Say What? Too many cooks spoil the broth / A problem shared is a problem halved

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In this week's "Say What?" the proverbs that we're examining are about how sharing something can be both bad and good, and the examples I'm using will be from NCIS.


Too many cooks spoil the broth

While you first might look at this expression and start wondering who exactly makes up sayings and proverbs, there is an element of logic behind this expression, at least. "Too many cooks ..." can be considered a warning about doing things, in this case making broth, by committee. While one cook working alone can make a decent soup, having a number of cooks arguing over the recipe, the different ingredients, how long it should be simmered, and so on, can end up being a recipe for something inedible. The expression can be traced to the 1575 Life of Carew by J. Hooker, which includes the following:

There is the proverb, the more cooks the worse potage

Obviously the expression changed a bit over the years, so by 1662, B. Gerbier recorded in Principles of Building that:

When ... an undertaking hath been committed to many, it caused but confusion, and therefore it is a saying ... Too many Cooks spoils the Broth.

This very much is in line with the explanation of too many people in charge making a mess of things and is also in accordance with something Abraham Lincoln said, though he was quoting an existing proverbial expression:

One bad general is better than two good ones ... an army is better directed by a single mind, though inferior, than by two superior ones, at variance, and cross purposes with each other.

So while this at first may appear to be a rather strange expression, it actually makes a lot of sense. Of course, when represented in the way my father always used to communicate it to me, it makes next to no sense at all!

A superabundance of talent skilled in the preparation of gastronomic concoctions will impair the quality of a certain potable solution made by immersing a gallinaceous bird in ebullient Adam’s ale.

It's no problem to work this into your own writing, as I've done here:

"Why are they not able to make a decision?" Ziva said, watching Gibbs and Fornell argue over who would follow up on which lead.
"Too many cooks spoil the broth," Tony replied, a knowing tone in his voice.

A problem/trouble shared is a problem/trouble halved

Unlike the first expression, which dated back to the 16th century, our second is from the first half of the 20th century and was first used by D. L. Sayers in her 1931 book Five Red Herrings:

'Unbosom yourself,' said Wimsey. 'Trouble shared is trouble halved.'

In it we have Lord Peter Wimsey espousing something quite different to the problem of having too many people trying to run things. Instead he focuses on the fact that telling someone about the problem you're having, or the trouble you're in, can make you feel a lot better about things -- if only because there are now two people thinking about a possible solution.

Here's an example of using this proverb:

"Come on, McAgitated," Tony said as he pushed his chair over to McGee's desk, "tell Uncle Tony about your troubles. You know that a problem shared is a problem halved."

And that wraps things up for this week. You should now have a better understanding of these two expressions and can make more sense of where they might be used in your own stories. If you do get confused about when to use which, make sure to share that problem with your beta readers, not bicker with them about who knows best -- because that could be too many cooks spoiling the broth. :)


Sources
Simpson, John and Speake, Jennifer. A Dictionary of Proverbs, Oxford University Press, 2008.
Taggert, Caroline, An Apple A Day, Readers Digest, 2011.
Sesquipedalian brain-teasers