Where Does it Come From?

[shanmonster]

Here is the scenario:

George goes for a walk, determined to ask Alice out to the prom. She's just a few houses away. But then it starts to rain. He turns around and goes home, because she probably didn't want to go out with him, anyway.

George is a pussy.

What is the origin of the term "pussy" in this example? Some people say it comes from pejorative use of vagina slang, but I'm not so sure of that. I think it has more in common with calling someone a "scaredy cat" or "chicken," neither of which has overtly sexual overtones (ok, maybe "chicken" does, but not in this context).

Comments

Re: Pussy

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

Yes, I think the singer was spinning yarns! Curtana already covered the issue about cats in England, so now I'll cover the gentle bunny theory.

My family used to raise rabbits for a few years, and I've found they (bunnies, that is) can be nasty, vicious creatures once they've reached puberty. Two of my males escaped their hutch one day, and when I got home, they'd had a bloody battle. Separating them was intimidating. One was missing his entire nose, and the other had had his nads bitten clean off. I've also been bitten and kicked by angry rabbits, so I know they're not quite as harmless as most people think they are.

Young/neutered rabbits tend to be gentler, though.

Re: Pussy

[autumnlaughing.livejournal.com]

yup, that'd be why I mentioned the source... I just figured that even if it wasn't right, it *did* make a good story :)

I was also thinking that while I've had cats, my only real experiance with rabbits has been a) a friend's pet, which was larger than I thought, and who's cage stank more than I thought a rabbit's would, and b) a yarn-spinner (literally) who attends a colonial-period craft day, and who has several angora rabbits that she spins from. They're pretty docile, but maybe they just like being petted!

The folk singer did talk about the coony-cunt connection as well :)