Mrs. Malaprop Gave Me a Lapdance Last Night and I Still Have a Hard-on This Morning
Written by John Erianne on August 11, 2008 – 4:17 am -I was reading this poetry submission for the 13thWR last night that was written, more or less, in iambic hexameter. Can’t say the poem was very good, nor can I say it was the worst thing I’ve read this week. In fact, the only thing notable about the submission (and the reason I’m bringing it up here) is that in the cover letter, the poet referred to the form as being “ambic oximeter.” That had me howling with laughter! “Hexameter,” of course, is a formal poem written with six metrical feet per line — examples being the Greek epics like The Illiad. An “oximeter” or pulse oximeter is a type of medical instrument they clip on your fingertip in the hospital to measure the oxygen level in your blood.
It’s seems Mrs. Malaprop is alive and well and I really shouldn’t be surprised. After all, we have a President who’s famous for his own “Bush-isms.” When characters in a literary work or film misspeak deliberately for comic or ironic effect, it’s one thing — when they do it unintentionally in real life it’s just sad and ignorant.
