James Baquet

    Like many proverbs, “You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar” made its first appearance in English in the writings of Benjamin Franklin, but it may have come from an Italian original.

    Let’s see it in use.

    James sees his student, a boy named Jacob, storming down the hallway.

    James: Whoa, Jake! On the warpath?

    Jacob: Yeah, I’m seeing red!

    James: What happened?

    Jacob: I just came from the boys’ locker room, and I can’t believe what pigs my classmates are! Towels on the floor, old clothes in the corner, running showers — the works! I’m going to the office to lodge a complaint.

    James: Really? You think that’s the best way to “get ‘er done”?

    Jacob: What do you mean?

    James: Well, it’s not really the administration’s fault, is it?

    Jacob: Yeah, so? They have the pull to do something about it.

    James: But why not do something grassroots?

    Jacob: Like what?

    James: Organize a campaign. You know: make posters, appoint volunteer monitors, have a prize for the cleanest area. Stuff like that.

    Jacob: I guess that would be better than flying off the handle.

    James: You bet. Anyway, it doesn’t help anyone if you get ticked. “You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar”

    Jacob: Uh, James?

    James: Yeah?

    Jacob: Why would I want to catch flies?

    James: It means…ohh, never mind!

    Notes on the dialogue:

    — Storming: Walking in an angry manner.

    — Whoa: Perhaps “Stop,” or maybe an expression of surprise.

    — On the warpath: Getting ready to attack someone or something. From a Native American expression.

    — To be seeing red: To be very angry.

    — Pigs: Here, people who are not neat or tidy.

    — The works: Everything. A hamburger with everything on it would be “a hamburger with the works.”

    — To lodge a complaint: To register a formal grievance with an official representative.

    — “Get ’er done:” Accomplish something. This is the catch phrase of an American comedian, “Larry the Cable Guy.”

    — To have the pull: To have the power, or the ability, to accomplish something.

    — Grassroots: Something done at the level of the common person, rather than by (in this case) the school administration.

    — A campaign: An organized effort to accomplish something.

    — To fly off the handle: To become wildly angry, like when the head of an ax comes loose from the handle.

    — You bet: An expression of strong agreement.

    — To get ticked: Or “ticked off,” to become angry.

    — Never mind: This means the speaker does not wish to go on. It is NOT a good answer to “Thank you,” as we sometimes see in China. That would be “You’re welcome.”