Most unfortunate phrase in an old novel

Mike001 · Post by **Mike001** » February 19th, 2012, 12:07 pm

I think a good candidate would be Charles Dickens' Martin Chuzzlewit with:

She touched his organ ...

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/968/968-h/968-h.htm#2HCH0024

Post by **aradlaw** » February 19th, 2012, 12:36 pm

I've always been amused over the word toilet as refered to in old novels.

b. A room or booth containing such a fixture.
2. The act or process of dressing or grooming oneself.

During one session of PLing, the phrase "She stood in her toilet" comes to mind

Norton · Post by **Norton** » February 19th, 2012, 12:51 pm

aradlaw wrote:During one session of PLing, the phrase "She stood in her toilet" comes to mind

Toilets were harder to unclog back then!

As long as our minds are in the sewer:

Moby Dick wrote:After taking counsel with his officers, he ... stacked his muskets on the poop;

Starlite · Post by **Starlite** » February 19th, 2012, 6:07 pm

Oliver Twist - "Master Bates".

Esther

Mike001 · Post by **Mike001** » February 19th, 2012, 11:34 pm

This is silly, but ...

I was listening to Emma Kirkby singing The Morning, and there are some lines where she's singing as if she were a shepherd singing about his beloved:

With ceasless plaints my absent Delia mourn

The absurd thought suddenly entered my head that she was bemoaning the loss of her cookbook.

Post by **annise** » February 20th, 2012, 12:15 am

I think the thing that really raises my eyebrows every time is people ejaculating all over the place - and I can think of many clever things to add ............ and I am not posting any of them

Anne

RuthieG · Post by **RuthieG** » February 20th, 2012, 2:52 am

Ladies and gentlemen, your minds are in the gutter.

From an audiobook point of view, here is one from another place (not a PD book) which I challenge you to read aloud without laughing. I couldn't.

A cock crowed, blending with the church bells and Philippe's hoarse breathing beside her

Ruth

Post by **annise** » February 20th, 2012, 3:18 am

RuthieG wrote:
A cock crowed, blending with the church bells and Philippe's hoarse breathing beside her
Ruth

Are you sure it wasn't supposed to be Phillipe's gallant steed blowing in her ear ???
It sounds like a contender for the world's worse written book award.

Anne

RuthieG · Post by **RuthieG** » February 20th, 2012, 3:29 am

I checked carefully for equine characters...

Mike001 · Post by **Mike001** » February 20th, 2012, 10:35 am

RuthieG wrote:Ladies and gentlemen, your minds are in the gutter.

Fair comment against me as I started the topic.

Actually, I do quite admire the relative innocence of some old books. I think it's not just language change bringing in new and unforeseen meanings. I think it's sometimes that they say it and simply don't see it.

They're innocent in other ways, too. From Martin Chuzzlewit again:

There was a cordial candour in his manner, and an engaging confidence that it would not be abused; a manly bearing on his own part, and a simple reliance on the manly faith of a stranger; which Martin had never seen before. He linked his arm readily in that of the American gentleman, and they walked out together.

This is authentic 18-century manners. Men did walk with each other arm-in-arm. Nowadays people would immediately see a sexual motive in something like that, where, in fact, there really wasn't at all.

I blame Freud.

On a lighter note, I don't think the Welsh poet W. H. Davies would these days be able to get away with the line:

Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

kayray · Post by **kayray** » February 20th, 2012, 11:52 pm

I freely admit that my mind is in the gutter. This whole thread gave me a good long laugh!

Lucy_k_p · Post by **Lucy_k_p** » February 21st, 2012, 3:30 am

There were a lot more pregnant pauses back in the olden days, although you do find a few of them around today. They are not quite an endangered species just yet.

jollyrogered · Post by **jollyrogered** » February 21st, 2012, 7:40 am

Oh *chuckle* dear *snort*.

I laughed so hard reading those. I'm so relieved Im not the only one that has to stop for a moment when coming across those lines. It reminds me in high school when we were reading exerpts from Chaucer, and everyone was "making love to her" or "making sweet love in his ear." I thought everyone was running around doing the nasty. The teacher didn't bother to mention what it meant until a month later, and by then, I had a completely difference mindset about the time period.

lvictoria · Post by **lvictoria** » February 21st, 2012, 10:26 am

RuthieG wrote:Ladies and gentlemen, your minds are in the gutter.

From an audiobook point of view, here is one from another place (not a PD book) which I challenge you to read aloud without laughing. I couldn't.

A cock crowed, blending with the church bells and Philippe's hoarse breathing beside her
Ruth

Okay, so I've laughed so hard I'm crying.

Actually, I'm still laughing.

Mike001 · Post by **Mike001** » February 21st, 2012, 10:33 am

jollyrogered wrote:Oh *chuckle* dear *snort*.

I laughed so hard reading those. I'm so relieved Im not the only one that has to stop for a moment when coming across those lines. It reminds me in high school when we were reading exerpts from Chaucer, and everyone was "making love to her" or "making sweet love in his ear." I thought everyone was running around doing the nasty. The teacher didn't bother to mention what it meant until a month later, and by then, I had a completely difference mindset about the time period.

Yes, talking of love (or talking lovingly) to someone -- that was a pretty usual sense of that phrase till quite recently:

"Very well," said Mrs Quilp, nodding her head, "as I said just now, it's very easy to talk, but I say again that I know—that I'm sure—Quilp has such a way with him when he likes, that the best looking woman here couldn't refuse him if I was dead, and she was free, and he chose to make love to her. Come!"

You could probably find it used in that sense in a novel of the 1930s, perhaps later. That phrase must take people by surprise.

Doesn't sound like Middle English, though. I'd have expected luf-talking. You don't remember which tale?