Fart
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
-
This article is about the word fart itself. For information on the bodily function of passing intestinal gas (flatus) via the anus, see Flatulence. For the acronym, see FART.
Fart is an English word which literally refers to flatulence. The word is generally considered mildly offensive and unsuitable in a formal environment by modern English speakers, though conservative locales may consider it vulgar or offensive. "Fart" can be used as a noun or a verb.
While it primarily denotes flatulence, it has other meanings: the phrase "to fart around" refers to goofing off or wasting time; an "old fart" is a somewhat derogatory term for a old-fashioned or elderly person. The word "fart" has also been described in many dictionaries including the Collins series as "an explosion of gas between the legs".
Contents |
[edit] Usage history
[edit] Early usage
A well known usage of the fart in Middle English occurs in Chaucer's "Miller's Tale" (one of the Canterbury Tales). In the tale (which is told by a bawdy miller as a group of pilgrims travel to Canterbury), the character Nicholas hangs his buttocks out of a window and farts in the face of his rival Absolom, who is instead expecting a kiss. Absolom is humiliated by this gesture. Nicholas then attempts to repeat the prank, and Absolom then sears Nicholas's rear with a red-hot poker.
This Alison answered; "Who is there
That knocketh so? I warrant him a thief."
"Nay, nay," quoth he, "God wot, my sweete lefe,
I am thine Absolon, my own darling.
Of gold," quoth he, "I have thee brought a ring,
My mother gave it me, so God me save!
Full fine it is, and thereto well y-grave:
This will I give to thee, if thou me kiss."
Now Nicholas was risen up to piss,
And thought he would amenden all the jape;
He shoulde kiss his erse ere that he scape:
And up the window did he hastily,
And out his erse he put full privily
Over the buttock, to the haunche bone.
And therewith spake this clerk, this Absolon,
"Speak, sweete bird, I know not where thou art."
This Nicholas anon let fly a fart,
As great as it had been a thunder dent;
That with the stroke he was well nigh y-blent;
But he was ready with his iron hot,
And Nicholas amid the erse he smote.
Off went the skin an handbreadth all about.
The hote culter burned so his toutv,
That for the smart he weened he would die;
As he were wood, for woe he gan to cry,
[edit] Later usage
The gerund appeared in 1652 in a satirical work entitled "Paul's Churchyard."
"Whether the aforesaid Alderman (for his many and good services in the preservation of the publicke peace) be not worthy to be voted Thanks; more expecially for preventing a deadly feud lately in Cheapside between two Boyes, one beating the other for Farting, because he would not cry Atkins?"
"To break wind behind." (Samuel Johnson 1709 - 1784).
As when we a gun discharge,
Although the bore be ne'er so large,
Before the flame from muzzle burst,
Just at the breech it flashes first;
So from my lord his passion broke,
He farted first, and then he spoke."
- Swift.
The word "raspberry" is used euphemistically, it comes from the Cockney rhyming slang "raspberry tart". In 1990, Carl Japikse released a compilation of letters in a book entitled Fart Proudly, Writings of Benjamin Franklin You Never Read In School (Enthea Press). As the title suggests, Franklin himself had actually written 'fart' in several of his correspondences.
[edit] Modern usage
By the early twentieth century, the word fart had come to be considered rather vulgar in most English-speaking cultures. For a long time, the word was forbidden from the public airwaves in the United States. [citation needed] While not one of George Carlin's original seven dirty words, he noted in a later routine that the word fart (along with turd and twat), ought to be added to "the list" of words that were not acceptable (for broadcast) in any context (as opposed to words such as ass or cock which have non-offensive meanings).
With the rise of cable television and changing social mores in general, the word fart is (in 2006) frequently heard in the broadcast media. It is also now found in such places as children's literature, such as the Walter the Farting Dog series of children's books. While still considered impolite in some social contexts, much of the stigma which surrounded the word has disappeared. Howard Stern is a known supporter and longtime champion of the fart. In fact, Stern has featured fart-related humor in many of his routines, and even created a character called Fartman.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Fart Sounds Site focused on farts
- Fascinating Facts and Fantasies about Farting
- Fartalicious Site dedicated to Fart videos
- Facts on Farts Answers to common questions about farts
