Meaning & Analysis
To physically lead or control a person by pulling their ears, just as one would carry a pot or pitcher by its handles, which are also known as 'ears'.
Insights
Effortless Domination
The proverb signifies having complete control over a person, leading them effortlessly and making them entirely subservient to one's will. The individual is rendered passive and object-like, easily directed by another.
Susceptibility to Influence
It illustrates how a person can be easily influenced or manipulated by appealing to their vanity, credulity, or whatever they are willing to listen to. Their 'ears' become the handles by which they are guided.
Exploiting Weakness
The imagery suggests exploiting a person's specific weakness or vulnerability to control them. Just as a pot's handles are its designed point of leverage, a person's metaphorical 'ears' are the weak points a manipulator can grab onto.
Objectification and Control
The proverb draws a demeaning parallel between a person and a common domestic object, a pot or pitcher. This comparison strips the individual of agency and status, suggesting they are as easily manipulated as an inanimate vessel. The 'ears' of the pot, its handles, serve as a clever pun on the human ear, the gateway for persuasion, flattery, or commands.
Psychology of Influence
This expression taps into the psychological reality that people can be controlled by what they hear. By targeting someone's 'ears'—whether through gossip, authority, or sweet-talk—one can metaphorically 'carry' them, guiding their actions and beliefs. It speaks to the power of rhetoric and the vulnerability of being led by external voices.
Humiliation and Subjugation
The act of being physically pulled or led by the ears is one of punishment and humiliation, often associated with chastising a child or a subordinate. The proverb thus carries a strong connotation of subjugation and the stripping of dignity, portraying the controlled individual as helpless and debased.
Rhetorical Devices
Simile
The direct comparison of a person to a pot using 'like' creates a vivid, concrete image for the abstract concept of manipulation, making the meaning immediate and memorable.
Pun / Double Entendre
The word 'ears' is used as a clever pun, referring to both the human organ of hearing and the handles of a pitcher. This wordplay is central to the proverb's meaning, linking listening to being controlled.
Visceral Imagery
The proverb evokes a strong physical and slightly comical or degrading image of a person being led by their ears, which enhances its rhetorical impact and makes it stick in the mind.
Transcription
Quotations
Greate men of the world are like great pottes (quoth Diogines) which be they neuer so great, you may carrie them about by the eares.
He permits himselfe Be carried like a pitcher, by the eares.
An arrant rook, by this light, a capable cheating-stock! A man may carry him up and down by the ears like a pipkin.
Cross References
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
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