Meaning & Analysis
Literally, this proverb mocks the act of seeking character references or testimony from someone closely associated with the accused—in this case, asking a thief’s own companion to vouch for their innocence.
Insights
Bias and Collusion
Warns against trusting endorsements or testimony from those who share interests, allegiances, or guilt with the person under scrutiny. It highlights the futility of seeking an honest verdict from a biased or complicit party.
Corruption of Testimony
Serves as a metaphor for situations in which judgment or evidence is compromised by partiality, suggesting that testimony from one’s associates is inherently suspect and likely self-serving.
Self-Justification
Illustrates how individuals or groups often seek validation from within, using their own circle to absolve themselves of wrongdoing, thereby avoiding external or impartial judgment.
Historical Legal Satire
The proverb originates in contexts where character or guilt was established through communal testimony. Its presence in 16th and 17th-century texts reflects social skepticism toward the fairness of such evidence, especially when provided by one's peers or accomplices.
Universal Skepticism
Across cultures, proverbs like this caution against circular validation, paralleling the Latin phrase 'testis unus, testis nullus' and the broader human suspicion of insular communities policing their own.
Psychological Projection
Reveals a tendency for people to seek affirmation from those who mirror their own actions, attitudes, or guilt—suggesting an instinctive desire for self-justification and group protection against external scrutiny.
Cultural and Literary Echoes
The proverb recurs in early English drama, sermons, and collections, and has equivalents in Scottish and continental traditions, reflecting a persistent cultural recognition of the dangers of partial witness and self-serving alliances.
Rhetorical Devices
Irony
The central irony is that the very person least qualified to judge—an accomplice—is being asked to testify, exposing the absurdity of such appeals.
Dialogue/Direct Speech
The proverb’s phrasing mimics direct speech or mock interrogation, lending it a colloquial sharpness and making it memorable in both oral and written tradition.
Metonymy
'Fellow' or 'companion' stands for anyone sharing complicity, making the saying broadly applicable to diverse forms of biased judgment.
Transcription
Quotations
That wer (quoth she) as of my truth to make preefe, To axe my fellow, whether I be a theefe.
Thieves and thieves' fellows be all of one sort. They were wont to say Ask my fellow if I be a thief.
(We haue an other propre English prouerbe. . Aske my).
Neither of your companions, for that's aske my fellow if I be a theefe.
This is right, aske my felow there if I be a thiefe.
What is the Cat, a deuill: then remember the prouerbe, aske his fellow if he be a theefe.
Speir [ask] at Jock theeff my marrow [companion] if I be ane leall [true] man.
(companion whether I).
(companion whether I).
This is somewhat to the Prouerbe, Aske the sons, if the Father be a theefe.
Ask the father, if he thinketh his sonne a thief.
(whether I am).
To produce domestick Witnesses, viz. such as are partial; the English say, Ask my Fellow whether I be a Thief.
[As in a.1598 Ferg.].
(companion).
Speer at Jack Thief if I be a leal Man.
Spoken when Men appeal for a Character to them who are their Associates, or as bad as themselves.
Ask my Companion, if I'm a Thief.
Cross References
- H725 Ask mine host whether he have good wine
- K135 One knave seeks out (will favor) another
- T121A Thieves are never rogues among themselves.
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
Used under CC BY-NC 3.0.