Meaning & Analysis
Even an item as universally precious as gold can be acquired for a price that exceeds its intrinsic worth, making it a poor transaction.
Insights
The True Cost of Ambition
Signifies that any goal, no matter how desirable, can demand a sacrifice so great—whether in terms of health, integrity, or happiness—that the achievement becomes a net loss, a Pyrrhic victory.
Hidden Costs and Consequences
Warns that the pursuit of seemingly valuable things can have hidden negative consequences. The 'price' paid might not be monetary but could be the loss of peace, security, or moral standing, as highlighted in the 1611 quotation: 'If riches bring feare, gold's bought to deere.'
Questioning Perceived Value
Encourages a critical assessment of what society deems valuable. The proverb suggests that true wisdom lies not in acquiring 'gold', but in understanding its actual worth relative to the sacrifices required to obtain it.
Historical Symbolism
Gold has been a universal symbol of ultimate value for millennia. By using 'gold' as the object of desire, the proverb powerfully asserts that if even the most precious substance can be overvalued, then absolutely anything—be it wealth, power, or a personal goal—can come at too high a cost.
Literary and Cultural Resonance
The proverb is a recurring theme in cautionary tales, from the myth of King Midas, who was destroyed by his lust for gold, to Marlowe's 'Doctor Faustus', who 'buys' knowledge at the cost of his soul. It encapsulates the timeless moral dilemma of ambition versus its ultimate price.
Psychological Dimensions
This proverb touches on the psychological tendency to pursue socially accepted symbols of success ('gold') without a personal cost-benefit analysis. It warns against the 'sunk cost fallacy', where one continues to pay an exorbitant price for a goal simply because of the initial investment, ignoring the escalating negative consequences.
Rhetorical Devices
Symbolism
'Gold' serves as a powerful symbol for any ultimate prize, ambition, or object of desire, while 'dear' represents any excessive cost—financial, moral, or emotional.
Irony
The proverb's impact is heightened by the ironic juxtaposition of 'gold', the ultimate standard of value, with the concept of it being a bad purchase ('too dear'). This paradox makes the warning more memorable.
Understatement
The simple, declarative statement presents a profound caution with a calm, measured tone. This understatement makes the proverb's warning feel more like a universal truth than an overwrought command.
Transcription
Quotations
So you may buye gold to deare.
Men may buy gold over dear.
If riches bring feare, gold's bought to deere.
If riches bring feare, gold's bought to deere.
[As in 1611 Dav.]
(The English say, One may).
[As in a1598 Ferg.]
Gold is good but it may be dear bought.
(even Gold too dear).
Annotations
- Spoken when an extravagant Price is ask'd for a good Thing.
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
Used under CC BY-NC 3.0.