This is what I see as the thesis of Cooperâs book, an idea he traces across continents and through four centuries, from Mathew Lewisâs Gothic novel The Monk (1796) to James Wanâs âtorture pornâ film Saw (2004).
The definition of proverbial is something well-known or commonly referred to. When someone always uses the same old excuse, over and over again until it becomes old news, this is an example of that person's proverbial excuse. 1  of, or having the nature of, a proverb.  expressed in a proverb.
Understand Common Expressions and Sayings. Idioms, adages, and proverbs are types of common expressions and sayings that have meanings beyond what can be understood by their individual words. An idiom is an expression common to a particular culture that does not mean what it literally says.