fight
The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
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2006
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© The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable 2006, originally published by Oxford University Press 2006. (Hide copyright information)
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fight fight fire with fire an injunction to counter like with like. The saying is recorded from the mid 19th century, but Shakespeare in
Coriolanus (1608) has, ‘One fire drives out one fire, one nail one nail.’
fight or flight the instinctive physiological response to a threatening situation, which readies one either to resist forcibly or to run away.
he who fights and runs away, may live to fight another day an assertion of the value of knowing when to make a strategic withdrawal. A proverbial saying, mid 16th century; earlier in the writings of the Greek comic dramatist Menander (342–
c.292 bc), ‘a man who flees will fight again.’ A Middle English variant is found in
The Owl and the Nightingale (
c.1250), ‘Wel fight that wel flight.’
see also
that cock won't fight,
fight one's corner,
live to fight another day,
fight tooth and nail.
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CIVIC VOICES IN ENGLISH FABLES: THE OWL AND THE NIGHTINGALE AND THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE
Magazine article from: AUMLA : Journal of the Australasian Universities Modern Language Association; 11/1/2007; ; 700+ words
; ...English-the thirteenth-century The Owl and the 'Nightingale and the fourteenth-century The...Neil Cartlidge identifies The Owl and the Nightingale as characteristic...analysis of the topics debated in The Owl and the Nightingale, Alexandra...
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The Owl and the Nightingale: Text and Translation.(Book Review)
Magazine article from: Medium Aevum; 9/22/2002; ; 700+ words
; ...14.99 [pounds sterling]. The Owl and the Nightingale is widely taught to undergraduates...some of the affiliations of The Owl mentioned elsewhere. The introduction...nightingabble as a translation of the Owl's derisive nonce-word for her...
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Reconsidering emending the capital at line 1711 of The Owl and the Nightingale.(Essays)(Critical essay)
Magazine article from: ANQ; 3/22/2009; ; 700+ words
; While working on a transcription of The Owl and the Nightingale (O&N) from N. R. Ker's facsimile edition for the Early English Text Society (EETS) and verifying the transcription...
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Night owls and nightingales.(PAGE 5)
Magazine article from: Interview; 11/1/2005; ; 460 words
; Michael Pitt and Gus Van Sant at the New York premiere of Last Days. Dita Von Teese and Adrian Grenier in NYC for the launch of Virgin Mobiles "3 Ways to Pay As You Go." W Hotels Michele Denby (center). Michael Showalter (right) and Interview's Derek Fagerstrom at The Whiskey at the W Hotel Times
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Artefacts belonging to Florence Nightingale go on show
News Wire article from: AP Worldstream; 11/3/2004; ; 500 words
; ...Dateline: LONDON A stuffed pet owl, a comforting letter and...Artifacts belonging to Florence Nightingale are on show at the Florence Nightingale Museum at St. Thomas's Hospital...Nightingale's stuffed pet owl, Athena, which died shortly...
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Sing out if you see this bird GOING CHEEP After its winter migration, the male nightingale arrives back in Britain at this time of year and uses song to stake its territory The nightingale's song is nature's most romantic sound, so tracking down the elusive bird is a labour of love for Jonathan Young
Newspaper article from: The Sunday Telegraph London; 5/5/2002; ; 700+ words
; ...after a full night counting nightingales, and he faxed a list of...same sense of unease for nightingale-seekers as "dense fog...procreational bit. The nightingales' mating behaviour, however...murderous shriek of a little owl cut through a nearby copse...eased and there it was: a ...
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The Arts: A star rose in the north west Alan Garner finds inspiration for his children's books in the legend and folklore of Cheshire - now he has set the radio version of his nativity play in his favourite county. Julie Nightingale meets the author who swapped Bethlehem for Alderley town
Newspaper article from: The Independent - London; 12/20/2000; ; 700+ words
; ...who find their way into the present usually via the intervention of children. Of the 1960s books that made his name, only The Owl Service strayed beyond the border to draw on a Welsh romantic legend. "What's so special about Cheshire and makes it so rich...
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Downland rich in wildlife
Newspaper article from: The Independent - London; 4/29/1994; ; 355 words
; ...shrimp and soldier beetle. The plain is an internationally important breeding site for rare birds, including the stone curlew (up to 20 pairs), buzzard, long-eared owl, nightingale and Montagu's harrier. (Graphics omitted)
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Wisdom edges Owls Anderson sinks winning FTs
Newspaper article from: Bangor Daily News Bangor, ME; 1/20/2004; 700+ words
; ...Pioneers. Michelle Lavertu's 20 points led all scorers for the Owls. Martine Daigle added 11. Madawaska 51 LaVertu 6-8-20...McLeod 4-0-10, Dobbins 3-1-8, Macdonald 1-2-4, Nightingale 1-0-2, Gibson 1-0-2, Perry Fort Kent (3-8) 53...
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BOOK REVIEW: Ever heard the one about Alfred and the cakes?
Newspaper article from: The Independent - London; 1/11/1996; ; 700+ words
; ...some marvellous plums. Who cares whether or not the Lady with the Lamp actually kept a pet owl in her pocket - the juxtaposition of owl and Nightingale is irresistible. Similarly, I was delighted to learn about the enormous nose of an elephantophile...
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Owl and the Nightingale, The
Book article from: The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature
Owl and the Nightingale, The, an early Middle English poem of 1,794 lines of octosyllabic...beginning of the 13th cent. It is a debate between the grave owl and the gay nightingale as to the benefits each confers on mankind. It touches with...
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The Owl and the Nightingale
Book article from: The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition
The Owl and the Nightingale Middle English poem written probably by Nicholas de Guildford...octosyllabic couplets, it describes a debate between the sober owl and the merry nightingale as to their respective merits. The allegory may represent...
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Middle English literature
Book article from: The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition
...Of approximately the same date, The Owl and the Nightingale (see separate article) is the first...continental form; in the poem, the owl, strictly monastic and didactic, and the nightingale, a free and amorous secular spirit...
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Layamon
Encyclopedia entry from: Encyclopedia of World Biography
...unhampered, dignified, and vigorous narrative. His Brut was one of the two secular poems (the other is The Owl and the Nightingale ) that foreshadowed the English literary resurgence. Further Reading Two books that give both text and a discussion...
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fight
Book article from: The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
...292 bc), ‘a man who flees will fight again.’ A Middle English variant is found in The Owl and the Nightingale ( c. 1250), ‘Wel fight that wel flight.’ see also that cock won't fight , fight one...
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