Πόλλ' οἶδ' ἀλώπηξ
a fox knows many things but a hedgehog one big one
Translated by David Whitehead18 Apr 2003Vetting: high5 revisions
Translation
[No gloss]
Greek original · Adler’s text
Πόλλ' οἶδ' ἀλώπηξ, ἀλλ' ἐχῖνος ἓν μέγα.
Betacode
*po/ll' oi)=d' a)lw/phc, a)ll' e)xi=nos e(\n me/ga.
Notes
- Archilochus fr. 201 West; Zenobius 5.68; and in Erasmus' Latin version, multa novit vulpes, verum echinus unum magnum.
This dictum prompted the famous 1953 essay by Isaiah Berlin, The Fox and the Hedgehog (on Tolstoy et al.)
For other proverbs involving foxes see alpha 1388, alpha 1391, alpha 1392; for another involving a hedgehog, epsilon 4009.
Neighbouring entries
π1929Πολλοῦ γε καὶ δεῖand very far from itπ1930Πολλοῦ δὴ δέω καὶ λέγεινI am far indeed from sayingπ1931Πόλλ' οἶδ' ἀλώπηξa fox knows many things but a hedgehog one big oneπ1932Πολλοὶ θριοβόλοι παῦροι δέ τε μάντιες ἄνδρεςmany thria-throwers but few prophetic menπ1933Πολλοὶ μὲν ἐχθροίmany enemies but few people to rely on
Revision history5 revisions · last 8 Oct 2013
- Revised — David Whitehead
- Revised — David Whitehead
- expanded notes — David Whitehead
- augmented note — David Whitehead
- set status — Catharine Roth
- Translated — David Whitehead