Meaning & Analysis
Refers to the physical sensation or image of the nose swelling or itching, traditionally linked to emotional agitation or inner disturbance.
Insights
Jealousy and Envy
Symbolizes the internal emotional reaction of envy—where the ‘swelling’ of the nose marks a visible, if metaphorical, flare of resentment at another’s success, possession, or fortune.
Wounded Pride
The swelling nose figuratively evokes the discomfort of injured ego or vanity, hinting at subtle affronts that provoke feelings of competitiveness or comparison.
Physiological Metaphor for Emotion
Just as blushing signals embarrassment, the idea of a swelling or itching nose externalizes an inner emotional disturbance. Folk traditions often tied bodily sensations to feelings—suggesting a somatic vocabulary of jealousy.
Sensory Folk Beliefs
Itching or swelling of the nose was part of early modern superstitions, believed to signal someone speaking of you or a coming event. In this context, it becomes a coded expression of emotional arousal—particularly envy.
Oblique Emotional Expression
The proverb offers a socially permissible way to acknowledge envy without direct confession. It couches uncomfortable emotions in physical metaphor, allowing indirect discourse around jealousy.
Rhetorical Devices
Metaphor
The swollen nose metaphor vividly represents the invisible emotion of jealousy, giving it a humorous or grotesque physical dimension.
Euphemism
By referring to swelling rather than directly naming envy, the expression softens the admission of a negative emotion, using bodily language to veil psychological discomfort.
Sensory Imagery
Leverages the tactile sensation of swelling or itching to evoke an emotional response, creating a visceral link between feeling and form.
Transcription
Quotations
Doth your nose swell (or eek, i.e. itch) at that?
Cross References
- See SM., p. 530.
Explanation
[To make one jealous or envious.]
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
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