All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy
Encyclopedia
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy is a proverb
. It means that without time off from work, a person becomes both bored and boring.
's Proverbs in English, Italian, French and Spanish (1659), and was included in later collections of proverbs. It also appears in Howell's Paroimiographia (1659), p. 12.
Some writers have added a second part to the proverb, as in Harry and Lucy Concluded (1825) by the Irish novelist Maria Edgeworth
:
's short story, "Araby", to Jack Kerouac
's Big Sur
, to the 1957 movie, The Bridge on the River Kwai
), probably the most famous example appears in the 1980 movie The Shining
, when the main character (played by an actor named Jack
) types up the sentence on reams of sheets of paper. The proverb's psychotic use in The Shining had some effect on popular culture
, inspiring several other works to include a direct homage to the scene: for example, a 1994 episode of The Simpsons
, "Treehouse of Horror V
" contained a parody of the phrase, when Marge finds No TV and no beer make Homer go crazy written all over the walls. In a 1999 episode of Family Guy, "Peter, Peter, Caviar Eater
", when Stewie was riding his tri-bike at Lois's big inherited house and met the twins from The Shining at a corridor and they said "Come play with us Stewie for ever, and ever and ever", Stewie replied back to them "All work and no play makes Stewie a dull boy". A 2002 episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "Gone
", includes a scene where Buffy Summers
fills a social worker's report with pages consisting entirely of repetitions of "All work and no play make Doris a dull girl". In a 2009 episode of Wizards of Waverly Place, Max Russo
played by Jake T. Austin
, says the line to Alex Russo
played by Selena Gomez
when he is doing an impression of Jack Nicholson
. This reveals that he has seen The Shining. A 2001 episode of CSI
also includes a scene where Greg Sanders
is caught dancing in the lab by his boss, and says "All work and no play makes Greg a dull boy". Gil Grissom
responds by saying that all play and no work makes Greg an unemployed boy. During "Cafe Disco
", an episode on the popular NBC series "The Office
", Dwight makes a remark after Michael states that the office has gotten boring, saying "All work and no play makes Michael a dull boy!". The episode of the cartoon Ed, Edd n Eddy
titled "Stop, Look and Ed" features Eddy telling Rolf that "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy".
" computer virus, a member of the Jerusalem virus
family discovered in 1989, contained a reference to the proverb. Infected files will contain the string "Today is Sunday! Why do you work so hard? All work and no play make you a dull boy! Come on! Let's go out and have some fun!" The virus's payload prints the proverb on the screen and then deletes all files running while the virus is a resident in the memory, as the original Jerusalem did every Friday the 13th.
Proverb
A proverb is a simple and concrete saying popularly known and repeated, which expresses a truth, based on common sense or the practical experience of humanity. They are often metaphorical. A proverb that describes a basic rule of conduct may also be known as a maxim...
. It means that without time off from work, a person becomes both bored and boring.
History
Though the spirit of the proverb had been expressed previously, the modern saying appeared first in James HowellJames Howell
James Howell was a 17th-century Anglo-Welsh historian and writer who is in many ways a representative figure of his age. The son of a Welsh clergyman, he was for much of his life in the shadow of his elder brother Thomas Howell, who became Lord Bishop of Bristol.-Education:In 1613 he gained his B.A...
's Proverbs in English, Italian, French and Spanish (1659), and was included in later collections of proverbs. It also appears in Howell's Paroimiographia (1659), p. 12.
Some writers have added a second part to the proverb, as in Harry and Lucy Concluded (1825) by the Irish novelist Maria Edgeworth
Maria Edgeworth
Maria Edgeworth was a prolific Anglo-Irish writer of adults' and children's literature. She was one of the first realist writers in children's literature and was a significant figure in the evolution of the novel in Europe...
:
Uses in popular media
While the proverb is used in several examples of popular media (from James JoyceJames Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century...
's short story, "Araby", to Jack Kerouac
Jack Kerouac
Jean-Louis "Jack" Lebris de Kerouac was an American novelist and poet. He is considered a literary iconoclast and, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Kerouac is recognized for his spontaneous method of writing, covering topics such as Catholic...
's Big Sur
Big Sur
Big Sur is a sparsely populated region of the Central Coast of California where the Santa Lucia Mountains rise abruptly from the Pacific Ocean. The name "Big Sur" is derived from the original Spanish-language "el sur grande", meaning "the big south", or from "el país grande del sur", "the big...
, to the 1957 movie, The Bridge on the River Kwai
The Bridge on the River Kwai
The Bridge on the River Kwai is a 1957 British World War II film by David Lean based on The Bridge over the River Kwai by French writer Pierre Boulle. The film is a work of fiction but borrows the construction of the Burma Railway in 1942–43 for its historical setting. It stars William...
), probably the most famous example appears in the 1980 movie The Shining
The Shining (film)
The Shining is a 1980 psychological horror film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick, co-written with novelist Diane Johnson, and starring Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, and Danny Lloyd. The film is based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King. A writer, Jack Torrance, takes a job as an...
, when the main character (played by an actor named Jack
Jack Nicholson
John Joseph "Jack" Nicholson is an American actor, film director, producer and writer. He is renowned for his often dark portrayals of neurotic characters. Nicholson has been nominated for an Academy Award twelve times, and has won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice: for One Flew Over the...
) types up the sentence on reams of sheets of paper. The proverb's psychotic use in The Shining had some effect on popular culture
Popular culture
Popular culture is the totality of ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images and other phenomena that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture, especially Western culture of the early to mid 20th century and the emerging global mainstream of the...
, inspiring several other works to include a direct homage to the scene: for example, a 1994 episode of The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
, "Treehouse of Horror V
Treehouse of Horror V
"Treehouse of Horror V" is the sixth episode of The Simpsons sixth season and the fifth episode in the Treehouse of Horror series. It premiered on October 30, 1994, and features three short stories called The Shinning, Time and Punishment, and Nightmare Cafeteria...
" contained a parody of the phrase, when Marge finds No TV and no beer make Homer go crazy written all over the walls. In a 1999 episode of Family Guy, "Peter, Peter, Caviar Eater
Peter, Peter, Caviar Eater
"Peter, Peter, Caviar Eater" is the first episode of season two of Family Guy, originally aired on Fox on September 23, 1999. It guest-stars Robin Leach as himself, and Fairuza Balk as Connie D'Amico...
", when Stewie was riding his tri-bike at Lois's big inherited house and met the twins from The Shining at a corridor and they said "Come play with us Stewie for ever, and ever and ever", Stewie replied back to them "All work and no play makes Stewie a dull boy". A 2002 episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "Gone
Gone (Buffy episode)
"Gone" is the 11th episode of season 6 of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer.-Plot synopsis:Buffy feels life spinning out of control. In the previous episode, Willow got high on the magic and crashed a car, breaking Dawn's arm. Willow is still distraught. Dawn is ignoring Buffy...
", includes a scene where Buffy Summers
Buffy Summers
Buffy Summers is a fictional character from Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise. She first appeared in the 1992 film Buffy the Vampire Slayer before going on to appear in the television series and subsequent comic book of the same name...
fills a social worker's report with pages consisting entirely of repetitions of "All work and no play make Doris a dull girl". In a 2009 episode of Wizards of Waverly Place, Max Russo
Max Russo
Maximilian Alanzo Ernesto "Max" Russo is a fictional character on the Disney Channel sitcom Wizards of Waverly Place, portrayed by Jake T. Austin...
played by Jake T. Austin
Jake T. Austin
Jake T. Austin is an American actor and voice actor. Beginning a career as a child actor at the age of seven, Austin is a five-time Young Artist Award nominee, best known for his role as Max Russo, the youngest of three wizards on the Disney Channel original series Wizards of Waverly Place, and as...
, says the line to Alex Russo
Alex Russo
Alexandra Margarita "Alex" Russo is the main protagonist of the Disney Channel sitcom Wizards of Waverly Place, portrayed by Selena Gomez. As the middle child and only daughter, she is sly, outgoing, and sometimes rude to her family and friends. Alex usually underachieves when it comes to school...
played by Selena Gomez
Selena Gomez
Selena Marie Gomez is an American actress and singer best known for portraying Alex Russo in the Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel television series Wizards of Waverly Place...
when he is doing an impression of Jack Nicholson
Jack Nicholson
John Joseph "Jack" Nicholson is an American actor, film director, producer and writer. He is renowned for his often dark portrayals of neurotic characters. Nicholson has been nominated for an Academy Award twelve times, and has won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice: for One Flew Over the...
. This reveals that he has seen The Shining. A 2001 episode of CSI
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is an American crime drama television series, which premiered on CBS on October 6, 2000. The show was created by Anthony E. Zuiker and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer...
also includes a scene where Greg Sanders
Greg Sanders
Gregory Hojem-Sanders, is a fictional character on the CBS crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, portrayed by Eric Szmanda. Greg appeared in every episode, with exception of "Blood Drops", "Fahrenheit 932", "Crate N' Burial" and "Too Tough To Die" from season one, "Cross Jurisdictions" from...
is caught dancing in the lab by his boss, and says "All work and no play makes Greg a dull boy". Gil Grissom
Gil Grissom
Dr. Gilbert "Gil" Grissom, is a fictional character on the CBS crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, portrayed by William Petersen. Grissom was a forensic entomologist and the night-shift supervisor of the Clark County, Nevada CSI team, investigating crimes in and around the city of Las Vegas...
responds by saying that all play and no work makes Greg an unemployed boy. During "Cafe Disco
Cafe Disco
"Cafe Disco" is the twenty-seventh episode of the fifth season of the American comedy television series The Office, and the 99th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on May 7, 2009. Feeling the office is overworked after the recent reign of Charles Miner,...
", an episode on the popular NBC series "The Office
The Office
The Office is a popular mockumentary/situation comedy TV show that was first made in the UK and has now been re-made in many other countries, with overall viewership in the hundreds of millions worldwide. The original version of The Office was created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. It...
", Dwight makes a remark after Michael states that the office has gotten boring, saying "All work and no play makes Michael a dull boy!". The episode of the cartoon Ed, Edd n Eddy
Ed, Edd n Eddy
Ed, Edd n Eddy is an original animated television series created by Danny Antonucci and produced by Canadian-based a.k.a. Cartoon. It premiered on Cartoon Network on January 4, 1999. Ed, Edd n Eddy was one of Cartoon Network's longest running and most successful franchises and the longest-running...
titled "Stop, Look and Ed" features Eddy telling Rolf that "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy".
Computer viruses
The "SundaySunday (computer virus)
Sunday is a computer virus, a member of the Jerusalem virus family. It was discovered in November 1989 after a number of simultaneous reports from Seattle, Washington, United States, and surrounding areas. Several other Seattle outbreaks, including AirCop, were later traced to...
" computer virus, a member of the Jerusalem virus
Jerusalem (computer virus)
Jerusalem is a DOS virus first detected in Jerusalem, Israel, in October 1987. On infection, the Jerusalem virus becomes memory resident , and then infects every executable file run, except for COMMAND.COM. .COM files grow by 1,813 bytes when infected by Jerusalem and are not re-infected. .EXE...
family discovered in 1989, contained a reference to the proverb. Infected files will contain the string "Today is Sunday! Why do you work so hard? All work and no play make you a dull boy! Come on! Let's go out and have some fun!" The virus's payload prints the proverb on the screen and then deletes all files running while the virus is a resident in the memory, as the original Jerusalem did every Friday the 13th.