Meaning & Analysis
The sun provides its light and warmth to everyone and everything on Earth without discrimination, regardless of their location, status, or moral character.
Insights
Impartiality of Nature and Justice
The sun symbolizes the impartiality of nature, fate, or divine justice. It suggests that fundamental forces and truths apply to everyone equally, irrespective of wealth, power, or virtue.
Universal Grace and Benevolence
Reflecting its biblical origins, the proverb illustrates the concept of universal grace or benevolence. Opportunity, forgiveness, and life's basic gifts are available to all, both the righteous and the wicked.
Equality and Humility
By shining on the 'basest weed' as 'lovinglie as on the fragrant rose', the sun acts as a great equalizer, reminding humanity that worldly distinctions are insignificant in the face of universal, natural laws.
Unavoidable Truth and Exposure
The sun's inescapable light can represent unavoidable truth or scrutiny. Just as nothing on Earth can hide from its rays, no individual can ultimately escape judgment or the exposure of their true nature.
Biblical and Classical Heritage
With deep roots in both Christian theology (Matthew 5:45) and classical philosophy (Erasmus), the proverb merges a natural observation with a moral doctrine, arguing for a universal, impartial standard of grace or justice.
Analogy for Ideal Rulership
The sun's indiscriminate shining was frequently used as a powerful analogy for ideal kingship. A just ruler, like the sun, should distribute favor and justice equally upon all subjects, regardless of their station, as seen in Shakespeare's and D'Avenant's works.
Psychological Comfort
The proverb offers psychological solace, particularly for the marginalized or exiled. As expressed in Shakespeare's 'Richard II', the shared, impartial sun provides a sense of connection and comfort, reminding the unfortunate that they still inhabit the same world as the powerful.
Rhetorical Devices
Symbolism
The sun serves as a potent and universal symbol for impartiality, divine power, nature, and truth, making the proverb's meaning immediately resonant and profound.
Personification
The proverb frequently employs personification, ascribing human qualities like a 'liberal eye' (Shakespeare) or a 'smile' ('Edward III') to the sun, which makes the abstract concept of impartiality more vivid and emotionally engaging.
Analogy
The proverb's structure is an inherent analogy, comparing a natural phenomenon to abstract principles like justice or grace. This is often made explicit in quotations that use similes, such as being 'liberal as the sun'.
Transcription
Quotations
He letteth his sun shine as well over the wicked as over the good.
The Sunne shineth indifferently ouer all.
The Sunne when he is at his hight shineth aswel vpon course carsie [homespun], as cloth of tissue.
Like unto the Sunne, hee woulde spreade the beames of his bountie uppon all sortes of persons.
Phoebus for all his heauenly throne vouchsafes to lende his comfortable lighte, as well to the valleys as to the mountaines.
The Sunn grati-fieth good and badd.
Bid her be free and generall as the sunne, Who smiles vpon the basest weed that growes, As louinglie as on the fragrant rose.
The sunne shines through all the world.
When the Sunne shines, he shines upon all.
He's royal As his blood, and liberal as the sun That shines on all.
The Sergeant and the Sun are every where.
And like his own Sun, shines upon the Just and Unjust.
Bible Citations
He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good. Eras. Similia, 607F: Sol non alius est pauperi, alius diviti, sed omnibus communis.
Shakespeare Citations
This must my comfort be—That sun that warms you here shall shine on me.
The sun His liberal eye doth give to every one, Thawing cold fear.
Foolery, sir, does walk about the orb like the sun; it shines everywhere.
The glorious planet Sol . . . whose med'cinable eye . . . posts, like the command-ment of a king, Sans check, to good and bad.
Hath Britain all the sun that shines?
The selfsame sun that shines upon his court Hides not his visage from our cottage, but Looks on alike.
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
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