There's a joke I'm not getting (Maidenhead) by blackbeanie

GENERAL DISCUSSIONS

There's a joke I'm not getting (Maidenhead)

POSTED BY: BLACKBEANIE
UPDATED: Wednesday, August 30, 2006 04:19
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VIEWED: 6155
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Monday, August 28, 2006 7:46 PM

BLACKBEANIE

That means something doesn't it?
Something dirty.

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Monday, August 28, 2006 7:55 PM

PHOENIXROSE

You think you know--what's to come, what you are. You haven't even begun.

Not too dirty. But strictly speaking, yeah. Maidenhead was the common name for "hymen" in times past.

Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace. - Gautama Siddharta

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Monday, August 28, 2006 9:56 PM

BRITCHICK

But I don't think that's why Joss used it.
"Maidenhead" is a big town in England, close to where Joss was when he lived here. He also refers to "Burnham" in the film (sorry, can't remember exactly when), and that is a small town/big village about 6 miles down the road from Maidenhead.

I only noticed because I lived in Burnham for many years.

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Monday, August 28, 2006 10:00 PM

Gross.

And the 'Burnham' in Serenity is the Burnham quadrant, close to the location of Miranda.

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Monday, August 28, 2006 11:39 PM

MAGDALENA

"No power in the 'verse can stop me!"

It's kind of ye olde English... isn't it?

I have heard a quote along the lines of a powerful man telling a young woman that 'I'll take your maidenhead'

I suppose that harks back to the days when a woman's virginity was a treasured posession.

Also Birnam wood is mentioned in MacBeth... er I mean... That Scotish play. Joss is a bit of a Shakespearean fan I think!

Hope it helps - Magdalena x x

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 2:07 AM

TENTHCREWMEMBER

Could you please just make it stranger? Stranger. Odder. Could be weirder. More bizarre. How about uncanny?

Maidenhead.

It's an old mariner/shipbuilder term for the maiden that was oft carved into the bow of the ship, which is the lead part of the hull, which the rest of the ship follows into its heading. The maiden at the head of the ship.

Hence where the town derives its name from, and where the bar in the movie does to. Since Firefly makes many parallels to sailing (re: boat, keelhaul, etc.) it makes sense Joss wanted to have something that invoked that sense when the ship was "in port" on Beaumonde.

Hope that helps with the perspective of the 'Verse.

BWAH!
TCM

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 2:35 AM

CAUSAL

Quote:
Originally posted by magdalena:
...that harks back to the days when a woman's virginity was a treasured posession.

It makes me vaguely sad that we are casual about this no longer being the case.

________________________________________________________________________
Grand High Poobah of the Mythical Land of Iowa, and Keeper of State Secrets

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 2:45 AM

TRISTAN

TenthCrewMember, thank you for posting that bit of wisdom! And here everyone thought it was just about sex.

______________________________________

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 3:19 AM

GRIZWALD

Quote:
Originally posted by Causal:
Grand High Poobah of the Mythical Land of Iowa, and Keeper of State Secrets

Another Iowan! Where in Iowa, Causal? Doesn't that make three of us - you, me and Penguin?

I'm in Allamakee County.... waaaay up in the corner.

___________________________________________________
* If you're a leaf on the wind
* If you aim to misbehave
* If they can't take the sky from you
* If you are going to the Special Hell
* If you like the taste of Mudder's Milk
* If you carry Serenity with you everywhere you go
then you are a Browncoat, and you're with family.

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 3:25 AM

CAUSAL

Quote:
Originally posted by Grizwald:
Another Iowan! Where in Iowa, Causal? Doesn't that make three of us - you, me and Penguin?

I'm from Ames. BTW, you should look Penguin up. He's been declared "King of the Mythical Land of Iowa". He's the guy that granted me the title "Grand High Poobah"--you should probably go find him and see if you can get yourself installed in some office!

________________________________________________________________________
Grand High Poobah of the Mythical Land of Iowa, and Keeper of State Secrets

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 3:25 AM

ODDSBODSKINS

i don't know, i would think there's a possibility that it was also a referance to the archaic use of the word 'maidenhead'. after all, it's in the maidenhead we first see river's potential, several illusions about her are laid bare. this could, in terms of the story, be considered an awakening of sorts, a loss of innocence, which fits the idea of the loss of virginity rather nicely.

_______
jailbait.

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 3:28 AM

GRIZWALD

Quote:
Originally posted by Causal:

I'm from Ames. BTW, you should look Penguin up. He's been declared "King of the Mythical Land of Iowa". He's the guy that granted me the title "Grand High Poobah"--you should probably go find him and see if you can get yourself installed in some office!

Good. I want to be High Corn Priestess and Princess of Pork. Or something.

(Our local ag board actually crowns a Dairy Princess every year. Can you imagine putting that on your college resume?)

___________________________________________________
* If you're a leaf on the wind
* If you aim to misbehave
* If they can't take the sky from you
* If you are going to the Special Hell
* If you like the taste of Mudder's Milk
* If you carry Serenity with you everywhere you go
then you are a Browncoat, and you're with family.

Click on my profile for my Annoyingly Long List of Firefly Links.

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 3:33 AM

CAUSAL

Quote:
Originally posted by Grizwald:
Good. I want to be High Corn Priestess and Pork Princess. Or something.

(Our local ag board actually crowns a Dairy Princess every year. Can you imagine putting that on your college resume?)

*ahem*

By the power vested in me by Penguin, King of the MYTHICAL LAND OF IOWA, I, Causal, Grand High Poobah of the MYTHICAL LAND OF IOWA and Keeper of State Secrets do hereby solemnly declare* Grizwald to be:

High Priestess of Pork and Ag-Related Activities of the MYTHICAL LAND OF IOWA

With all the duties and responsibilities thereof.

*Pending Penguin's approval

________________________________________________________________________
Grand High Poobah of the Mythical Land of Iowa, and Keeper of State Secrets

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 3:42 AM

PHOENIXROSE

You think you know--what's to come, what you are. You haven't even begun.

Quote:
Originally posted by Causal:
Quote:
Originally posted by magdalena:
...that harks back to the days when a woman's virginity was a treasured posession.

It makes me vaguely sad that we are casual about this no longer being the case.

If it makes you feel better, I treasured mine greatly. And even if my maidenhead is gone, I still treasure that whole... area. I think everyone should be very aware of who they are with, and not allow just anyone have that kind of intimacy.

Oddsbodkins has a great theory, there. All kinds of layers of meaning in such a name.

I remember reading 'Romeo and Juliet' and at the very beginning there is a comment about taking the heads of all the women, and one of the men says "The heads of the maidens?" and the other replies "Or their maidenheads." And I was so appalled by that, thinking (correctly) that it was referring to raping all the women of the rival household and I thought that was terrible!

Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace. - Gautama Siddharta

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 5:04 AM

CYBERSNARK

If it makes you feel any better, one of the Montagues refers to his friend's (as in "with friends like these,") manhood as a "bit of a poor-john."

A poor-john was a sort of a fishy snack (like a cross between fish'n'chips and popcorn shrimp) sold in markets. It was primarily known for being "small, shrivelled, and cheap."

-----
We applied the cortical electrodes but were unable to get a neural reaction from either patient.

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 10:53 AM

TENTHCREWMEMBER

Could you please just make it stranger? Stranger. Odder. Could be weirder. More bizarre. How about uncanny?

Well, I am glad I added the NON-sexual reference to the "education" here. :P

However, I will concede, that given the perspective of River's "coming out", that the term holds some meaning for the loss of innocence too. But I'll still maintain that it is a term from the days of ol' that referred to a part of the ship, which later came to reference a woman's...sensitive area...which makes sense, given all the terminology sailers have about the sea and ships and how they're like women...

Which I leave for you to later explore!

Julius Sumner-Millerishly,

TCM

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 11:02 AM

PENGUIN

Quote:
Originally posted by Causal:
Quote:
Originally posted by Grizwald:
Good. I want to be High Corn Priestess and Pork Princess. Or something.

(Our local ag board actually crowns a Dairy Princess every year. Can you imagine putting that on your college resume?)

*ahem*

By the power vested in me by Penguin, King of the MYTHICAL LAND OF IOWA, I, Causal, Grand High Poobah of the MYTHICAL LAND OF IOWA and Keeper of State Secrets do hereby solemnly declare* Grizwald to be:

High Priestess of Pork and Ag-Related Activities of the MYTHICAL LAND OF IOWA

With all the duties and responsibilities thereof.

*Pending Penguin's approval

________________________________________________________________________
Grand High Poobah of the Mythical Land of Iowa, and Keeper of State Secrets

Approval given!

King of the Mythical Land that is Iowa

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 11:19 AM

CAUSAL

Hooray! All hail Grizwald, High Priestess of Pork and Ag-Related Activities of the MYTHICAL LAND OF IOWA!

Long may her larder overflow!

________________________________________________________________________
Grand High Poobah of the Mythical Land of Iowa, and Keeper of State Secrets

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 11:28 AM

GRIZWALD

Quote:
Originally posted by Causal:
Hooray! All hail Grizwald, High Priestess of Pork and Ag-Related Activities of the MYTHICAL LAND OF IOWA!

Long may her larder overflow!

Yeah! Hurray for me.

___________________________________________________
High Priestess of Pork and Ag-Related Activities of the MYTHICAL LAND OF IOWA (so says Causal)

Click on my profile for my Annoyingly Long List of Firefly Links.

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 11:37 AM

CAUSAL

I'm pretty sure Embers is an Iowan (least I think so). In any case, there's more than just us three, so maybe you'll get to create a new state official and our little group will grow larger.

Shiny sig, by the way!

________________________________________________________________________
Grand High Poobah of the Mythical Land of Iowa, and Keeper of State Secrets

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 12:42 PM

PENGUIN

I used to have a list of the Iowa FFF.net members. I believe there are 7 or 8 that I found...

King of the Mythical Land that is Iowa

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 2:28 PM

FXSTB02

I thought I was the only Browncoat from Iowa. Sumner, IA to be exact.

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 2:56 PM

TRAVELER

Oh great. First it was the Forsaken and now were inudated by Mythic Iowa's.

Time to click my heels together and say, "No place like home. No place like home".

Anyone out there? Anyone else?

LOL
Traveler

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 4:25 PM

FXSTB02

Iowa is NOT mythical. It is just outside my door…if I dare look. Hmmm, maybe later; but I am sure that it is there. Really.

'Time to click my heels together and say, "No place like home. No place like home".'

Is not that Dorothy from the "Wizard of Oz." Was not Dorothy from that mythical place called 'Kansas'?

Had to be, since the Wizard of Oz is a truely fictional story involving obviously fictional characters, from an obviously fictional state like Kansas. Get Real. I never heard of a planet or a moon in Firefly called "Kansas"; Ergo, Kansas is the fictional place, NOT Iowa.

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 4:39 PM

TRAVELER

Hello fxstb02:

You are correct sir!

Actually I'm from Wisconsin.

You Know. Green Bay Packers, Harley Davidson's, cheese.

And at times I think this state is mythical or wish it would be. But I'm use to the cold winters now and I guess I'll stay here and watch the Packers beat the Bears while I huddle next to my TV to keep warm.

Found you guys another Iowan
Traveler

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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 5:02 PM

FXSTB02

Quote:
Originally posted by traveler:
Hello fxstb02:

You are correct sir!

Actually I'm from Wisconsin.

You Know. Green Bay Packers, Harley Davidson's, cheese.

And at times I think this state is mythical or wish it would be. But I'm use to the cold winters now and I guess I'll stay here and watch the Packers beat the Bears while I huddle next to my TV to keep warm.

Found you guys another Iowan
Traveler

Hey Traveler,
Hah, I knew it; another cheesehead. That is o.k., I lived there too for 11 years. I do ride a Harley (is there any other motorcycle?), hence my username. At least you did not say "watch the Packer beat the MIGHTY Lions (that would be another Mythical feat)" As you should be able to tell, I am originally from another cold, mythical state called Michigan. Cold? Cold you say? I graduated from M.T.U. in Houghton, MI. You want to talk about "cold". I could tell you stories that would freeze your curds.
We are good, just stringing the cheese.
FXSTB02

I call it Vera

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Wednesday, August 30, 2006 3:49 AM

MMMKAREN

I--a huge Patrick O'Brian (Aubrey/Maturin series) fan as well as Firefly/Serenity, read the Maidenhead responce about it being the thing at the bow...that's not what my delving came up with. That is called a FIGUREHEAD in both my lexicon to the O'Brian books, A SEA OF WORDS, by Dean King, and Webster's tome...So, we're are, I believe back to the possible double meaning: this is the place that is at the brink of where "no man has gone before" --whether it be with the maid or the 'verse....watchathink, huh?

....the old one

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Wednesday, August 30, 2006 3:55 AM

PHOENIXROSE

You think you know--what's to come, what you are. You haven't even begun.

... Huh!
Yep, you are right. On dictionary.com it gives several definitions, all relating to maidenhood, virginity, or the hymen.
I'm wondering how a town got such an interesting name.

Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace. - Gautama Siddharta

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Wednesday, August 30, 2006 4:19 AM

ODDSBODSKINS

'i'll sell you my sister's...'

they may have been very poor.

_______
jailbait.

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