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Limerickar |  En mycket brittisk företeelse...Limericken kan enligt en gammal klassiker delas upp i tre sorter; 1) limerickar man kan dra i damers sällskap 2) limerickar man kan dra i prästers sällskap samt 3) limerickar. En djupdykning i litteraturen med och om genren ger vid handen att lejonparten av dessa femradare kan härröras till den sista kategorien. Därför publicerar jag nu ett urval på limerickens naturliga språk, dvs engelska, och hoppas därmed sålla bort eventuella småbarn och andra s k känsliga varelser.
Vi börjar trots allt med en som passande nog handlar om litteratur och som inte är ekivok.
There´s a notable family named Stein,
There´s Gertrude, there´s Ep, and there´s Ein.
Gert´s prose is the bunk,
Ep´s sculpture is junk,
And no one can understand Ein!
Mjukstart! Vi ökar på med aaaningen fräckare:
There was an old fellow of Eire
Who perpetually sat on the fire.
When they asked, "Are you hot?"
He declared, "I am not.
I am Pat Winterbottom, Esquire".
Måhända samme man från Grevinnan och betjänten? Nästa blir aningen värre. Observera engelsmännens fascination att hitta på rim på de mest hopplösa ortsnamn:
There was a young lady of Exeter,
So pretty the men craned their necks at her;
And one was so brave
As to take out and wave
The distinguishing mark of his sex at her.
En specialitet hos engelsmännen är att konstruera limerickar utifrån följande premisser:
a) hitta ett ort- eller personnamn som stavas väldigt olikt sitt uttal,
b) stava rimmen på liknande, svårtydda sätt.
Ett strålande exempel:
There was a young man named Colquhoun
Who kept as a pet a babuhoun.
His mother said "Cholmondeley,
I don´t think it´s quite colmondeley
To feed your babuhoun with spuhoun".
Vi tar en till, lika "ofarlig" som den förra:
A venturesome three-weeks-old chamois
Strayed off in the woods from his mamois,
And might have been dead
But some picknickers fed
Him with sandwiches, milk, and salamois.
Följande är inte så farlig som man först kunde tro:
Rosalina, a pretty young lass
Had a truly magnificent ass:
Not rounded and pink,
As you possibly think -
It was grey, had long ears, and ate grass.
Här kommer en rätt så klurig:
She frowned and called him Mr.
Because in sport he kr.
And so in spite
That very night
This Mr. kr. sr.
I tider av höga bensinpriser:
There was a young farmer named Max
Who avoided the gasoline tax;
It was simple, you see
For his Vespa burned pee
From his grandfather´s herd of tame yaks.
Om ni är uppvärmda nu så tar vi en lite fulare:
Said the mythical King of Algiers
To his harem assembled, "My dears,
You may think it odd of me
But I´m tired of sodomy:
Tonight´s for you ladies." (Loud cheers.)
Och ännu en:
A young trapeze artist named Bract
Is faced by a very sad fact.
Imagine his pain
When, again and again,
He cathes his wife in the act!
Om faran av att äga för små bilar:
They sat in his little old Lloyd
Frustrated, and hot, and annoyed;
But enough of palaver:
He attempted to have´er
And the car was entirely destroyed.
Bättre med soffor:
Winter is here with his grouch;
The time when you sneeze and you slouch;
You can´t take your women
Canoeing or swimming -
But a lot can be done on a couch!
En limerick som förstås bättre om man betänker att "damp airs" kan låta som något annat:
"I must leave here," said Lady de Vere,
"For these damp airs don´t suit me, I fear."
Said her friend, "Goodness me!
If they do not agree
With your system, why eat pears, my dear?"
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| "Fuga manus" | © Johan Gustafsson 2010 | den 30 januari 2012 |
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