Flatus Ejectus: The Art of the Fart October 4, 2013
Posted by nrhatch in Humor, Joke, Nature, People, Word Play.trackback
Wikipedia ~ Peek-A-Boo
When playing Peek-A-Boo, all but the dimmest bulbs realize that people don’t disappear just because someone covers their eyes.
Even the tiniest tot doesn’t take long to cotton to the concept of “object permanence.”
From a very young age, we deduce that adults don’t erase their faces each time they disappear from view between “Peek-A-Boo” and “I see you.”
Objects, even if transient, don’t come and go at the flip of a switch, the blink of an eye, or the sleight of a hand.
“Now you see me . . . now you don’t . . . but I’m still here.”
Wikipedia ~ Papal Belvedere
So, why is it that people who lose their hearing later in life often appear oblivious to the fact that farts (“flatus expelled through the anus”) remain audible (and odiferous) to the rest of us . . . even if they can no longer hear themselves farting?
Do they succumb to the belief that flatus ejectus is an exception to the rule of object permanence?
Setting that thought aside for the moment, did you know that farting is an accepted “art form”?
Perhaps that’s where we came up with the expression “Artsy Fartsy.”
“A flatulist, fartist, or professional farter is an entertainer (sometimes considered a comedian) whose routine consists solely or primarily of farting in a creative, musical, or amusing manner.” ~ Wikipedia ~ Flatulist
Imagine buying tickets to hear a flautist perform, only to learn on arrival that you purchased tickets to a flatulist’s musical interlude:
“And, now, please relax and enjoy . . . Beethoven’s Surprise Symphony for Flatulists in F-Minor.”
If the internet swallows this post whole, let’s hope it doesn’t get gassy.
Aah . . . that’s better!
Are farts funny? A crude form of situational comedy? Not sure? Want to read a story about Barry Manilow farting during a photo op?
CLICK HERE and scroll down to the last question . . . about career highlights.
Related post: The Toilet, The App, and the Slight Hitch (Kate Shrewsday)
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Spirit Lights The Way 
LOL! I’m so glad I’m Arty Farty and not Arty Fartsy 😛
I don’t know…to me it is a natural bodily function, much like burping, pooping and peeing…but for some reason society has deemed it completely abnormal and disgusting….then again farting, burping, pooping and peeing done with abandon in public isn’t the way to go either..hehe.
Happy Friday, Shree! Judging from the old wood carving, farts have been amusing the masses for hundreds of years ~ or at least since 1545:
“German peasants greet the fire and brimstone from a papal bull of Pope Paul III in Martin Luther’s 1545 Depictions of the Papacy.”
Here, have a raspberry! 😛
I am at a loss for words! I going to click over and check out old Barry…..
Nothing like a bit of bathroom humor to make us feel like kids again, eh? 😉
Hi Nancy,
This is hilarious! Hah hah! Glad I thought to pop over today.
My Mother would always blush and be surprised if anyone heard her farting – that was a “cushion creeper” she’d say.
I love the illustration at the top.:D
The Romans in Pompeii weren’t prudish about sex. I wonder whether the illustrations on the walls of the brothels included pix of farting?
The YouTube doesn’t have sound?
Hey Rosie! Long time no see. Hope you’ve enjoyed your blogging break. Great expression ~ that was a “cushion creeper.” Perhaps I’ll adopt that line if the need arises.
The youtube video does have sound . . . maybe you need to click the Mute/Unmute button just next to Play/Pause button to sound it up on your screen.
Thanks – the sound had been turned off? Farting in someone’s face is what 6 year-old boys love to do, and never stop enjoying.
My blogging break has been fantastically healing.
Growing up with two brothers . . . I know just what you mean. Glad you enjoyed your time away.
Goodness, not being able to release the gas can be very painful!
My granny had a great way of dealing with the situation. She would stand up and reverse out of the room singing as she went. The closer she got to crescendo, the louder she sang. We of course knew what was going on and roared with laughter every time. It was her way to teach us not to be embarrassed by bodily functions.
What a wonderful example she set for you . . . the world benefits from more laughter and song!
La La La La La La . . .
Nancy, bathroom humour is very funny in itself, but not when you have a seat in the ‘thick of the action’. Having said that, the loud ones aren’t necessarily the worst. Apparently…
Yes. There is a time and place for everything, but in the middle of a job interview or important presentation . . . well, let’s just say, some things are best left “unsaid.” 😛
Actually Mozart was more likely to have written music for that medium. He was said to have enjoyed jokes related to such bodily functions.
I remember that trait, as portrayed in Amadeus . . . amid loads of silly giggles. 😆
‘Amadeus’ took liberties, but according to biographies I have read that was accurate.
Even if something is called a “documentary,” I assume that liberties have been taken ~ that’s artistic license for ya.
Your comments about flatulence and the elderly reminded me of a time in the supermarket when a older gentleman was calling out to his wife to ask if she wanted strawberries, grapes, blueberries, and so on, apparently unaware he was punctuating his words with quite a bit of thunder. Or maybe he just didn’t care.
Sounds like he was blowing her a raspberry! 😛
I expect that at some point “the elderly” decide it’s a losing battle and just let ’em rip.
Apparently ‘raspberry’ is abbreviated Cockney rhyming slang: raspberry tart = fart.
Thank you! I thought that blowing a raspberry must have an interesting history. 😛
There was a Frenchman, wasn’t there, who performed using farts and who called himself Le Pétomane; arty-farty we’d perhaps call it in the UK, rather than artsy-fartsy.
I think I read somewhere that Stravinsky is supposed to have performed tunes using only a cupped hand under his armpit: his farty piece, maybe? And there is an anecdote (which I’ve told elsewhere) where an aristocrat was so embarrassed by breaking wind in the presence of Queen Elizabeth I that he went off for a world tour; when he eventually came back to court he was pleased that nobody had alluded to his faux pas till the queen smiled at him, saying “We have forgot the fart!”
So, yes, the fart is potentially funny, and entertaining, but maybe not when reproduced by youngsters or the innocently incontinent or possibly by cowboys full of baked beans in Blazing Saddles.
That’s a great anecdote about Stravinsky AND about Queen Elizabeth’s repartee. Thanks!
I think you’re right about Le Pétomane, but I wouldn’t have been able to come up with the name on my own. I’ve mostly heard artsy-fartsy, but Brits around the world seem to use arty-farty instead.
Sadly the Queen Bess anecdote was anticipated in an Arabian Nights tale, but it’s still a great joke!
As for Le Pétomane, I’m good at remembering curious words and facts but not so good when it comes to recalling the names of close friends and relatives…
I hear you . . . I remember the oddest things, but common names elude me. 😕
The silent ones are much worse than the audible ones, though. With my three men in the house, I don’t find them funny. Trying to teach them manners….
You’re outnumbered 3-to-1, Janna. NOT good odds for trying to share etiquette tips and good manners.
Those farts are sneaky little things.
Yes! Cheeky monkeys!
Perhaps, Nancy, they simply cease to care 😀 Or know, secretly, just how much amusement they afford their cackling younger generations…
Maybe they think they are “getting away with something” because they can no longer hear the “parting of ways.” 😛
If I want to make my grandchildren laugh we read, “Walter the Farting Dog.” Of course, flatulence to them is hilarious! I loved the comedian’s memories of Barry Manilow. Good grief!
I can see the 3 of you all tucked together on the couch, giggling madly at Walter and his funny flatulence! Exactly how kids keep us YOUNG. 😆
It’s so funny when the dogs do it then turn around really fast and look as if to say what was that?!
Bwhaha! I can see the puzzled looks on their faces right now. 😉