Derek and Clive
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| - | '''''Fuck''''' is an [[English language|English]] [[word]] that, as a [[verb]], fundamentally means "to have [[sexual intercourse]] with". Its use is generally considered [[censurable]] and [[offensive]] in most formal circles, but may also be rather common or expected in certain situations or social groups. | ||
| - | It is unclear whether the word has always been considered [[vulgar]], and if not, when it first came to be used to describe (often in an extremely angry, hostile or belligerent manner) negative or unpleasant circumstances or people in an intentionally offensive way, such as in the term "motherfucker", one of its more common usages. | + | '''Derek and Clive''' was a [[double act]] of comedic characters created by [[Dudley Moore]] (Derek) and [[Peter Cook]] (Clive) in the 1970s. The performances were captured on the records ''[[Derek and Clive (Live)]]'' (1976), ''[[Derek and Clive Come Again]]'' (1977), and ''[[Derek and Clive Ad Nauseam]]'' (1978), as well as in a film documentary, ''[[Derek and Clive Get the Horn]]'' (1979). |
| - | ==Etymology== | + | ==Discography== |
| - | The ''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'' states that the ultimate etymology is uncertain, but that the word is "probably cognate" with a number of native [[Germanic languages|Germanic]] words with meanings involving striking, rubbing, and having sex. See ''[[futuere]]''. | + | * ''[[Derek and Clive (Live)]]'' (1976) |
| + | * ''[[Derek and Clive Come Again]]'' (1977) | ||
| + | * ''[[Derek and Clive Ad Nauseam]]'' (1978) | ||
| + | * ''[[Derek and Clive Get the Horn]]'' (1979) | ||
| + | * ''[[Rude & Rare: The Best of Derek and Clive]]'' (2011) | ||
| - | ===Flen flyys and freris=== | ||
| - | The usually accepted first known occurrence is in [[Code (cryptography)|code]] in a poem in a mixture of [[Latin]] and English composed some time before 1500. The poem, which satirizes the [[Carmelite]] friars of [[Cambridge, England]], takes its title, "[[Flen flyys]]", from the first words of its opening line, ''Flen, flyys, and freris'' (= "[[Flea]]s, [[flies]], and [[friars]]"). The line that contains ''fuck'' reads ''Non sunt in coeli, quia gxddbov xxkxzt pg ifmk''. Removing the [[substitution cipher]] (here, replacing each letter by the next letter in alphabetical order, as the English alphabet was then) on the phrase "''gxddbov xxkxzt pg ifmk''" yields ''non sunt in coeli, quia fvccant vvivys of heli'', which translated means, "They are not in heaven because they fuck wives of [[Ely, Cambridgeshire|Ely]]". The phrase was coded likely because it accused some Church personnel of misbehaving; it is uncertain to what extent the word ''fuck'' was considered acceptable at the time. (The stem of ''fvccant'' is an English word used as Latin: English [[medieval Latin]] has many examples of writers using English words when they did not know the Latin word: "''workmannus''" is an example.) (In the [[Middle English]] of this poem, the term, [[wife]] still was used generically for [[woman]].) | ||
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| - | ===John le Fucker=== | ||
| - | A man's name, ''John le Fucker'', is said to be reported from AD 1278, but the report is doubtful: an email discussion on [[Linguist List]] says: | ||
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| - | :"This name has been exhaustively argued over ... The "John le Fucker" reference first appears in [[Carl Buck]]'s 1949 [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]] dictionary. Buck does not supply a citation as to where he found the name. No one has subsequently found the manuscript in which it is alleged to have appeared. If the citation is genuine and not an error, it is most likely a spelling variant of "fulcher", meaning [[soldier]]." | ||
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| - | ===Anglo-Saxon=== | ||
| - | An [[Anglo-Saxons|Anglo-Saxon]] [[charter]] granted by [[Offa]], king of [[Mercia]], dated AD 772, granting land at [[Bexhill, Sussex]] to a bishop, includes this text in a mixture of [[Anglo-Saxon language]] and [[Latin]]: | ||
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| - | :''Þonne syndon þa gauolland þas utlandes into Bexlea in hiis locis qui appellantur hiis nominibus: on Berna hornan .iii. hida, on Wyrtlesham .i., on Ibbanhyrste .i., on Croghyrste .viii., on Hrigce .i., on Gyllingan .ii., on Fuccerham 7 and on Blacanbrocan .i., on Ikelesham .iii.;'' | ||
| - | |||
| - | :Then the tax-lands of the outland belonging to [[Bexley]] are in these places which are called by these names: at [[Barnhorne]] 3 [[Hide (unit)|hides]], at ''Wyrtlesham'' [Worsham farm near [[Bexhill-on-Sea|Bexhill]] ] 1, at ''Ibbanhyrst'' 1, at [[Crowhurst, East Sussex|Crowhurst]] 8, at ([[Rye]]? The ridge north of [[Hastings]]?) 1, at [[Gillingham, Medway|Gillingham]] 2, at '''''Fuccerham''''' and at Blackbrook [may be Black Brooks in [[Westfield, East Sussex|Westfield]] village just north of [[Hastings]] ] 1, at [[Icklesham]] 3. | ||
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| - | The placename ''Fuccerham'' may or may not be related to the verb "fuck", which in Anglo-Saxon would have been ''fucian'' = "to fuck", ''ic fucie'' = "I fuck". | ||
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| - | ===Older etymology=== | ||
| - | ====Via Germanic==== | ||
| - | The word has probable [[cognate]]s in other Germanic languages, such as [[German language|German]] ''ficken'' (to fuck); [[Dutch language|Dutch]] ''fokken'' (to breed, to strike, to beget); dialectal [[Norwegian language|Norwegian]] ''fukka'' (to copulate), and dialectal [[Swedish language|Swedish]] ''fokka'' (to strike, to copulate) and ''fock'' ([[penis]]). This points to a possible etymology where [[Common Germanic]] ''fuk–'' comes from an [[Indo-European language|Indo-European]] root meaning "to strike", cognate with non-Germanic words such as Latin ''[[pugnus]]'' "[[fist]]". By reverse application of [[Grimm's law]], this hypothetical root has the form *''pug–''. In early [[Proto-Germanic]] the word was likely used at first as a slang or euphemistic replacement for an older word for ''intercourse'', and then became the usual word for ''intercourse''. | ||
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| - | Yet another possible etymology is from the [[Old High German]] word ''pfluog'', meaning "to plow, as in a field". This is supported in part by a book by [[Carl Jung]], ''[[Psychology of the Unconscious|Psychology of the Unconscious: A Study of the Transformations and Symbolisms of the Libido]]'', in which he discusses the "primitive play of words" and the [[phallic]] representation of the plough, including its appearance on a vase found in an [[archaeological]] dig near [[Florence, Italy]], which depicts six [[wikt:ithyphallic|ithyphallic]] (erect-penised) men carrying a plow. | ||
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| - | The original [[Proto-Indo-European language|Indo-European]] [[root (linguistics)|root]] for ''to copulate'' is likely to be * ''h<sub>3</sub>yeb<sup>h</sup>–'' or *''h<sub>3</sub>eyb<sup>h</sup>–'', which is attested in [[Sanskrit]] [[wikt:यभति|यभति]] (''yabhati''), [[Russian language|Russian]] [[wikt:ебать|ебать]] (''yebat'''), [[Polish language|Polish]] ''[[wikt:jebać|jebać]]'', and [[Serbian language|Serbian]] ''[[wikt:jebati#Serbian|jebati]]'', among others: compare the Greek verb [[wikt:οἴφω|οἴφω]] (''oíphō'') = "I have sex with", and the Greek noun [[wikt:Ζέφυρος|Ζέφυρος]] (Zéphyros) (which references a Greek belief that the west wind [[Anemoi#West wind (Zephyrus)|Zephyrus]] caused pregnancy). | ||
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| - | ====Via Latin or Greek==== | ||
| - | * Other possible connections are to Latin [[futuo|fūtuere]] (almost exactly the same meaning as the English verb "to fuck"); but it would have to be explained how the word reached [[Scandinavia]] from Roman contact, and how the ''t'' became ''k''. From ''fūtuere'' came [[French language|French]] ''foutre'', [[Catalan language|Catalan]] ''fotre'', [[Italian language|Italian]] ''fottere'', [[Romanian language|Romanian]] ''futere'', vulgar peninsular [[Spanish language|Spanish]] ''follar'' and ''joder'', and [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] ''foder''. However, there is considerable doubt and no clear lineage for these derivations. These roots, even if cognates, are not the original Indo-European word for ''to copulate'', but [[Wayland Young]] (who agrees that these words are related) argues that they derive from the Indo-European *''b<sup>h</sup>u–'' or *''b<sup>h</sup>ug–'' ("be", "become"), or as causative "create" [see Young, 1964]. A possible intermediate might be a Latin 4<sup>th</sup>-[[declension]] [[verbal noun]] *''fūtus'', with possible meanings including "act of (pro)creating". | ||
| - | * A derivation from [[Latin]] ''facere'' = "to do", "to make" has been suggested. | ||
| - | * Greek ''phyō'' (φυω) has various meanings, including (of a man) "to beget", or (of a woman), "to give birth to". Its [[perfect (grammar)|perfect]] ''pephyka'' (πεφυκα) can be likened to "fuck" and its equivalents in other Germanic languages. | ||
| - | ===False etymologies=== | ||
| - | One reason that the word ''fuck'' is so hard to trace etymologically is that it was used far more extensively in common speech than in easily traceable written forms. There are several [[urban legend|urban-legend]] [[false etymology|false etymologies]] postulating an [[acronym]]ic origin for the word. None of these acronyms were ever heard before the 1960s, according to the authoritative [[lexicographer|lexicographical]] work ''The F-Word'', and thus are [[backronym]]s. In any event, the word ''fuck'' has been in use far too long for some of these supposed origins to be possible. Some of these urban legends are that the word ''fuck'' came from [[Ireland|Irish]] law. If a couple were caught committing [[adultery]], they would be punished "For Unlawful [[wikt:carnal knowledge|Carnal Knowledge]] In the Nude", with "FUCKIN" written on the [[stocks]] above them to denote the crime. Another theory is that of a royal permission. During the [[Black Death]] in the [[Middle Ages]], [[town]]s were trying to control populations and their interactions. Since uncontaminated resources were scarce, many towns required permission to have [[children]]. Hence, the legend goes, that couples that were having children were required to first obtain royal permission (usually from a local magistrate or lord) and then place a sign somewhere visible from the [[road]] in their home that said "[[fornicate|Fornicating]] Under [[Consent]] of [[King]]", which was later shortened to "FUCK". This story is hard to document but has persisted in oral and literary traditions for many years; however, it has been demonstrated to be an urban legend. | ||
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| - | The word "fuck" did not come from any of the following: | ||
| - | * "File Under Carnal Knowledge" | ||
| - | * "[[Fornication]] Under the Christian King" | ||
| - | * "Fornication Under the Command of the King" | ||
| - | * "Fornication Under the Consent of the King" | ||
| - | * "Fornication Under Carnal/Cardinal Knowledge" | ||
| - | * "False Use of Carnal Knowledge" | ||
| - | * "[[Felony|Felonious]] Use of Carnal Knowledge" | ||
| - | * "Felonious Unlawful Carnal Knowledge" | ||
| - | * "Full-On Unlawful Carnal Knowledge" | ||
| - | * "For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge" | ||
| - | * "Found Under Carnal Knowledge" | ||
| - | * "Found Unlawful Carnal Knowledge" | ||
| - | * "Forced Unlawful Carnal Knowledge" (referring to the crime of [[rape]]) | ||
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| - | ==Rise of Modern Usage== | ||
| - | Though it appeared in John Ash's 1775 '''A New and Complete Dictionary''', listed as "[[low]]" and "[[vulgar]]", and appearing with several definitions, ''Fuck'' did not appear in any widely-consulted dictionary of the English language from 1795 to [[1965]]. Its first appearance in the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (along with the word ''[[cunt]]'') was in [[1972]]. | ||
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| - | In [[1928]], [[D. H. Lawrence]]'s novel ''[[Lady Chatterley's Lover]]'' gained notoriety for its frequent use of the words ''fuck'', ''fucked'', and ''fucking''. | ||
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| - | Perhaps the earliest usage of the word in popular music was the [[1938]] [[Eddy Duchin]] release of the [[Louis Armstrong]] song "[[Ol' Man Mose]]". The words created a scandal at the time, resulting in sales of 170,000 copies during the [[Great Depression]] years when sales of 20,000 were considered blockbuster. The verse reads: | ||
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| - | <blockquote> | ||
| - | We believe) He kicked the bucket,<br />(We believe) Yeah man, buck-buck-bucket,<br />(We believe) He kicked the bucket and ol' man mose is dead,<br />(We believe) Ahh, fuck it!<br />(We believe) Buck-buck-bucket,<br />(We believe) He kicked the bucket and ol' man mose is dead. | ||
| - | </blockquote> | ||
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| - | The liberal usage of the word (and other vulgarisms) by certain artists (such as [[James Joyce]], [[Henry Miller]], [[Lenny Bruce]], and [[Peter Cook]] and [[Dudley Moore]], in their [[Derek and Clive]] personas) has led to the banning of their works and criminal charges of [[obscenity]]. | ||
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| - | After [[Norman Mailer]]'s publishers convinced him to [[Thomas Bowdler|bowdlerize]] ''fuck'' as ''fug'' in his work ''[[The Naked and the Dead]]'' [[1948|(1948)]], [[Tallulah Bankhead]] supposedly greeted him with the [[quip]], "So you're the young man who can't spell ''fuck''." In fact, according to Mailer, the quip was devised by Bankhead's [[public relations|PR man]]. He and Bankhead didn't meet until 1966 and did not discuss the word then. The rock group [[The Fugs]] named themselves after the Mailer [[euphemism]]. | ||
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| - | The science fiction novel ''[[That Hideous Strength]]'' (1945), by [[C.S. Lewis]], includes lines of dialog with the word ''bucking'' used the same way as ''[[fugging]]'' would be in Mailer's novel, published three years later. | ||
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| - | In his novel ''[[Ulysses (novel)|Ulysses]]'' (1922), [[James Joyce]] used a sly spelling [[pun]] for ''fuck'' (and ''[[cunt]]'' as well) with the [[doggerel]] verse: | ||
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| - | <blockquote>If you see Kay,<br />Tell him he may.<br />See you in tea,<br />Tell him from me. | ||
| - | </blockquote> | ||
| - | [[Memphis Slim]] had a melancholy [[blues]] about lost love entitled "If You See Kay". | ||
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| - | ''[[The Catcher in the Rye]]'' by [[J. D. Salinger]] featured an early use of ''fuck you'' in print. First published in the United States in 1951, the novel remains controversial to this day due to its use of the word, and offers a blunt portrayal of the main character's reaction to the existence of the word, and all that it means. | ||
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| - | The Australian [[vaudeville]] comedian [[Roy Rene]] once had a comedy 'skit' where he would act with another person and would write the letter 'F' on a blackboard (on stage) and then ask his co-actor: 'What letter do you see' to which he would reply: 'K'. Mo would then say: 'Why is it that whenever I write F you see K?' | ||
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| - | The first use of the word ''fuck'' on [[United Kingdom|British]] television came on [[November 13]], [[1965]] on the satirical show ''BBC-3'' (no relation to the present channel of that name). The theatre critic [[Kenneth Tynan]] declared, apropos of nothing, that "I doubt if there are any rational people to whom the word 'fuck' would be particularly diabolical, revolting or totally forbidden." Kenneth Tynan was soon-after fired for his free use of the word. | ||
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| - | One of the earliest mainstream [[Hollywood]] movies to use the word ''fuck'' was director [[Robert Altman]]'s irreverent antiwar film, ''[[MASH (film)|MASH]]'', released in 1970 at the height of the [[Vietnam War]]. During the football game sequence about three-quarters of the way through the film, one of the MASH linemen says to an 8063rd offensive player, "All right, bud, your fuckin' head is coming right off." Also, former [[Beatle]] [[John Lennon]]'s 1971 release "[[Working Class Hero]]" featured use of the word, which was rare in music at the time and caused it to, at most, be played only in segments on the radio. In 2007, some 36 years later, Green Day did a cover of Lennon's song, which was censored for radio airplay, with the "Ph.." sound being audible but then phased out. | ||
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| - | Former ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' cast member [[Charles Rocket]] uttered the vulgarity in one of the earliest instances of its use on television, during a 1980 episode of the show, for which he was subsequently fired. | ||
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| - | Comedian [[George Carlin]] once commented that the word ''fuck'' ought to be considered more appropriate, because of its implications of love and reproduction, than the violence exhibited in many movies. He humorously suggested replacing the word ''kill'' with the word ''fuck'' in his comedy routine, such as in an old movie western: "Okay, sheriff, we're gonna fuck you, now. But we're gonna fuck you slow..." Or, perhaps at a baseball game: "Fuck the ump, fuck the ump, fuck the ump!" More popularly published is his famous "Filthy Words" routine, better known as "[[Seven dirty words|Seven Words You Can Never Say On Television]]." | ||
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| - | ==See also== | ||
| - | * [[Bleep censor]] | ||
| - | * [[Censorship]] | ||
| - | * [[Finger (gesture)]], a related hand gesture | ||
| - | * [[For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge]], also known as F.U.C.K., 1991 album by American rock band Van Halen | ||
| - | * [[Four-letter word]] | ||
| - | * [[Fuck (film)]], documentary film about the word | ||
| - | * [[Fuck: Word Taboo and Protecting Our First Amendment Liberties]] | ||
| - | * [[Fucking, Austria]] (name of a village) | ||
| - | * [[Harcourt interpolation]] | ||
| - | * [[John le Fucker]] | ||
| - | * [[List of films that most frequently use the word "fuck"]] | ||
| - | * [[Madonna on Late Show with David Letterman|Madonna on ''Late Show with David Letterman'']] | ||
| - | * [[Profanity]] | ||
| - | ** [[Profanity in American Sign Language]] | ||
| - | ** [[Profanity in science fiction]] | ||
| - | * [[Seven dirty words]] | ||
| - | * [[Sexual slang]] | ||
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Derek and Clive was a double act of comedic characters created by Dudley Moore (Derek) and Peter Cook (Clive) in the 1970s. The performances were captured on the records Derek and Clive (Live) (1976), Derek and Clive Come Again (1977), and Derek and Clive Ad Nauseam (1978), as well as in a film documentary, Derek and Clive Get the Horn (1979).
[edit]
Discography
- Derek and Clive (Live) (1976)
- Derek and Clive Come Again (1977)
- Derek and Clive Ad Nauseam (1978)
- Derek and Clive Get the Horn (1979)
- Rude & Rare: The Best of Derek and Clive (2011)
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Derek and Clive" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
