Prof. Carmen EnacheSc. Nr. 18 Sf. Dumitru –Craiova
Everyone knows that, despite its supposed nine lives, curiosity killed the cat. Well, not quite. The killed the cat proverb originated as care killed the cat. By care the coiner of the expression meant 'worry/sorrow' rather than our more usual contemporary 'look after/provide for' meaning. That form of the expression is first recorded in the English playwright Ben Jonson's play Every Man in His Humour, 1598:"Helter skelter, hang sorrow, care'll kill a Cat, up-tails all, and a Louse for the Hangman." Cats are curious animals that like to investigate, but their curiosity can take them places where they might get hurt. Children especially, like cats, are curious and like to test to find out what is dangerous. Example: "My son stuck his finger into the electrical outlet and got a huge shock! He said he wanted to find out how it would feel." Reply: "It's a good thing he wasn't hurt! Curiosity killed the cat."
The proverbial expression curiosity killed the cat, which is usually used when attempting to stop someone asking unwanted questions, is much more recent. The earlier form was still in use in 1898, when it was defined in Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable". It is said that a cat has nine lives, but “care would wear them all out.”
However, curiosity hasn't received a good press over the centuries. Saint Augustine wrote in Confessions, AD 397, that, in the eons before creating heaven and earth, God "fashioned hell for the inquisitive".The frequent rejoinder to curiosity killed the cat is satisfaction brought it back. One has not been able to trace the source of this odd reply.
All in all, Curiosity killed the cat is a proverb used to warn against being too curious lest one come to harm. Curiosity killed the cat reminds us that being too curious can be dangerous. Example: "What do you think is down that dark street?" Reply: "I would rather not find out.
The proverbial expression curiosity killed the cat, which is usually used when attempting to stop someone asking unwanted questions, is much more recent. The earlier form was still in use in 1898, when it was defined in Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable". It is said that a cat has nine lives, but “care would wear them all out.”
However, curiosity hasn't received a good press over the centuries. Saint Augustine wrote in Confessions, AD 397, that, in the eons before creating heaven and earth, God "fashioned hell for the inquisitive".The frequent rejoinder to curiosity killed the cat is satisfaction brought it back. One has not been able to trace the source of this odd reply.
All in all, Curiosity killed the cat is a proverb used to warn against being too curious lest one come to harm. Curiosity killed the cat reminds us that being too curious can be dangerous. Example: "What do you think is down that dark street?" Reply: "I would rather not find out.
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