Meaning & Analysis
The personification of "Report" (or rumor) suggests that its tongue is afflicted with a blister, a physical manifestation of corruption or falsehood resulting from the very act of speaking.
Insights
The Corruption of Gossip
The blister serves as a potent metaphor for the inherent toxicity and harm of gossip and slander. It suggests that spreading rumors is a "diseased" activity that corrupts the speech of the person who engages in it.
The Unreliability of Rumor
Based on the common belief that lying causes blisters, the proverb implies that reports and rumors are fundamentally untrustworthy and likely to be false. The blister is the physical evidence of the lie.
The Pain of Speaking Truth
While primarily about falsehood, some of Shakespeare's uses suggest a secondary meaning: that speaking a difficult or painful truth can also be a blistering experience for the speaker, highlighting the inherent power and danger of the spoken word.
Folk-Medical Belief
The proverb is rooted in a folk belief, explicitly mentioned by Francis Bacon, that telling a lie would cause a physical blister on the tongue. This superstition provides a tangible, bodily consequence for dishonesty, grounding a moral failing in a physiological symptom.
Literary and Dramatic Resonance
Shakespeare and his contemporaries, like Lyly and Dekker, frequently used this image, demonstrating its cultural currency. In `Macbeth`, the tyrant's name "blisters our tongues," suggesting that even speaking of profound evil is a painful, corrupting act. In `Romeo and Juliet`, it becomes a curse against slanderous speech.
Psychology of Personification
The act of personifying "Report" as a figure with a diseased tongue makes the abstract concept of rumor tangible and menacing. It reflects a psychological need to frame societal ills like gossip in human terms, portraying it not as a neutral act but as the product of a malicious, pathological entity.
Social and Moral Warning
The proverb functions as a form of social control, discouraging gossip and slander by framing it as a self-injurious act. The warning is not just that lies harm others, but that they physically corrupt the speaker, making the tongue itself a site of moral decay.
Rhetorical Devices
Personification
The abstract concept of "Report" is given human form, specifically female, making the idea of rumor more vivid, tangible, and accountable.
Metaphor
The "blister" is a strong, visceral metaphor for the falsehood, pain, and moral sickness associated with slander and malicious gossip.
Imagery
The physical image of a blistered tongue creates a powerful and repulsive sensory experience for the listener, effectively conveying the ugliness of rumor.
Transcription
Quotations
My tonge would blyster if I should vtter them.
(Reporte hath not alwaies).
Bonnes paroles n'ecorcheut pas la langue.
Your tongue you know is full of blisters with rayling.
As we say, That a blister will rise upon one's tongue that tells a lie.
Fair words blister not the tongue.
Common Fame hath a Blister on its Tongue.
I have a blister on my tongue, yet I don't remember I told a lie.
Shakespeare Citations
A blister on his sweet tongue with my heart.
Blister'd be thy tongue.
This tyrant, whose sole name blisters our tongues, Was once thought honest.
Speak and be hang'd! For each true word a blister.
If I prove honey-mouth'd, let my tongue blister.
Cross References
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
Used under CC BY-NC 3.0.