"Love is blind." "Don't judge a book by its cover." "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree." Proverbs like these are woven into the fabric of American English; many of us use them in our daily lives without a second thought. But as Professor of German and Folklore Wolfgang Mieder notes, upon closer inspection, proverbs have much to tell us about our culture.

Mieder is an internationally recognized scholar and the author and editor of hundreds of books and articles on proverbs. He served as chair of UVM's Department of German and Russian for more than three decades. 

About Faculty Feature:

What makes our faculty members tick? In this video series, get up close and personal with our professors. Hear them talk about their passions, their paths to UVM and why they love what they study, from the mysteries of Lake Champlain's sculpin to the stories of homeless children in Pakistan.