Meaning & Analysis
A dog will return to eat its own vomit, and a pig, even after being washed, will go back to wallowing in the mud. These are instinctual, albeit repulsive, animal behaviors.
Insights
Relapse into Vice
The proverb is a powerful metaphor for moral or spiritual relapse. It describes individuals who, after a period of repentance or reform, inevitably return to their old, sinful, or corrupt habits.
Inherent Nature Overcoming Reform
It suggests that a person's fundamental character or nature is unchangeable. External attempts to clean or reform someone (washing the sow) are futile if their underlying disposition remains inclined toward corruption (the mire).
Futility of Superficial Change
The proverb warns against the futility of superficial changes. 'Washing' the sow does not alter its essential nature. This implies that true transformation requires a deep, internal change, without which any external improvements are temporary and meaningless.
Biblical Authority and Moral Weight
The proverb's authority is rooted in its biblical origin (2 Peter 2:22), which frames relapse not merely as a weakness but as a significant moral and spiritual failure. Its quotation by Shakespeare in French signifies its widespread recognition among the educated classes in post-Reformation Europe.
Psychological Determinism
This proverb reflects a deeply pessimistic or deterministic view of human nature, suggesting that individuals are inherently bound to their base instincts. It implies that attempts at reform are often superficial and that true, lasting change is exceptionally difficult, if not impossible.
A Tool of Social Condemnation
The powerful, repulsive imagery of 'vomit' and 'mire' is not accidental; it is intended to evoke disgust and contempt. The proverb functions as a tool of social judgment, used to condemn those who revert to behaviors deemed immoral or unclean.
Symbolism of Unclean Animals
The animals themselves are symbolic. The dog's unnatural act of returning to its vomit and the sow's return to filth despite being washed serve as potent symbols for humanity's struggle with its own perceived unclean or sinful nature.
Rhetorical Devices
Parallelism
The proverb is built on a balanced, parallel structure ('The dog to his vomit' and 'the swine to his mire'), which creates a memorable rhythm and reinforces the connection between the two parallel actions.
Visceral Imagery
The use of 'vomit' and 'mire' creates strong, visceral images of filth and revulsion. This powerful imagery is designed to provoke a strong negative emotional response, underscoring the moral disgust associated with the relapse.
Biblical Allusion
The entire expression is a direct allusion to a well-known passage in the New Testament. This biblical reference lends it a powerful sense of authority and a deep layer of theological meaning concerning sin and apostasy.
Transcription
Quotations
It is very necessary that we . . neuer after . . fall and tourne agayne to synne lyke a dogge that tourneth agayne to his vomyle, or a sowe ones waltred in the cley wyll retourne to that fylthy place.
Like swine to the mire, [they] returne to their filthinesse.
We shall see the dogg returne to his vomit, and the clensed sow to her myre.
Let the dog turn to the vomit, and the swine to the wallow.
A dogge to his vomit, and a sow to her wallowing in the mire.
Bible Citations
According to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and, The sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.
Shakespeare Citations
‘Le chien est retourné à son propre vomissement, et la truie lavée au bourbier.’
Cross References
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
Used under CC BY-NC 3.0.