Many people love Shakespeare, that’s what we stand for. Many people also love the accuracy of quoting literary sources, which we also support. Given that we support these two, some may wonder why we have a definition for an idiom that is a Bard misquote, gilded lilies.
Misidentification in a Shakespeare play? Now we have heard it all.
We determine gilded lilies is “adding unnecessary ornamentation to something beautiful in its own right.” We do not attribute this to Shakespeare, as he never wrote this particular word combination. Gold plated lilies appears as a mistaken version of a line of words King Johnthat is “to gild refined gold, to paint lilies.”
Therefore, possessed with double pomp, To defend a Title, formerly rich; Refined gilding, painted lilies; Spray a perfume on the Violet flower, To smooth the yce, or add another stone to the Raine bow; or with Taper-light In search of the beautiful eye of heaven to decorate, Is wasteful and outrageously ridiculous.— William Shakespeare, King John1623
gilding, for those wondering, can be defined as “covered with or as covered with a thin layer of gold.” In the 18th and early 19th centuries we see evidence of writers using paint lilies, throw a perfume on violetAnd refined gold platedas an example of adding unnecessary decoration.
The work that is now open to the public stands in a very different situation than any of the works I have mentioned, or alluded to; for although it cannot help us “paint lilies,” or “spray perfume on violets;” it can, by a modest involvement, cause consequences, or by its cowardice, bring down the company it has recklessly interfered with.— FG Waldron, Ben Jonson’s Sad Shepherd Sequel1783
But the richness of this evidence and example is lily painting and refined gilding; the proof is absolutely irresistible.— Monthly magazine (London, England), August 1826
By the middle of the 19th century, we began to see order a bit messy, and writers began to refer to Lily like a gilded object.
Besides, to her praise, it would be gilding a lily, painting in pure gold, or the like.— Harry Zona, Wilkes’ spirit of the times (New York, NY), August 11, 1866
To comment on or add anything to this famously elegant and patriotic sentiment, it would be—in the words of one of our local orators of old—“gilded lilies and painted with gold.” net.”— India’s period (Mumbai, Ind.), May 18, 1872
To sketch Hon. Edward Spicer Cleveland is as impossible and superfluous as gilding lilies.— Hartford Daily CourantSeptember 29, 1886
The reason we use the not-like-Shakespeare-written-it version of this idiom is because it has become much more popular than paint lilies (although you can also use this). Our dictionary is intended to provide a record of the language as it is currently used, not a record of how Shakespeare wrote (although the two often overlap). Some have speculated that gilded lilies was very successful because of repetition -Il the sound of gilding And Lily make it memorable.
You can continue to use gilded liliesand if someone points out that you’re misquoting Shakespeare, you can simply tell them you’re using an old English idiom and not misquoting anyone. Or you can answer with an exact quote from Shakespeare; we’ve always liked something from Coriolanus: “I found the donkey in the compound with the main part of your syllables.”
Categories: Usage Notes
Source: vothisaucamau.edu.vn
