Toilet humour

Last updated
From a series of woodcuts (1545) usually referred to as the Papstspotbilder or Papstspottbilder in German or Depictions of the Papacy in English, by Lucas Cranach, commissioned by Martin Luther. Title: Kissing the Pope's Feet. German peasants respond to a papal bull of Pope Paul III. Caption reads: "Don't frighten us Pope, with your ban, and don't be such a furious man. Otherwise we shall turn around and show you our rears." The Papal Belvedere.jpg
From a series of woodcuts (1545) usually referred to as the Papstspotbilder or Papstspottbilder in German or Depictions of the Papacy in English, by Lucas Cranach, commissioned by Martin Luther. Title: Kissing the Pope's Feet. German peasants respond to a papal bull of Pope Paul III. Caption reads: "Don't frighten us Pope, with your ban, and don't be such a furious man. Otherwise we shall turn around and show you our rears."

Toilet humour, potty humour or scatological humour (compare scatology), is a type of off-colour humour dealing with defecation (including diarrhea and constipation), urination and flatulence, and to a lesser extent vomiting and other bodily functions.

Contents

Toilet humour is commonly an interest of toddlers and young children, for whom cultural taboos related to acknowledgement of waste excretion still have a degree of novelty. The humour comes from the rejection of such taboos, and is a part of modern culture. [4]

Music

Toilet humour is sometimes found in song and rhyme, particularly schoolboy songs. Examples of this are found in Mozart and scatology, and variants of the German folk schoolboys' song known as the Scheiße-Lied (English: "Shit-Song") [5] [6] which is indexed in the German Volksliederarchiv. [7] A children's Spanish musical duo, Enrique y Ana, made a song called "Caca Culo Pedo Pis", which literally translates to "Poop Butt Fart Pee". [8]

American musician Matt Farley is known for writing and performing a multitude of songs related to urine, feces, vomit and various other bodily fluids under the pseudonym The Toilet Bowl Cleaners, including one of his most popular songs, entitled "Poop in My Fingernails". Farley has another pseudonym, The Odd Man Who Sings About Poop, Puke, and Pee. Many of his songs are just a person's name alternating with the word "poop". Other songs include "I Need a Lot of Toilet Paper to Clean the Poop in My Butt".

Detroit rapper Eminem famously utilises crude humour throughout his discography. His most notorious example of toilet humour was featured on the 2017 album Revival , where he raps "Your booty is heavy duty, like diarrhea", a line which received extensive lament from critics. [9] [10] The Los Angeles Times comments: "If Hannibal Lecter could have recorded a rap album, this would have been it. Brilliant, sinister, scatological and a parent's nightmare." [11]

Performance

Chateau de Fontainebleau, 2013 (24).jpg
Urinating statues at the Fountain of Diana

Paul Oldfield, who performed under the name Mr. Methane, [12] performed a stage act that included him farting the notes of music. [13] Joseph Pujol, who performed under the name Le Pétomane (French for "fart maniac"), performed a similar stage act for the Paris music hall scene. [12]

The American comedy duo Tim & Eric have made numerous comedy sketches based around toilet humour. For example, they have made fake commercials for non-existent products such as the "Poop Tube" (a device that lets people release liquefied faecal matter into a urinal while standing up), the "fla'Hat" (a hat that is connected to the wearer's anus which expands when storing flatulence), and "D-Pants" (an undergarment invented by "Diah Riha-Jones" that captures "uncontrollable diarrhea"). [14] [15] [16]

In the series South Park , the Canadian comedy duo Terrance and Phillip are noted for toilet humor and often make comedic use of their flatulence e.g. in the song ‘Unclefucker’.

English actor Adrian Edmondson, who appeared in many shows utilising toilet humour, is quoted as saying, "Toilet humour is like jazz: everybody has an idea what it is, and most people don't like it. But the people who do like it are fervent about it and like it until they die."[ citation needed ]

Books

In 1929 comedian Charles "Chic" Sale published a small book, The Specialist, [17] which was a large "underground" success. Its entire premise centered on sales of outhouses, touting the advantages of one kind or another, and labeling them in "technical" terms such as "one-holers", "two-holers", etc. Over a million copies were sold. In 1931 his monologue "I'm a Specialist" [18] was made into a hit record (Victor 22859) by recording artist Frank Crumit (music by Nels Bitterman). As memorialized in the "Outhouse Wall of Fame", the term "Chic Sale" became a rural slang synonym for privies, an appropriation of Mr. Sale's name that he personally considered unfortunate. [19]

More recently, one of the most popular books about defecation, diarrhea and accidents in toilets is by straight-talking physician Jane Wilson-Howarth, a guide that began as Shitting Pretty [20] and then was relaunched as How to Shit around the World. [21] [22]

The children's book series Captain Underpants makes copious use of toilet humor. "Doctor Diaper", "The Bionic Booger Boy", and "Professor Pippy Pee-Pee Poopypants" are among the villains in the series.

Video games

A game notorious for its juvenile humour, Conker's Bad Fur Day contains a plentiful amount of scatological jokes. One of the landmark areas is a "Poo Mountain" and some of its missions involve getting cows to drink a laxative prune juice to produce "pooballs", or fighting The Great Mighty Poo, a giant opera-singing pile of feces as a boss. In a later mission, the game's protagonist also has urination as an attack, after drinking a lot of beer and getting drunk.

Toilet humour is also versatile in the Metal Gear franchise. Solid Snake can protect himself from wolf attacks by having one urinate on him. In Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty , Solid Snake can spot soldiers relieving themselves several times and also stand under them. In Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance , Raiden is instructed in order to use a terminal, he first needs to "take a DOOMP", which is an abbreviation for "digital-optical output mounted proxy".

A trait of Wario from the eponymous spin-off franchise is a powerful flatulence attack extensively used in his Super Smash Bros. appearance.

Toys

The Moose Toys franchise Little Live "Gotta Go" Pets is a toy line of interactive plush animals that "poop" when fed colourful sand. The toys make graphic noises of passing gas, panic and say the words "uh-oh! Gotta go!" and have scatological names including "turdle" (turtle). The internet critic Doug Walker called the toys "disgusting" and found them immature and inappropriate. Parenting blogs praised the toy line for its crude humour approach to potty training. [23] [24] [25]

Mattel fashion doll Barbie has a plastic golden retriever, named Tanner, which has been an available toy in different variations since the 1990s. Tanner the dog eats brown bean-like beads and then poops them out when its tail is pressed. Barbie can then pick up the plastic poop with a scooper that comes with the playsets. [26]

Infant dolls, typically targeted towards little girls, have existed for decades that urinate and defecate (into diapers or potties) as a play feature. Variants include "Magic Potty Baby" (a 1990s Tyco brand doll) [27] [28] and "Baby Alive" (and Amazon knock-off counterfeit variants) that pee, poop and release glitter from their rear ends. [29] [30] [31] The trend of scatological dolls for girls was mocked on the 1970s British comedy TV series Are You Being Served? in the episode "A Change Is as Good as a Rest"; salesman Mr. Lucas fills Ms. Brahms's peeing dollies with fizzy carbonated lemonade; another gag features character Mrs. Slocombe displaying two doll variants to a customer: the one manufactured in Britain is blonde-haired and says "I want to go to the potty" when a string on its back is pulled, while a similar doll with sandy hair manufactured in India says "my name is Yasmin, and I have just been to the potty" when its string is pulled. [32]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ In Latin, the title reads "Hic oscula pedibus papae figuntur".
  2. ↑ "Nicht Bapst: nicht schreck uns mit deim ban, Und sey nicht so zorniger man. Wir thun sonst ein gegen wehre, Und zeigen dirs Bel vedere"

Related Research Articles

Flatulence is the expulsion of gas from the intestines via the anus, commonly referred to as farting. "Flatus" is the medical word for gas generated in the stomach or bowels. A proportion of intestinal gas may be swallowed environmental air, and hence flatus is not entirely generated in the stomach or bowels. The scientific study of this area of medicine is termed flatology.

Shit is an English-language profanity. As a noun, it refers to fecal matter, and as a verb it means to defecate; in the plural, it means diarrhea. Shite is a common variant in British and Irish English. As a slang term, shit has many meanings, including: nonsense, foolishness, something of little value or quality, trivial and usually boastful or inaccurate talk or a contemptible person. It could also be used to refer to any other noun in general or as an expression of annoyance, surprise or anger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Le Pétomane</span> French entertainer

Joseph Pujol, better known by his stage name Le Pétomane, was a French flatulist and entertainer. He was famous for his remarkable control of the abdominal muscles, which enabled him to seemingly fart at will. His stage name combines the French verb péter, "to fart" with the -mane, "-maniac" suffix, which translates to "fartomaniac". The profession is referred to as "flatulist", "farteur", or "fartiste".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Defecation</span> Expulsion of feces from the digestive tract

Defecation follows digestion, and is a necessary process by which organisms eliminate a solid, semisolid, or liquid waste material known as feces from the digestive tract via the anus or cloaca. The act has a variety of names ranging from the common, like pooping or crapping, to the technical, e.g. bowel movement, to the obscene (shitting), to the euphemistic, to the juvenile. The topic, usually avoided in polite company, can become the basis for some potty humor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Urination</span> Release of urine from the urinary bladder

Urination is the release of urine from the bladder to the outside of the body. Urine is released through the urethra and exits the penis or vulva through the urinary meatus in placental mammals, but is released through the cloaca in other vertebrates. It is the urinary system's form of excretion. It is also known medically as micturition, voiding, uresis, or, rarely, emiction, and known colloquially by various names including peeing, weeing, pissing, and euphemistically number one. The process of urination is under voluntary control in healthy humans and other animals, but may occur as a reflex in infants, some elderly individuals, and those with neurological injury. It is normal for adult humans to urinate up to seven times during the day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toilet training</span> Training an infant to use the toilet

Toilet training is the process of training someone, particularly a toddler or infant, to use the toilet for urination and defecation. Attitudes toward training in recent history have fluctuated substantially, and may vary across cultures and according to demographics. Many of the contemporary approaches to toilet training favor a behaviorism and cognitive psychology-based approach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outhouse</span> Small structure, separate from a main building, which covers a toilet

An outhouse is a small structure, separate from a main building, which covers a toilet. This is typically either a pit latrine or a bucket toilet, but other forms of dry (non-flushing) toilets may be encountered. The term may also be used to denote the toilet itself, not just the structure.

<i>Enjoy!</i> (Descendents album) 1986 studio album by the Descendents

Enjoy! is the third studio album by American punk rock band Descendents, released in 1986 through New Alliance Records and Restless Records. It was the band's final album with guitarist Ray Cooper and only album with bassist Doug Carrion, both of whom left the group after the album's first supporting tour. Enjoy! was marked by the use of toilet humor, with references to defecation and flatulence in its artwork, the title track, and "Orgofart". It also displayed a darker, more heavy metal-influenced sound in the songs "Hürtin' Crüe", "Days Are Blood", and "Orgo 51". Reviewers were critical of both the scatological humor and the heavier songs on the album. Enjoy! features a cover version of The Beach Boys' "Wendy".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">World Toilet Day</span> United Nations holiday on 19 November

World Toilet Day (WTD) is an official United Nations international observance day on 19 November to inspire action to tackle the global sanitation crisis. Worldwide, 4.2 billion people live without "safely managed sanitation" and around 673 million people practice open defecation. Sustainable Development Goal 6 aims to "Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all". In particular, target 6.2 is to "End open defecation and provide access to sanitation and hygiene". When the Sustainable Development Goals Report 2020 was published, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said, "Today, Sustainable Development Goal 6 is badly off track" and it "is hindering progress on the 2030 Agenda, the realization of human rights and the achievement of peace and security around the world".

Paul Oldfield, better known by his stage name Mr Methane, is a British flatulist who started performing in 1991. He briefly retired in 2006 but restarted in mid-2007. He claims to be the only performing farter in the world. He worked on the railways as a train driver. He took an early retirement after a train’s brakes failed at Sheffield. After this incident he then started focusing on his flatulence performances.

<i>The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby</i> 2002 childrens graphic novel by Dav Pilkey

The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby is a 2002 children's graphic novel by American author Dav Pilkey, credited on the cover as in-universe authors George Beard and Harold Hutchins. The book is a spin-off of Pilkey's Captain Underpants series. It follows a baby named Billy who gains superpowers shortly after birth. Billy teams up with a super-powered dog, Diaper Dog, to fight Diaper Dog's former master, a sentient piece of feces named Deputy Dangerous.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flatulence humor</span> Humor with flatulence

Flatulence humor refers to any type of joke, practical joke device, or other off-color humor related to flatulence.

iLoo Cancelled portable toilet project by Microsoft

The iLoo was a cancelled Microsoft project to develop a Wi-Fi Internet-enabled portable toilet. The iLoo, which was to debut at British summer festivals, was described as being a portable toilet with wireless broadband Internet, an adjustable plasma screen, a membrane wireless keyboard, a six-channel speaker system, and toilet paper embossed with popular web site addresses. The iLoo was also to have an extra screen and keyboard on the outside, and was to be guarded. It was intended as the next in a series of successful initiatives by MSN UK which sought to introduce the internet in unusual locations, including MSN Street, MSN Park Bench and MSN Deckchair.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human feces</span> Metabolic waste of the human digestive system

Human feces or faeces, commonly and in medical literature more often called stool, are the solid or semisolid remains of food that could not be digested or absorbed in the small intestine of humans, but has been further broken down by bacteria in the large intestine. It also contains bacteria and a relatively small amount of metabolic waste products such as bacterially altered bilirubin, and the dead epithelial cells from the lining of the gut. It is discharged through the anus during a process called defecation.

<i>Whats Your Poo Telling You?</i> Book by Josh Richman

What's Your Poo Telling You? is a book for adults describing different aspects of human flatulence, defecation, diarrhea, and various feces-related phenomena. The book sold well upon its release and in 2009 the book was reported to have sold over 400,000 copies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MGA Zapf Creation GmbH</span> German toy company

MGA Zapf Creation GmbH, officially trading as Zapf Creation, is a toy company based in Rödental, Germany, which specializes in the manufacture of multi-functional baby dolls. A subsidiary of American toymaker MGA Entertainment, Zapf's franchises have become popular around the world; among its successful creations are Maggie Raggies, Baby Born, Baby Annabell, Kool Kenzie and Chou Chou.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toilet</span> Piece of hardware for the collection or disposal of human excreta

A toilet is a piece of sanitary hardware that collects human waste, and sometimes toilet paper, usually for disposal. Flush toilets use water, while dry or non-flush toilets do not. They can be designed for a sitting position popular in Europe and North America with a toilet seat, with additional considerations for those with disabilities, or for a squatting posture more popular in Asia, known as a squat toilet. In urban areas, flush toilets are usually connected to a sewer system; in isolated areas, to a septic tank. The waste is known as blackwater and the combined effluent, including other sources, is sewage. Dry toilets are connected to a pit, removable container, composting chamber, or other storage and treatment device, including urine diversion with a urine-diverting toilet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feces</span> Solid or semisolid remains of undigested food

Feces are the solid or semi-solid remains of food that was not digested in the small intestine, and has been broken down by bacteria in the large intestine. Feces contain a relatively small amount of metabolic waste products such as bacterially altered bilirubin, and dead epithelial cells from the lining of the gut.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart displayed scatological humour in his letters and multiple recreational compositions. This material has long been a puzzle for Mozart scholarship. Some scholars try to understand it in terms of its role in Mozart's family, his society and his times; others attempt to understand it as a result of an "impressive list" of psychiatric conditions from which Mozart is claimed to have suffered.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little Live "Gotta Go" Pets (brand)</span> Moose Toys franchise

Little Live "Gotta Go" Pets is a sub-brand manufactured by the Australian toy brand Moose Toys under its "Little Live" smart toy branding. The sub-brand is known for its highly interactive, technologically developed toys of plush animals, some of which use the toilet or engage in toilet humor, reportedly to get child buyers interested in potty training. The "Gotta Go" line of toys, consisting of a flamingo and a turtle in psychedelic colours, were immensely popular in 2021, becoming a sought-after Christmas gift by western shoppers. The toys were also controversial and met with criticism, including by Doug Walker of Nostalgia Critic, who called the toys "disgusting" after viewing a television commercial for the "Gotta Go Turdle" variant.

References

  1. ↑ Oberman, Heiko Augustinus (1 January 1994). The Impact of the Reformation: Essays. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. ISBN   9780802807328 – via Google Books.
  2. ↑ Luther's Last Battles: Politics And Polemics 1531-46 By Mark U. Edwards, Jr. Fortress Press, 2004. ISBN   978-0-8006-3735-4
  3. ↑ Mark U. Edwards, Jr., Luther's Last Battles: Politics And Polemics 1531–46 (2004), p. 199
  4. ↑ Praeger, Dave (2007). Poop Culture: How America Is Shaped by Its Grossest National Product. United States: Feral House. ISBN   978-1-932595-21-5.
  5. ↑ Helmut Fischer Kinderreime im Ruhrgebiet: Reime, Lieder, Spiellieder 1991 Page 121 "Scheiße auf der Kirchturmspitze Fällt demll Pastor auf die Mütze. 2. Scheiße in der Lampenschale Gibt gedämpftes Licht im Saale. 951 . Scheiße auf dem Autodach Liegt bei Hundertachtzig flach. 952
  6. ↑ Profil 1994 – Volume 25 – Page 58 "Immer, wenn es besonders ausgelasse zuging, stimmten meine Mitschüler in einem katholisch
  7. ↑ Volksliederarchiv: Scheiße
  8. ↑ "Enrique y Ana: Una meditación retrospectiva".
  9. ↑ "The worst Eminem lyrics of the past 10 years". 17 January 2020.
  10. ↑ "Eminem: Revival Album Review". Pitchfork .
  11. ↑ "Eminem claims he's a G.O.A.T., and offers evidence". Los Angeles Times . 2 March 2011.
  12. 1 2 Kelner, Martin (23 Jul 2008). "The ace of trumps". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 17 March 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  13. ↑ Bennett, Will (1 January 1994). "Mr Methane's tunes put the wind up insurers". The Independent. Archived from the original on 18 March 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  14. ↑ "– YouTube". YouTube .
  15. ↑ "Watch Full Episodes of Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!".
  16. ↑ "D-Pants | Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! | Adult Swim". YouTube . February 2012.
  17. ↑ Sale, Charles (1994). The Specialist. Souvenir Press. ISBN   978-0-285-63226-4.
  18. ↑ Sale, Charles (Chic); Kermode, William (illustrator) (1994) [1929]. The Specialist (print). London: Souvenir Press. ISBN   978-0-285-63226-4 . Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  19. ↑ "The Specialist". Outhouse Wall of Fame. Outhouse Museum. Archived from the original on May 2, 2003.
  20. ↑ Wilson-Howarth, Jane (2000). Shitting Pretty: how to stay clean and healthy while traveling. Travelers Tales, Calif. p. 149. ISBN   978-1885211477.
  21. ↑ Wilson-Howarth, Jane (2006). How to Shit Around the World: the art of staying clean and healthy while traveling. Travelers Tales, Calif. p. 165. ISBN   978-1-932361-32-2.
  22. ↑ Wilson-Howarth, Jane (2020). How to Shit Around the World: the art of staying clean and healthy while traveling (2 ed.). Travelers Tales, Calif. p. 178. ISBN   978-1609521929.
  23. ↑ Walker, Doug (24 November 2021). "Commercials Resurrection – Nostalgia Critic". www.youtube.com. Channel Awesome.
  24. ↑ Mae, Kristen (31 January 2021). "I Wish I Had A Reason To Buy This Pooping Flamingo". www.scarymommy.com. Scary Mommy. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  25. ↑ Brown, Helen. "Must-have Top Christmas Toys 2021 from the biggest sellers". www.madeformums.com. Made For Mums. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  26. ↑ Thierer, Adam (15 August 2007). "Oh Sh*t: Barbie's Pooping Dog is a Killer!". techliberation.com/. The Technology Liberation Front. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  27. ↑ "Magic Potty Baby Commercial (1991)". www.youtube.com. YouTube. 10 February 2007. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  28. ↑ Rossen, Jake (19 November 2015). "Reliving the Horror of Magic Potty Baby". www.mentalfloss.com. Mental Floss. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  29. ↑ "BABY born Surprise Magic Potty Surprise Green Eyes – Doll Pees Glitter & Poops Surprise Charms (917776)". amazon.com. Amazon. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  30. ↑ "Baby Alive Sunshine Snacks Doll, Eats and "Poops," Waterplay Baby Doll". www.toysrus.ca. Toys R' Us Canada. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  31. ↑ "Baby Alive Sunshine Snacks Doll, Eats and "Poops," Waterplay Baby Doll, Ice Pop Mold, Toy for Kids 3 and Up, Black Hair". shop.hasbro.com. Hasbro. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  32. ↑ "A Change Is as Good as a Rest". www.imdb.com. IMDb. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.