"my Ghossips cock", 1641?

[Wilson Gray]

I'm pretty sure that cock = penis is through cock = faucet, as in
petcock, stopcock, etc. I've seen punning cartoons in which men are
posed in a public bath in such a way that its faucets appear to be
their penises. Someone even submitted here a caricature of a taverner
which showed his penis as a cock in the faucet sense. Of course,
without certain dating, it's possible to argue that this cock from
faucet is only a later reanalysis of the original cock = rooster,
instead of the other way around, if thash yo bag.

-Wilson

On Wed, Apr 23, 2008 at 9:28 PM, Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at yale.edu> wrote:
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>  Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>  Poster:       Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at YALE.EDU>
>  Subject:      Re: "my Ghossips cock", 1641?
>  -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>  At 8:50 PM -0400 4/23/08, Wilson Gray wrote:
>  >So, is "Pistol's cock is up" and similar phrases the source of BrE
>  >"cock-up," (roughly?) corresponding to AmE "fuck-up"?
>  >
>  >-Wilson
>
>  Doesn't look like it, given the OED's info--"cock(-)up" as particle
>  verb or nominal comes from the verb "cock", which in turn comes from
>  the fowl. Of course, "cock" 'penis' itself may come from the same
>  critter (paralleling the development of Ger. _hahn_), which makes the
>  two cock- formations cousins.   (And makes them both instances of
>  fowl language.)
>
>  LH
>
>  >
>  >On Wed, Apr 23, 2008 at 3:36 PM, Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at yale.edu> wrote:
>  >>  ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>  >>-----------------------
>  >>   Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>  >>   Poster:       Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at YALE.EDU>
>  >>   Subject:      Re: "my Ghossips cock", 1641?
>  >>
>  >>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>  >>
>  >>
>  >>   At 2:26 PM -0400 4/23/08, Joel S. Berson wrote:
>  >>   >What is the sense of "cock" in the following quotation (OED2, under
>  >>   >gossip, n., 2.a?
>  >>   >
>  >>   >  1641 Brome Joviall Crew ii. (1652) D2b, He makes us even sick of
>  >>   >his sadness, that were wont to see my Ghossips cock to day; mould
>  >>   >Cocklebread; daunce clutterdepouch [etc.].
>  >>   >
>  >>   >
>  >>   >(I note that OED2 has "penis" from 1614.)
>  >>   >
>  >>   >Joel
>  >>
>  >>   Rght, but remember: "pudoris causa, not admissible in polite speech
>  >>   or literature".  In terms of antedating, we can push it back a bit
>  >>   farther.  Farmer & Henley cite Henry V (1600), II.i, which I assume
>  >>   is a reference to the pun in the following exchange.  (Note also
>  >>   Pistol's illeism in the relevant passage.)
>  >>
>  >>   LH
>  >>   =================
>  >>
>  >>   HOSTESS:
>  >>   Good Corporal Nym, show thy valour, and put up your sword.
>  >>
>  >>   NYM:
>  >>   Will you shog off? I would have you solus.
>  >>
>  >>   PISTOL:
>  >>   'Solus,' egregious dog? O viper vile!
>  >>   The 'solus' in thy most mervailous face;
>  >>   The 'solus' in thy teeth, and in thy throat,
>  >>   And in thy hateful lungs, yea, in thy maw, perdy,
>  >>   And, which is worse, within thy nasty mouth!
>  >>   I do retort the 'solus' in thy bowels;
>  >>   For I can take, and Pistol's cock is up,
>  >>   And flashing fire will follow.
>  >>
>  >>
>  >>
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>  >
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>  >come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
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--
All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
-----
 -Sam'l Clemens

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