the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry en · X
Etymology
From a Scots poem by Robert Burns, To a Mouse. In the original Scots, the lines are, “The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men / Gang aft agley”.
Meanings
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No matter how well a project is planned, accidents or misfortune can still occur.
But mouse, you are not alone, In proving foresight may be vain; The best laid schemes of mice and men go often askew And leave us nothing but grief and pain, For promised joy!
1785, Robert Burns, To a Mouse:Knowing her supremely perfect being was completely mine […] I could conceive of no obstacle to my satisfaction, well, “the best laid plans of mice & men go astray” and my nemesis was her sister, the bitch.
1971, Neal Cassady, “Letter to Jack Kerouac, March 7, 1947”, in The First Third, City Lights, page 125:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| the best laid plans of mice and men go oft astray | alternative | lexicographic |
Relateds
accidents will happen in the best regulated families · agley § Usage notes