The infamous "Man from Nantucket" limerick, in some form or another, has had an interesting history of rewriting since its inception in 1924. It's been featured in newspapers and on Websites and has been rewritten several times during its evolution.
The Origin of the Nantucket Limerick
In 1924 the Princeton Tiger printed a version of the "Man from Nantucket" limerick that was quite a bit tamer than its current version. The Chicago Tribune came forth with its own in answer and in response to this, the Exchange printed its own version, furthering the tale.
The Emerson College English Department describes the limerick as a literary art form that is "bawdy and obnoxious" and claims the limerick "is not unlike a freak-show curiosity in the carnival of literary forms."
The Nantucket Limerick's Bawdy History
No one seems to know exactly how the "Man from Nantucket" became vulgar. The sexually explicit version first appeared in print in 1927 in a book entitled Immortalia, published in Philadelphia, but most belive it was shared between friends for quite some time before its first brazen publication.
The "Man from Nantucket" as a lewd poetic phenomenon has fascinated Dr. Bob Birch, a retired but well-published sex therapist, who has an entire webpage dealing with the limerick and others of a similar nature.
Society's natural inclination towards "toilet humour," coupled with a natural interest in sex and sexuality, is the root of all bawdy limericks. The unfortunate addition of a word like "Nantucket," which fits so poorly into good clean rhyme, has produced a classic.
The Origin of the Nantucket Limerick
In 1924 the Princeton Tiger printed a version of the "Man from Nantucket" limerick that was quite a bit tamer than its current version. The Chicago Tribune came forth with its own in answer and in response to this, the Exchange printed its own version, furthering the tale.
The Emerson College English Department describes the limerick as a literary art form that is "bawdy and obnoxious" and claims the limerick "is not unlike a freak-show curiosity in the carnival of literary forms."
The Nantucket Limerick's Bawdy History
No one seems to know exactly how the "Man from Nantucket" became vulgar. The sexually explicit version first appeared in print in 1927 in a book entitled Immortalia, published in Philadelphia, but most belive it was shared between friends for quite some time before its first brazen publication.
The "Man from Nantucket" as a lewd poetic phenomenon has fascinated Dr. Bob Birch, a retired but well-published sex therapist, who has an entire webpage dealing with the limerick and others of a similar nature.
Society's natural inclination towards "toilet humour," coupled with a natural interest in sex and sexuality, is the root of all bawdy limericks. The unfortunate addition of a word like "Nantucket," which fits so poorly into good clean rhyme, has produced a classic.
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