We Are All in the Same Boat Now

Based on Franklin Delano Roosevelt's papers, this study investigates his reliance on proverbs, sententious remarks, and proverbial expressions. References are cited in their context, showing his effective use of quotations, Bible and folk proverbs, and metaphorical phrases. The book includes an index of the many sententious and proverbial passages.

The book is based on Franklin Delano Roosevelt's speeches, press conferences, proclamations, and letters. The eleven chapters of the first part address his interest in language, his visionary outlook in his four inaugural addresses, his "four freedoms" phrase, his use of proverbial language for world peace, his reliance on quotations, his tendency to coin sententious remarks, his dependence on Biblical proverbs, his use of folk proverbs, his employment of proverbial phrases, his reliance on animal metaphors, and his use of maritime expressions. The second part provides a comprehensive index of the numerous passages that include proverbial references. The study demonstrates that Roosevelt was a skilled communicator, persuader, and, at times, manipulator. His effective use of proverbial language added significant figurative expressiveness to his communications. The phrase "We are all in the same boat now" aptly captures his worldview in dealing with the depression, the war, and his hope for peace.

Autorentext

Wolfgang Mieder is Professor Emeritus of German and Folklore at the University of Vermont, where he taught for fifty years. Among his many honors are honorary doctorates from the Universities of Athens, Bucharest, and Vermont. The author of over a hundred books on folk narratives, he is recognized internationally for his expertise in proverb studies.

Inhalt

Preface - "True Wisdom and Sound Common Sense": Franklin D. Roosevelt's Interest in Language and Style - "The Only Thing We Have to Fear is Fear Itself": The Proverbial Vision of Four Inaugural Addresses - "A World Founded upon Four Essential Human Freedoms": The Coinage and Spread of a Proverbial Claim - "Dedicate this Nation to the Policy of the Good Neighbor": Proverbial Language in the Service of World Peace - "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness": Franklin Roosevelt's Reliance on Known Quotations - From "Rendezvous with Destiny" to "Live in Infamy": The President's Propensity to Coin Sententious Remarks - "Peace on Earth, Good Will Toward Men": Roosevelt's Dependence on Proverbs from the Bible - "You Can't Eat Your Cake and Have It Too": Proverbs as Strategic Wisdom in Political Rhetoric - "Not Losing Sight of the Forest for the Trees": Adding Plain Language by Way of Proverbial Phrases - "Don't Change Horses While Crossing the Stream": Animal Metaphors as Indicators of Human Behavior - "We Are All in the Same Boat Now": Maritime Phrases as Symbols of Troubled Times - Bibliography - Index of Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases.