[Ads-l] France is eggcorn

[David Daniel]

France is bacon
When I was young my father said to me: "Knowledge is power, Francis Bacon."
I understood it as "Knowledge is power, France is bacon."
For more than a decade I wondered over the meaning of the second part and
what was the surreal linkage between the two. If I said the quote to
someone, "Knowledge is power, France is Bacon," they nodded knowingly. Or
someone might say, "Knowledge is power" and I'd finish the quote "France is
Bacon" and they wouldn't look at me like I'd said something very odd, but
thoughtfully agree. I did ask a teacher what did "Knowledge is power, France
is bacon" mean and got a full 10-minute explanation of the "knowledge is
power" bit but nothing on "France is bacon". When I prompted further
explanation by saying "France is bacon?" in a questioning tone I just got a
"yes". At 12 I didn't have the confidence to press it further. I just
accepted it as something I'd never understand.
It wasn't until years later I saw it written down that the penny dropped.
Answer by Lard_Baron to a question on Reddit in 2011: "What word or phrase
did you totally misunderstand as a child?"
DAD

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