Gift Horse (William Baddoo)

Title: Gift Horse (William Baddoo)

General Information about Item:

Informant Data:

Jose is a male Dartmouth student in the class of 2021. He was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. He comes from a family of Mexican descent. On campus Jose is a member of various student organizations.

Contextual Data:

Jose first heard this proverb when he was in middle school. Jose says that up until high school he had a somewhat privileged upbringing and lacked the perspective that he has now. During middle school he participated in a secret Santa for his birthday. He received a gift from his friend that I had a lot of thought put into it. Jose did not like the gift even though his friend put effort and time into the gift. The proverb was relevant in this situation because its meaning is that a gift is a gift and that you should not be ungrateful for something that was given to you. At the time Jose was trying to explain or justify his dissatisfaction with the gift, instead of the appreciating the fact that his friend cared enough about him to give him the gift.

Item

Transcript:

“Un caballo Regalado no se le mira el diente”

Translation:

“A horse given as a gift you shouldn’t look at its teeth.

Informant’s Comments:

When you receive a gift you should be grateful for the gesture and not look for flaws. For example, if you were given a horse, you shouldn’t look at its teeth because that’s not important.

Collector’s Comments:

This proverbs highlights the importance of appreciating gestures from family and friends. It also uses a horse a metaphor for gifts in general. Not all gifts are perfect but it’s not appropriate for the person to look for flaws in gift, especially when a lot of thought and passion is put into it. Culturally, many gifts given are more practical rather than superficial or flashy.

Collector’s Name: William Baddoo

Tags/Keywords:

Dartmouth Folklore Archive