Gone Medieval – “Medieval Obscenity”
Host: Dr. Eleanor Janega
Guest: Dr. Carissa Harris
Date: August 19, 2025
Episode Overview
In this lively and uncensored episode, Dr. Eleanor Janega is joined by Professor Carissa Harris to explore the surprisingly explicit world of medieval obscenity. The discussion delves into sexual language, comic tales, courtroom insults, and anxieties about sexuality, showing that the Middle Ages were anything but prudish. The show busts the myth of a chaste, uptight medieval society, revealing everyday people (and clergy) engaging in bawdy storytelling, lewd jokes, and legal spats over outrageous slander.
Note: This episode contains strong language and vivid sexual references, as medieval people themselves were not shy about the subject.
Main Discussion Themes
The Medieval "Dirty Word" Lexicon (06:06–08:29)
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Defining Obscenity:
Dr. Harris focuses on late medieval England and Scotland, examining sexual words and taboos in literature and daily life.“What I am specifically obsessed with is sexual obscenity… words for sex and genitals that are in some ways taboo…” — Dr. Carissa Harris [06:06]
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Key Terms:
- Pintle, tarse: Obscene terms for penis
- Cunt: Vulva (from Old Norse/Icelandic)
- Sweev: “Fucked”
- Fuck: Later arrival, eventually replaces “sweev”
- English obscenities leaned Germanic (not French), reflecting class/language divides.
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Humorous Aspirations:
Eleanor jokes about creating a T-shirt with medieval dirty words:“I'm imagining… band shirts: pintle and tarse and cunt and sweev and fuck…” — Dr. Eleanor Janega [08:29]
Obscenity Across Social Strata (09:05–10:32)
- French vs. English Obscenity:
- The French had their own wild, often courtly tales (e.g., “St. Martin’s Three Wishes”) but terminology didn’t permeate “regular” English usage.
- The elite were no less obscene, just using a different vocabulary and context.
Where We Find Medieval Obscenity (10:32–13:41)
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Comic Tales & Literature:
- Obscenity thrives in short comic poems passed around for entertainment.
- Friars as targets: Satirical poems accuse them of sexual misconduct (“fucking the wives of Ely”).
- Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales”: Contains about seven uses of “sweev”, notably in the bawdier stories [11:14–12:11].
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In the Pulpit:
Even sermons borrow obscene stories as moral lessons, often framing them with plausible deniability (“Don’t enjoy this story!”). -
Memorable Sermon Example:
Harris recounts the “fritters and masturbation” tale:“He can't restrain himself… he pops one [fritter] into his mouth… that tasty little bite moves him to masturbate.” — Dr. Carissa Harris [12:29]
Linking Gluttony and Lust (13:41–14:29)
- Medieval sermons preach that enjoying food (“gluttony”) leads to lust, showing anxiety over bodily pleasure in all forms.
- Modern “luxury” takes its word from “lust”.
Obscene Tales as Warnings (15:38–18:26)
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Sex on Church Property:
Anecdotes of couples getting stuck together mid-coitus as a warning—both moralistic and intentionally comic."...they might not be brought asunder than dog and bitch..." — Dr. Carissa Harris [15:38]
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Audience Reception:
Manuscripts sometimes have the most graphic lines scraped out, indicating some real offense (or at least second thoughts) even among contemporaries.
Obscenity for Fun’s Sake (18:43–22:24)
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"A Talk of Ten Wives on Their Husbands' Ware":
Ten women in an alehouse outdo each other with stories about whose husband has the worst penis. The tone is comedic and self-consciously bawdy.“His is like a sorry bird sitting on two rotten eggs!” — Dr. Carissa Harris [19:05]
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Eleanor: “The dick jokes, out of sight, just banger after banger.” [20:27]
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Gendered Anxiety:
Such tales reflect (male) anxieties about women’s speech, sexuality, and participation in public life.
Alehouse Culture & Post-Plague Society (22:24–24:44)
- Drinking & Storytelling:
Exploding alehouse culture after the Black Death encouraged the spread of bawdy tales among “regular” people—especially women—who suddenly had more public and social freedom.
Gender and Voice in Obscene Tales (25:57–32:29)
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Female vs. Male Storytellers:
- Women are portrayed as shockingly explicit; men’s talk is less graphic and more evaluative.
- Most texts are crafted by men imagining what women “must” say to scandalize and amuse.
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Fictional Eavesdropping:
Tales often frame an eavesdropping male narrator, emphasizing male control over women’s stories and reputation. -
Chaucer’s Use of Obscenity:
- Courtly and bawdy tales juxtaposed
- Only real-life sexual boasting is put in the mouth of the Wife of Bath, reflecting social discomfort with “real” female sexuality [28:49–31:51].
“With Chaucer, you have his courtly stories kind of working to elevate his reputation and making his obscene stories in some ways be able to travel with them...” — Dr. Carissa Harris [30:24]
Impotence Poems and Anxieties about Men’s Virility (32:29–37:16)
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Impotence Poetry:
Men lament their failing sexual abilities, often addressed as a warning to younger lovers not to “use it all up.”“You sad, impotent old man who could do nothing but tell obscene stories.” — Dr. Carissa Harris [32:42]
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Medical Beliefs:
Sexual energy seen as finite for men (“spend it all and it’s gone”), unlimited for women—fueling fears of emasculation by “oversexed” wives. -
Magic & Revenge:
Fears that spurned women could “magically” curse a man’s sexual ability.
Legal Obscenity: Impotence Trials (38:30–42:19)
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Proving Impotence:
Hilariously public procedures: neighbors or hired sex workers attempt to induce erections, feeding the man aphrodisiacs and testifying in court.“Neighbors… trying to see if they can induce an erection on the part of the poor man in question…” — Dr. Carissa Harris [39:32]
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Shaming and Community:
Failure is met with public berating, becoming part of legal record (and later historians’ delight).
Obscenity in Slander and Defamation Cases (42:48–47:55)
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Obscene Insults as Actionable Offenses:
- Calling someone a “pintle in pintle out whore” could land you in court, reflecting both the weight of insult and a lively culture of public shaming.
“You’re a bitch. Worse than a bitch. Common whore, pintle in pintle out whore, friar’s whore, monk’s whore…” — Dr. Carissa Harris [44:11]
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Memorable Moment:
- A Scottish woman whacks a neighbor in the face with a salmon while hurling lurid insults.
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Eleanor’s observation:
“We’re just… not making insults like they used to… so over the top as to become comical.” [47:55]
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Historical Trends:
Obscenity in insults reveals concerns about clergy, disease (“syphilitic bitch”), or social status. These moments are windows into both humor and the limits of social tolerance.
Notable Quotes
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On medieval hypocrisy:
“The church is breaking these rules in all kinds of ways.” — Dr. Carissa Harris [05:25]
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On women’s alleged conversation:
“If you leave women alone… They’ll start humiliating you and sharing your most private things—laughing about your penis with all these other women.” — Dr. Carissa Harris [21:28]
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On impotence trials:
“Neighbors… trying to see if they can induce an erection… Would you do that today?… Most people would probably not, and then testify about it in church court.” — Dr. Carissa Harris [39:32]
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On social reputation:
“If everyone’s going around calling you a syphilitic, how do you come back from that?” — Dr. Eleanor Janega [49:04]
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On legal action for insults:
“People took obscene insults very, very, very seriously.” — Dr. Carissa Harris [42:48]
Timestamps for Important Segments
- Introduction & Medieval Obscenity Riddle – 02:20–04:49
- What Counts as Obscene? Medieval Dirty Words – 06:06–08:29
- French vs. English Obscenity, Social Classes – 09:05–10:32
- Obscenity in Literature & Sermons – 10:50–13:41
- Gluttony Linked to Lust – 13:41–14:29
- Comic Tales with a Moral – 15:38–18:26
- Obscene Tales for Entertainment – 18:43–22:24
- Alehouse and Bar Culture – 22:24–24:44
- Gendered Authorship of Obscene Tales – 25:57–32:29
- Impotence Poems & Masculine Anxiety – 32:42–37:16
- Impotence Trials – 38:30–42:19
- Obscene Insults and Slander Cases – 42:48–47:55
- Social Impact & Memorable Insults – 47:55–49:53
Conclusion
The episode dismantles the sanitized image of the Middle Ages, revealing a society awash with clever filth, comic coping, and worries about sex and status. Obscenity was both entertainment and a measure of social boundaries—a tool for humor, shame, and surprisingly sophisticated legal and literary play. Throughout, Eleanor and Carissa’s rapport keeps things sharp, hilarious, and deeply human, connecting medieval ribaldry to our enduring fascination with what mustn’t be said.
Further Listening:
Dr. Janega recommends the past episode “Medieval Sex and Medicine” for another, perhaps slightly less bawdy, look at medieval attitudes toward sexuality.