Innuendo
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For other uses, see Innuendo (disambiguation).
An innuendo is a remark or question, typically disparaging, that works obliquely by allusion. The intention is often to insult or accuse someone in such a way that one's words, taken literally, are innocent. Innuendo can make use of, but is by no means restricted to, double entendre (note that doubles entendres can be unintentional, while innuendo is always intentional).
When innuendo is used in a sentence, it could go completely undetected by someone who was not familiar with the hidden meaning, and he or she would find nothing odd about the sentence. Perhaps because innuendo is not considered offensive to those who do not "get" the hidden implication, it is often used in sitcoms and other comedy which would otherwise be considered unsuitable for children. Children would find this comedy funny, but because most children lack understanding of the hidden implication in innuendo, they would find it funny for a completely different reason from most adult viewers.
[edit] Sexual innuendo
Sexual innuendo is common in sitcoms, for instance the character 'The Tod' from NBC's Scrubs (TV series), as well as in radio comedy such as I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue. For example, in Are You Being Served?, Mrs. Slocombe makes frequent references to her "pussy", such as "It's a wonder I'm here at all, you know. My pussy got soakin' wet. I had to dry it out in front of the fire before I left." A child might find this statement funny simply because of the references to her pussy cat, whereas an adult would detect the innuendo (pussy is sexual slang for vagina). In the context of Are You Being Served?, this is doubly funny as Mrs. Slocombe is apparently unaware of the innuendo, as well. (See British humour). Or, for instance, in the Brady Bunch Movie, Mrs. Brady asks Marcia's date if he has protection (in case it rains) and he answers with "yes, in all different colours and textures". Children would think he's talking about a raincoat or umbrella, whereas an adult knows that he's referring to condoms.
Sexual innuendo is also common in certain children's shows. Such children's shows include Rocko's Modern Life, The Ren and Stimpy Show, Robot Boy. The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, The Life and Times of Juniper Lee, Kids Next Door, Squirrel Boy, Cow and Chicken, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, The Powerpuff Girls, The Fairly OddParents, Dexter's Laboratory, Ed, Edd n Eddy, Johnny Bravo, SpongeBob SquarePants, The Proud Family and Pokémon.
Sexual innuendo is also common in adult cartoon shows, like The Simpsons, Family Guy, American Dad!, South Park and Drawn Together.
Innuendos were not only used in modern times — they date back to the times of Greek theatre. In addition, such style of literary phrasing was enforced in Shakespearian times as well. Indeed, Sir Toby in "Twelfth Night" is seen saying, in reference to Sir Andrew's hair, that "it hangs like flax on a distaff; and I [Sir Toby] hope to see a housewife take thee [Sir Andrew] between her legs and spin it off."
In terms of Greek theatre, in the Greek comedy Lysistrata written by Aristophanes, an innuendo is clearly visible when Lysistrata tells Cleonice that something of huge importance is about to occur. Cleonice replys by asking "big and meaty?". A child may see this as a big and meaty story, whereas it means long and thick - relating to the male genital, the phallus.
Attitudes to this kind of humour have changed enormously since the 19th century. In the Victorian theatre, innuendo was considered unpleasant, particularly for the ladies in the audience, and was not allowed. In the music hall, on the other hand, innuendo was in constant use in songs.
In the 20th century there began to be a bit of a crackdown on "lewdness", including some prosecutions. It was the job of the Lord Chamberlain to examine the scripts of all plays for decency. Nevertheless, some comedians still continued to get away with it. Max Miller, famously, had two books of jokes, a white book and a blue book, and would ask his audience which book they wanted to hear stories from. If they chose the blue book, it was their own choice and he could feel reasonably secure he wasn't offending anyone. Frankie Howerd based his act on introducing obvious sexual innuendo, and then berating the audience for having taken the lewd meaning instead of the innocent one.
The blue, innuendo type of humour didn't transfer to radio or cinema at that time, but did eventually filter through from the late 1950s and 1960s. In 1968 the office of the Lord Chamberlain ceased to have responsibility for censoring live entertainment. By the 1970s, innuendo had become standard.
Some modern examples of innuendo include sexual references to human body parts. For example, a woman might attempt to purchase some groceries and a man might say, "Boy, those are some nice melons you have there." This statement implies that he was referring to the woman's breasts.
Pop singer Madonna recorded an innuendo-laden track entitled 'Where Life Begins' on her 1992-album Erotica. On a superficial level, the song would appear to describe a cosy romantic dinner date. However, it soon becomes apparent that the song is instead an homage to oral sex. The songs lyrics include 'can you make a fire without using wood?', 'you can eat all you want and you don't get fat'. It concludes with 'aren't you glad you came?'! During the recording sessions the track was known as 'Eating Out'. It is not known why the title was changed.
[edit] U.S. politics
Rumors surfaced during the 1950s that politicians would exploit the "ignorance" of Southern audiences at campaign stops. George Smathers was reported as having used 10 words like thespian, homo sapiens and matriculation in reference to his political opponent. The joke was that thespian reminds listeners of Lesbian, homo sapiens of homosexual and matriculation of masturbation - all taboo subjects for the polite discourse of the times.
Gershon Legman's Rationale of the Dirty Joke: An Analysis of Sexual Humor (New York: Grove Press, 1968) describes the whole thing as a stunt thought up by bored reporters. [1]
