Meaning & Analysis
Elderly people revert to a state of dependency, vulnerability, and frailty that is comparable to that of a young child.
Insights
The Cycle of Life
The proverb frames human life as a cyclical journey, beginning and ending in a state of helplessness and reliance on others. It suggests a natural, albeit poignant, symmetry to the human experience from birth to death.
Physical and Mental Frailty
This metaphor points to the physical and cognitive decline associated with advanced age, such as diminished strength, memory loss, and a need for basic care, which mirrors the developmental stage of early childhood.
Return to Innocence
It can imply a return to a state of innocence or simplicity, where the complexities and burdens of adult life are shed. However, this can also be interpreted negatively as a loss of reason, judgment, and self-control.
Shared Vulnerability
The proverb underscores the universal human condition of vulnerability. Just as a child is dependent on its parents, the elderly may become dependent on their children or caregivers, reversing the original relationship of care.
Classical Heritage
Rooted in classical antiquity, as evidenced by the Latin phrase 'Bis pueri senes' cited by Erasmus, the proverb reflects a long-standing Western cultural framework for understanding the life cycle as symmetrical, beginning and ending in a state of dependency.
Literary Resonance
Shakespeare immortalized this concept in his 'Seven Ages of Man' speech from 'As You Like It', where the final stage is 'second childishness and mere oblivion'. This literary reinforcement has deeply embedded the proverb's sentiment into the English-speaking world's consciousness.
Psychological Ambivalence
The proverb captures the psychological anxieties surrounding aging, particularly the loss of autonomy and cognitive function. It reflects a societal tendency to view the elderly through a lens of either pity or condescension, potentially stripping them of the dignity and wisdom accrued over a lifetime.
Social Role Reversal
The comparison highlights a shift in social roles, where the elderly, once providers and authority figures, may transition back to a state of being cared for. This reflects cultural attitudes towards aging, dependency, and the structure of familial responsibility.
Rhetorical Devices
Metaphor
The proverb is built on a direct and powerful metaphor that equates the state of old age with childhood, creating a vivid and easily understood comparison.
Hyperbole
The phrase 'twice children' is a form of hyperbole that emphasizes the profound extent of the regression, making the statement more impactful and memorable.
Paradox
The proverb contains a paradox by equating the end of life with its beginning, suggesting a cyclical and ironic reversal of human development. Shakespeare captures this in 'Luc.' with 'To make the child a man, the man a child.'
Transcription
Quotations
Bis pueri senes.
[As in Eras.]. Olde folke are twyse chyldren, or double chyldren. *Aristotle in his politykes writeth, that after two and fyfty yeares, the sharpnes of wyt wareth blounte and dull.
For all old men are twice children, as the proverb is, Senex bis puer, an old man twice a child.
Olde men .. like my selfe, are twice children, and drunkards are twice children.
(bairnes).
(children twice).
An old man is twice a child.
(babes).
A man may be twice a Child before the days of dotage.
(bairns).
*And that not in respect of the mind only, but also of the body.
(bairnes).
Shakespeare Citations
Time's glory is .. To make the child a man, the man a child.
Last scene of all, That ends this strange eventful history, Is second childishness and mere oblivion.
They say an old man is twice a child.
Now, by my life, Old fools are babes again.
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
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