Meaning & Analysis
An ironic simile meaning that two things are not at all in agreement. While 'just' or 'jump' literally means 'exactly,' the phrase is used sarcastically to imply a complete lack of alignment or precision, as illustrated by the derisive comparison to 'German's lips'.
Insights
Fundamental Incompatibility
The proverb serves as a metaphor for fundamental incompatibility. As the 1579 quotation by Gosson clarifies, it describes a relationship as discordant as that of 'Dogges and cattes,' where no true agreement is possible.
Deceptive Appearances
It metaphorically represents deceit or falsehood. The statement feigns precision ('just') while denoting its opposite, mirroring a situation or person that appears straightforward but is actually misaligned or untrustworthy.
Ethnic Caricature
The phrase is a vehicle for ethnic mockery, using a physical feature as a stand-in for perceived national characteristics. The 'lips' symbolize supposed German imprecision, crudeness, or a harsh-sounding language that lacks harmony.
Historical Prejudice
The proverb is a historical artifact of 16th-century English xenophobia, reflecting national prejudices and rivalries. 'German's lips' serves as a derogatory caricature, turning a physical or linguistic stereotype into a symbol for discord and inexactness.
Cultural Anthropology
This phrase exemplifies how proverbs can encode and perpetuate social biases. By embedding a stereotype within a common saying, it normalizes derision and reinforces in-group identity through the mockery of an out-group.
Linguistic Irony
The core of the proverb lies in its ironic reversal of meaning. The use of 'just' (meaning 'exact') to signify the opposite reveals a sophisticated, if malicious, use of language where the intended meaning is understood through a shared cultural context of derision.
Rhetorical Devices
Ironic Simile
The proverb is an ironic simile where the comparison is intentionally absurd to highlight a flaw. It states that something fits 'as just as' German's lips to mean it does not fit at all.
Sarcasm
The entire expression is an act of derision, intended to mock and insult. Its meaning is wholly dependent on the sarcastic tone and the negative stereotype it invokes.
Synecdoche
'Lips' are used as a synecdoche, representing the entire German nationality or their language. This rhetorical device reduces a complex group to a single, easily ridiculed physical trait.
Transcription
Quotations
The hen (quoth she), the cocke (quoth he) iust (quoth she) as Iermans lips.
Shall see them agree like Dogges and cattes, and meete as jump as Germans lippes.
You come as just a[s] Jermyns lippe.
Annotations
- Spoken in derision.
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
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