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Superstitions, proverbs, old wives tales,
cliches, and maxims are labels applied to quotations that have grabbed
people’s attention over the years. These, “old sayings,” can be humorous
or profound, and many can be traced back to their origins. Many maxims
represent the views of society at the time they were first recorded, and
can be used to compare the change in society’s attitude over time.
Some maxims have deep roots and have been used to set boundaries that still
exist today.
A particular, “old saying,” that impacted my life, was one my father began saying to me when I was very young. One day, as I skipped into the house whistling a tune, my father stopped me and said, “A whistling woman, and a crowing hen, are bound to come to some bad end.” I, of course, found this amusing and didn’t realize that he was actually displeased with my whistling. Since I was fairly new to the art of whistling, and was impressed by the boys’ ability to whistle so well, I was surprised when I was prohibited from whistling in the house or car. I accepted this rule without really knowing why.
When I was around twelve, my father had occasion to remind me of the, “old saying,” again. This time, I found it less amusing. I began to wonder what this, “saying,” meant to him. At first, I thought that the phrase was only an old Arkansas hillbilly superstition. Maybe he felt that if a hen crowed, which is against a hen’s natural ability, it would bring bad luck. But, I thought, whistling is not against a female’s natural ability. I then realized that the meaning must be that if a hen crowed, it would be stepping out of the hen’s natural role in life, and taking on a rooster’s characteristics. I was struck by the fact that my father thought I was stepping out of my female role in life, and that I needed to be reminded what my role was.
After this realization, I spent the next two weeks walking around the yard with my two index fingers jammed in the corners of my mouth, trying to teach myself to whistle like the big boys. I made myself dizzy, received sore lips, and suffered headaches, but at the end of two weeks, I could whistle, “like a boy.” After a little more practice, I could whistle louder than any of the boys. After a little more practice, I could whistle louder than anyone we knew.
Over the next few years, I would use my whistle to call the dog, compete with my brother, or just to see my father’s grin, and hear his proverb, “Janet Carol, a whistling woman, and a crowing hen, is bound to come to some bad end.” This general attitude about a woman’s place, existed on several levels in our home. One opinion held was that college should be for men, because men were to be the providers in a family, whereas a woman would be needed to take care of the home. I knew that my dreams of college might not be met with excitement, and I knew that the small savings my parents had, was for my brother’s education. I didn’t expect my father’s reply to a conversation my sister and I were having when I was fifteen. I said, “ When I grow up, I’m going to college.” My older sister said, “You can’t go to college. College is for guys.” My father turned and said, “She can go to college if she wants to. She can do anything she wants to.” I smothered my elation, but when I went outside, I whistled as loud as I could. Daddy, who was looking out the window, just smiled and shook he head.
I sent for catalogues and discussed my
ideas for a career. I said, “ What about a mechanical engineer.”
Daddy said, “ No man will let a woman work on any machine of theirs.”
I idolized my father and valued his opinions, so I searched for other options.
A year later, Daddy had a heart attack and could no longer work.
There was no money for college and we knew nothing of grants or student
loans. So, I packed away my college catalogues along with my dreams.
Years later, with a husband a three children, I lived next to
my parents. One day, while searching for a wandering child, I whistled
with all my might. Daddy looked out and saw my son running home.
He smiled and said, “I guess that whistle is good for something.”
Daddy’s been gone for ten years, and my oldest daughter has already graduated from college. Recently, at the urging of my family, I dusted off the box that contained my old college catalogues. As I opened the box, I found the old books with their brittle yellow pages, but the dreams it held hadn’t aged a day.
I am enrolled in college now, and while researching this paper for my English class, I found the origins of my father’s, “old saying,” As far back as 1644, the Chi’ng Dynasty in China, had this proverb, “A crooning cow, a crowing hen, and a whistling maid, boded never luck to a house.” According to De Proverbio, “this proverb believes that when a cow croons, a hen crows, and a maid whistles, ill-luck results.” In other words, the proverb implies that a woman is like a cow and a hen in their potential to breed misfortune when they fail to be silent as society expects them to be.
This maxim has been around for thousands of
years, and has no doubt impacted more lives that just my own. Society’s
attitude toward women has changed over the years, as I saw my own father’s
attitude about women change. In a few years, I expect to graduate
from a university with my degree in Chemical Engineering. As I walk
to receive my diploma, amid the whistling and applause from my family,
my whistle will be the loudest of them all, while my father looks down
and smiles.
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