranoid worldview. Unable to trust themselves, wrongdoers lose the capacity to trust others, interpreting innocent actions through a lens of deceit and malevolence that mirrors their own.
Rhetorical Devices
Parallelism
The balanced structure of 'Ill X are ill Y' creates a powerful and memorable equivalence, directly linking a person's actions to their perceptions.
Alliteration
The repetition of the 'd' sound in 'doers' and 'deemers' creates a hard, rhythmic link between the two concepts, enhancing the proverb's memorability and phonetic impact.
Conciseness
The proverb distills a complex psychological insight into a very short, impactful statement, making its wisdom accessible and easy to recall.
Transcription
Quotations
He shall think you to be naught, because he himself hath been naught.
For mala mens, malus animus, an evil disposition breedeth an evil suspicion.
The faithlesse man doth iudge in me, That in himselfe he knowes to be.
Commonly the old prouerb saith: he that hath bin a doer himselfe thinketh badly of others.
Ane ill disposition breidis ill suspition mala mens malus animus.
Whosoeuer is bad, hath suspition of another to be bad.
An evil mind, an evil meaning.
Ill doers, ill deemers.
(are ill Thinkers).
Cross References
- See APP., p. 323
- Sm., p. 217
- T. 353, p. 195.
- B738 He thinks every bush a bugbear (bear)
- F117 Who is in fault (guilty) suspects everybody
- T116 The thief thinks all are of his condition
- V66 The vintner fears false measure.
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
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