proverb · Words worth keeping
"Welcome death," quoth the rat, when the trap fell down.
"Welcome death," quoth the rat, when the trap fell down.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying gives a trapped rat the words welcome death. The unexpected welcome can be read as resignation in an image of an apparently closed escape.
What the words are saying
Quoth turns the animal’s predicament into a brief speaking scene. A responsible reading does not assume real creatures welcome death or make the phrase advice to someone in distress. It can invite discussion of how a story represents resignation, bravado or irony; the exact tone is not independently supplied. The apparent trap should not be treated as proof that help is impossible.
Everyday example
A reader discusses the possible irony of a character’s words while avoiding the conclusion that anyone’s difficult situation has no remedy.
When to use it
Use it to examine a dramatic statement in a trap image.
What it does not mean
The phrase is not evidence of an actual wish to die or an instruction to give up.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases
Entry 1747 · Welcome
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English