[ti:Famous Proverbs from a Famous Man] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]¸ü¶àÌýÁ¦Çë·ÃÎÊ51VOA.COM [00:08.38]Now, the VOA Learning English program Words and Their Stories. [00:14.14]On today's program, we talk about popular sayings, called proverbs. [00:24.54]Many you will hear today come from a very famous person [00:30.04]in American history -- Benjamin Franklin. [00:33.48]Now, here is Barbara Klein reading a story written by Shelley Gollust. [00:39.98]Today we talk about proverbs. [00:44.00]A proverb is a short, well known saying [00:48.34]that expresses a common truth or belief. [00:52.52]Proverbs are found in most cultures and are often very old. [00:59.48]In American history, Benjamin Franklin was famous for his proverbs. [01:06.61]Franklin lived in the 1700s. [01:10.47]He was a leader of the American Revolution against English rule. [01:16.48]He was also a scientist, inventor and writer. [01:22.40]For many years, Franklin published a book called "Poor Richard's Almanac." [01:29.16]He included many proverbs that he had heard or created. [01:34.27]Some of them are still used today. [01:37.87]Like this one: "Early to bed and early to rise [01:43.00]makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise." [01:47.57]Franklin is also remembered for other proverbs like, [01:51.92]"A penny saved is a penny earned." [01:55.07]This means that money should not be wasted. [01:59.04]Here are other examples of proverbs that Americans use. [02:05.01]The first ones are about love. [02:08.66]Some people say, "All is fair in love and war." [02:14.30]They mean that anything you do in a relationship or in battle is acceptable. [02:21.52]Another proverb about love is, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder." [02:27.81]This means you love someone even more when he or she is far away. [02:35.45]But other people say, "Out of sight, out of mind." [02:40.72]You may not even think about that person when he or she is not with you. [02:47.16]Which of these proverbs do you think is most true? [02:52.36]Another proverb says "Love is blind." [02:57.93]In other words, when you are in love with someone, [03:01.62]you may refuse to see anything bad about that person. [03:06.57]Here is another popular saying about love: [03:10.89]"The way to a man's heart is through his stomach." [03:15.81]Some people believe that a woman can win a man's love [03:20.64]if she prepares his favorite foods. [03:24.17]Some people are only interested in having a relationship [03:29.46]with someone who is very good-looking. [03:33.06]You might tell them that "Beauty is only skin deep." [03:38.68]Your girlfriend may be lovely to look at, [03:42.79]but she may also have some bad qualities. [03:46.58]Or the opposite may be true. [03:50.22]Your boyfriend is a wonderful person, but not good-looking. [03:55.93]So what a person looks like is not really important. [04:01.55]Another proverb is true in love and war or other situations: [04:07.89]"Actions speak louder than words." [04:11.70]It means that what you do is more important than what you say. [04:17.83]Sadly, we have no more time for this program. [04:22.84]So we must say, "All good things must come to an end." [04:29.02]And that brings us to the end of this Words and Their Stories. [04:36.20]Until next time ... I'm Anna Matteo. [04:40.20]Nelly Furtado singing: All Good Things (Must Come to an End.)