strong like ball

[James C Stalker]

My family did, but then yall (plural, no question about it), have some sense
of my sociolinguistic heritage: KY, not high toned, as we would have said.
I didn't learn about intestinal fortitude until I got to UNC.

Jim Stalker


Jonathan Lighter writes:

> Come  to think of  it, my family did not say "guts" either.
>
> JL
>
> Beverly Flanigan <flanigan at OHIO.EDU> wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender: American Dialect Society
> Poster: Beverly Flanigan
> Subject: Re: strong like ball
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> At 09:56 PM 3/1/2005 -0500, you wrote:
>>On Mar 1, 2005, at 7:37 PM, Gordon, Matthew J. wrote:
>>
>>>---------------------- Information from the mail header
>>>-----------------------
>>>Sender: American Dialect Society
>>>Poster: "Gordon, Matthew J."
>>>Subject: strong like ball
>>>-----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>>--------
>>>
>>>I heard a new-to-me phrase on the radio: "testicular fortitude" which
>>>I took to be a form of "intestinal fortitude" gone south. The context
>>>was a local sports program discussing a particular coach. As expected,
>>>Google show 11k hits for it (cf. 63k for "intestinal fortitude").
>>>
>>>While I'm at it, I'd always thought of "intestinal fortitude" as a
>>>humorously formal alternative to "guts."
>>
>>FWIW, I've always thought the same.
>>
>>> Does the evidence suggest it arose as a deliberately funny coinage?
>>
>>I have no idea, but I've always assumed that to be the case from the
>>time that I first recall hearing it, ca. 1945-50.
>>
>>> I see OED has a 1945 citation from Edgar Bergen/Charlie McCarthy.
>>>
>>>Also, was "guts" seen as vulgar or coarse at some time?
>>
>>AFAIK, no.
>>
>>-Wilson Gray
>>
>>> Today it seems mostly just informal.
>>>
>>>-Matt Gordon
>
> I think it was coarse in my family; we gutted fish, and animal guts were
> vile. But then, my mother was the type who said, "Don't say pee, say urinate!"
>
>
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James C. Stalker
Department of English
Michigan State University