[Ads-l] Slang: Create a new posterior orifice metaphorically

ADSGarson O'Toole adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM
Wed Sep 2 18:20:23 UTC 2020


There is a family of expressions based on the metaphorical creation of
a new posterior orifice. The meaning is "to injure or rebuke someone"
(RHDAS) or "to attack someone savagely, either physically or verbally"
(Green's Slang). Here are some examples:

tear 'em a new asshole
cut him a new asshole
fit you for a new asshole
blow you a new asshole
ripped them a new asshole
kick a new asshole into someone

I received a request to explore this topic, but it does not fit my
website which is largely advertiser-friendly. So I decided to perform
preliminary research which I am now sharing:

What is currently known:

Green’s Dictionary of Slang has an entry with citations beginning in
1969. The first citation is bracketed. Click on the four line symbol
at the end of the timeline to see the citations.
https://greensdictofslang.com/entry/x2lfcjy

JL's "Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang" has an
entry (page 47) with citations beginning in 1968.

Subreddit r/etymology has a web page with citations beginning in 1965.
https://www.reddit.com/r/etymology/comments/5shx7f/origin_of_the_phrase_tear_subj_a_new_one/

What I found:

There is a Google snippet match circa 1958. The match looks solid, but
I have not verified it with hardcopy or scans which is necessary.

Year: 1958
Book: Ruled by the Whip: Hell Behind Bars in America's Devil's Island,
the Arkansas State Penitentiary
Author: Dale Woodcock
Quote Page 50 (maybe)
Database: Google Books snippet match; requires verification with hard
copy or scans

[Begin snippet text]
When I get home I'll cut him a new asshole. Law! What's it good for?
If they'd put everybody in jail that's out an' let everybody out
that's in, it wouldn't make any change.
[End snippet text]

An article on the Encyclopedia of Arkansas supports the 1958 date for
"Ruled by the Whip".
https://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/entries/ruled-by-the-whip-book-12426/

[Begin excerpt]
Ruled by the Whip: Hell behind Bars in America’s Devil’s Island, the
Arkansas Penitentiary is a 1958 self-published autobiographical
account written by Dale Woodcock. One of the few printed accounts by
an Arkansas prisoner, the book chronicles Woodcock’s experiences at
Cummins prison farm in the 1950s.
[End excerpt]

There is blind match in HathiTrust for the phrase "fit you for a new
asshole" on page 275 of a book dated 1959. A blind match (my
terminology) means that no snippet is shown and no context is visible.
So this match must be verified with hardcopy or scans.

Year: 1959
Book: The Numbers of Our Days: A Novel
Author: Francis Irby Gwaltney
Publisher: Random House, New York
Quote Page 275 (maybe)

[Begin search phrase match]
"fit you for a new asshole"
[End search phrase match]

There is a Google snippet match circa 1960.

Year: 1960
Book: A Step in the River: A Novel
Author: Francis Irby Gwaltney
Publisher: Random House, New York
Quote Page 108 (maybe)
Database: Google Books snippet match; requires verification with hard
copy or scans

[Begin snippet text]
“Now by God, John Frank, you remember: Doc'd spit in your face and fit
you for a new asshole if you start offering to build any bridges or
roads. Ask 'im what he's got in mind and then tell 'im he'll get it.
But be sure to tell 'im right away that you ...
[End snippet text]

Garson

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org



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