Meaning & Analysis
Literally, the proverb states that a mouse is of a 'dun' (dull, grayish-brown) color. However, its primary meaning is derived from a pun on the word 'done'.
Insights
Finality and Completion
The primary metaphorical meaning is a declaration of finality, using the pun on 'done' to signify that a matter is finished, settled, or concluded. It's an idiomatic way of saying, 'That's the end of it.'
A Call for Silence and Discretion
As seen in several quotations, the phrase is often used as a command to be quiet, lie low, or remain still. Once something is 'done', the appropriate response is to become as quiet and inconspicuous as a mouse.
Irrevocable Consequences
The phrase can signal a point of no return or an unchangeable outcome. The reference in 'Two Merrie Milk-Maids' to the courtiers being 'undone' after 'dun's the Mouse' suggests that the action has sealed their fate.
Linguistic Wordplay
A classic example of Elizabethan and Jacobean wordplay, this proverb's meaning hinges entirely on the pun between 'dun' (a dull brown color) and 'done'. It reflects a cultural delight in linguistic cleverness and is now largely archaic because the pun is no longer in common use.
Literary and Gaming Context
Its use in Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet' by Mercutio adds a layer of meaning. It's linked to a parlor game, 'dun is in the mire', where participants pull a log (Dun) from an imaginary bog. This context enriches the phrase, connecting it not just to finality but to being 'stuck' or needing to move on.
Psychological Symbolism
The mouse symbolizes quietness, stealth, and inconspicuousness. Psychologically, the proverb connects the completion of an act ('done') with the need for subsequent silence and discretion ('be like a mouse'). It's a command to cease activity and conversation.
Rhetorical Devices
Pun
The proverb's entire meaning is built upon the homophonic pun between 'dun' (a color) and 'done' (finished), making it a classic piece of linguistic wit.
Symbolism
The mouse serves as a potent symbol for quietness, stillness, and stealth, reinforcing the proverb's association with silence and discretion.
Idiom
The phrase functions as a concise, self-contained idiom whose meaning is non-literal and culturally specific to a time when this pun was widely understood.
Transcription
Quotations
Dunne is the mowse.
Yet don is the mouse, lie still.
Serieant Ambush, as th' art an honest fellow, scowte in some back roome, till the watch-word be giuen for sallying forth. —Duns the mouse.
If mine Host say the word, the Mouse shall be dun.
Dvnne is the mouse (they say).
Why then 'tis done, and dun's the Mouse, and vndone all the Cour-tiers.
I'le say no more but dun's the Mouse.
Shakespeare Citations
The game was ne'er so fair, and I am done. —Tut! dun's the mouse, the constable's own word!
Cross References
Explanation
[A play on the word "done."]
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
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