# Aptronyms in Fiction **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 13, 2006, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484 "2006-04-13T04:15:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![saoirse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@saoirse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saoirse)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/41 "2006-04-13T23:16:25Z")
> [@pseudotriton ruber ruber](#): > > And I don’t even get what Oedipa Maas is supposed to be emblematic OF. I don’t remember too clearly, because I read this in school and was trying not to let the joy get flogged out of the book, but I think it had to do with her as a seeker of the truth that was just barely hidden beneath her reality. It wasn’t so obvious as to be an aptronym, I don’t think. It was more of a reference to classical literature, like Stephen Dedalus. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2006, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/42 "2006-04-14T12:32:38Z")
> [@Ellen Cherry](#): > > In Gone with the Wind, Scarlett’s sisters: Suellen – who was sullen and whiney (and was actually described by using the word sullen in at least one place :rolleyes: ) and Careen, who was very caring. And Scarlett herself was considered to be quite the scarlet woman. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2006, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/43 "2006-04-14T13:36:27Z")
And we can’t forget (from _Monty Python’s Life of Brian_)… Biggus Dickus, and his charming wife, Incontinentia Buttocks. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2006, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/44 "2006-04-14T13:38:24Z")
The practice goes back at least to Shakespeare. E.g., Benvolio (good-will) in _Romeo & Juliet,_ Malvolio (bad-will) in _Twelfth Night._ 18th Century: Squire Allworthy in Fielding’s _Tom Jones._ Practically every character in Gay’s _The Beggar’s Opera:_ The bandit MacHeath (lord/son of the heath); the informer Peachum (the impeacher). ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2006, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/45 "2006-04-14T13:40:52Z")
Simon Templar ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2006, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/46 "2006-04-14T13:42:15Z")
Thackeray used a lot of aptronyms: In _Vanity Fair_ there was Lord Bareacres, Viscount Castlemouldy, and of course the wicked Marquis of Steyne; as well as the disgusting baronet Sir Pitt Crawley. I suppose there was some reason he named his most sympathetic character, the honest and kindly grocer’s son, “Dobbin,” but I’m not sure what the name signified in cultural context. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2006, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/47 "2006-04-14T13:44:34Z")
> [@Spatial Rift 47](#): > > Come to think of it, “Bones” McCoy was rather skinny … I’m pretty sure this was a nickname of “Sawbones,” something doctors were called in days of yore. And you’re right about Scarlett, Annie; I almost added that myself. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2006, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/48 "2006-04-14T13:54:28Z")
And, of course, “Scotty” was based on the cultural stereotype (in the English-speaking world) that most engineers are Scottish. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2006, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/49 "2006-04-14T18:09:15Z")
Quoth **Elendil’s Heir** : > [@](#): > > And we can’t forget (from Monty Python’s Life of Brian)… Biggus Dickus, and his charming wife, Incontinentia Buttocks. Was it ever established that those were apt, though? And since **BrainGlutton** mentions Shakespeare, we can’t forget about Mistress Quickly. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2006, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/50 "2006-04-14T18:12:37Z")
In Gone With the Wind, Belle Watling was obviously able to give a “good wailing.” ---
**Author:** ![NoCoolUserName](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5fc32e/32.png) [@NoCoolUserName](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NoCoolUserName)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2006, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/51 "2006-04-14T22:15:55Z")
Pre-graphic novel writer Kenneth Robeson in his Doc Savage: Man of Bronze books has: Monk–a large, gorilla-ish fellah Ham–a bookish yet dramatic sort (given the nickname because of an incident with smoked pig, but still) And Doc Savage himself, a guy who feels he must carefully control himself lest he, um, go wild. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2006, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/52 "2006-04-14T23:05:14Z")
There are lots of them in “Atlas Shrugged”–the protagonists all have heroic rugged-individualist names like “John Galt,” “Hank Rearden,” and “Dagny Taggart,” while many of the antagonists have weak or ridiculous names (Wesley Mouch, Kiki Holloway, Cuffy Meigs, Balph Eubank, Kip Chalmers, and so on.) ---
**Author:** ![dotchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@dotchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dotchan)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/53 "2006-04-15T00:43:14Z")
The ever delightful (ha) Xanth series has descriptive name puns up the wazoo. The demons in particular are all dubbed Demon [something or other] in a fashion that suggests their personality. Metria (demetria, the inability to use the correct words) even has two other personalities: Mentia (demential, insanity) and Woe Betide (as in “woe betide he who breaks this seal”). ---
**Author:** ![Terrifel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c68b51/32.png) [@Terrifel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terrifel)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/54 "2006-04-15T01:31:21Z")
And what of **DIRK PITT**?! Surely no name could be more apt to a character than that of **DIRK PITT**! Because there is only one person rugged and manly enough to be named **DIRK PITT** , and that’s **DIRK PITT**! Except now he has a son! Who is also named… **DIRK PITT**! \*"Paging Mr. **DIRK PITT** … would Mr. \*_DIRK PITT \*\* please pick up the white courtesy phone; you have a call from a Mr. **DIRK PITT**!"_ Robert Silverberg’s _uber_-'70s SF novel \*\*Son of Man \*\* is about a modern-day human who gets swept up into some type of time vortex and lands a billion-odd years in the future, where humans have developed their technology to the point where they can achieve personal fulfillment by directly reshaping their bodies. The protagonist’s name is Clay. And of course there’s Orson Scott Card’s novel **Ender’s Game** , which tells the story of young Andrew Wiggin, who is of course called “Ender,” since this is a so much more common nickname than “Andy” or “Drew.” Ender gets caught up in the machinations of Earth’s military training program, which is trying to produce an ultimate strategist who will finally end a decades-long interstellar war. I don’t want to spoil the book for anyone, so I’ll just say that one of the characters does in fact end the war. Card won both the Hugo and Nebula awards for managing to present this material with a straight face. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/55 "2006-04-15T01:33:47Z")
There is Bugs Meany, from _Encyclopedia Brown_. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/56 "2006-04-15T09:00:27Z")
The practice goes way back to antiquity. The most glaring and accessible example is Oedipus: οιδα πουσ / oida pous, the foot knows. ---
**Author:** ![saoirse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@saoirse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saoirse)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/57 "2006-04-15T18:03:25Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > The practice goes way back to antiquity. The most glaring and accessible example is Oedipus: οιδα πουσ / oida pous, the foot knows. I thought it meant “pierced foot,” and that he was called that because his foot was pierced when he was found. ---
**Author:** ![jackelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@jackelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackelope)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/58 "2006-04-15T23:28:32Z")
> [@Happy Clam](#): > > In **Endgame** Beckett _may_ -emphasis on the speculative- use aptronyms for most of the characters. > > Ham- suggests “ham actor”- I think this one is a little remote, personally. Also “hammer”, while… > Clov- “cleu” is “nail” in French (the language in which Beckett wrote, IIRC). Hammer and nail pretty much describes Hamm/Clov’s relationship. > Nagg- the legless father, who does indeed nag for food for most of the play. > Nell- the dead mother- a suggestion of “death knell”, maybe? I think the Hammer/Nail thing goes further than this: **Hamm** : Hammer **Clov** : French _clou_, “nail” **Nagg** : German _nagel_, “nail” **Nell** : Cognate for English _nail_? (I’m not going to pretend I was the first to discover this; I read it somewhere ages ago, in grad school. And the “nagging” father and “death knell” mother are certainly relevant.) To follow up on Oedipa Maas in _The Crying of Lot 49_: I think the name refers more to Oedipus’s status as riddle-solver rather than as truth-seeker or incest-committer. The reference is ironic though, because the book basically turns the mystery genre on its head: [spoiler]She discovers a mystery, but as the book progresses, it just gets bigger and bigger until it threatens to encompass the whole world. There’s no “a-ha!” moment, no final resolution when we’re able to assimilate the unexplained facts back into our previous worldview. She’s named after the world’s most famous solver of riddles, but ends up doing the opposite. (Not sure the spoiler tag was necessary, since there’s no Big Secret to reveal, but then I suppose that itself is the book’s Big Secret.)[/spoiler] ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/59 "2006-04-16T10:41:00Z")
> [@saoirse](#): > > I thought it meant “pierced foot,” and that he was called that because his foot was pierced when he was found. Wikipedia says ‘swollen foot’, but it operates on several levels. There’s his foot-related answer to the sphinx, the fact that Laius and Jocasta should have known him for his feet, there’s his destiny etc. And Oedipus is one of the few Greek tragic heroes who doesn’t kill himself (unlike most of the rest of his family). ---
**Author:** ![saoirse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@saoirse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saoirse)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484/60 "2006-04-16T16:45:06Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Wikipedia says ‘swollen foot’, but it operates on several levels. There’s his foot-related answer to the sphinx, the fact that Laius and Jocasta should have known him for his feet, there’s his destiny etc. > > And Oedipus is one of the few Greek tragic heroes who doesn’t kill himself (unlike most of the rest of his family). Either way, though, it’s not like the bounder Josiah Bounderby or the evil schoolmaster M’Choakumchild. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aptronyms-in-fiction/352484.md?page=4)