# Shit through a canebrake query **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 23, 2024, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617 "2024-09-23T12:59:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![GailForce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/dfb087/32.png) [@GailForce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GailForce)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/1 "2024-09-23T12:59:39Z")
I vaguely remember this phrase, attributed to Barry Goldwater(?), that “[something] went through [him? it?] like shit through a canebrake” and though the phrase is colorful, I have no idea what it means. Wot is a canebrake? And why would shit flow through it copiously? Did Goldwater actually utter this? If so, about whom or what was he speaking? ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/2 "2024-09-23T13:09:33Z")
I don’t recall ever hearing that phrase before, although George C. Scott, as General Patton in the movie _Patton_ in his opening monolgue talks about the US Army going through the Germans “like crap through a goose”, a phrase I can fully understand (and which Patton hjimself probably said – that openinf speech was abstracted from his.) Apparently I have encountered the phrase before, but don’t recall it. A little googling turns up this example from Stephen King’s _The Dead Zone_ > [@](#): > > “There was the sense of flying – flying through the blue – above scenes of utter desolation that could not quite be seen. And cutting through this came the disembodied voice of Greg Stillson, the voice of a cut-rate God or a comic-opera engine of the dead: ‘I’M GONNA GO THROUGH THEM LIKE BUCKWHEAT THROUGH A GOOSE! GONNA GO THROUGH THEM LIKE SHIT THROUGH A CANEBRAKE!’ > **[“The Dead Zone” by Stephen King: Alienation and Recovery - The Writing Post](https://thewritingpost.com/2020/09/09/a-look-at-stephen-kings-the-dead-zone/)** > > Explore this analysis and summary of Stephen King's thriller, The Dead Zone. Discover the story of the novel and its overall impact as a book. I still don’t know why this phrase is used, although it’s juxtaposed with the one about geese, which I do understand. A canebrake is, according to Wikipedia: > [@](#): > > A **canebrake** or **canebreak** is a [thicket](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thicket) of any of a variety of _[Arundinaria](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arundinaria)_ grasses: _[A. gigantea](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arundinaria_gigantea)_ , _[A. tecta](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arundinaria_tecta)_ and _[A. appalachiana](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arundinaria_appalachiana)_ . As a [bamboo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bamboo), these giant [grasses](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grasses) grow in thickets up to 24 feet (7.3 m) tall. _A. gigantea_ is generally found in stream valleys and ravines throughout the [southeastern United States](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southeastern_United_States). _A. tecta_ is a smaller stature species found on the Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plains. Finally, _A. appalachiana_ is found in more upland areas at the southern end of the [Appalachian Mountains](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appalachian_Mountains).[[1]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canebrake#cite_note-1) Cane does not do well on sites that meet [wetland](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wetland) classification. Instead, canebrakes are characteristic of moist lowland, floodplain areas that are not as saturated as true wetlands.[[2]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canebrake#cite_note-2) I have no idea why this would be the basis for this weird verbal construction. Since it’s a wetland plant, maybe raw sewage floats through it easily You’re not the first to ask about this: > **[Go through them like buckwheat through a goose](https://forum.wordreference.com/threads/go-through-them-like-buckwheat-through-a-goose.3434707/)** > > There was the sense of flying –flying through the blue –above scenes of utter desolation that could not quite be seen. And cutting through this came the disembodied voice of Greg Stillson, the voice of a cut-rate God or a comic-opera engine of the... ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/3 "2024-09-23T13:09:54Z")
Canebrake is another name for a [eastern shoreline rattlesnake](https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/timber-rattlesnake#:~:text=Generally%2C%20those%20found%20in%20the,Coastal%20Plain%20are%20called%20canebrakes.). Not sure about their bowel movement activities. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/4 "2024-09-23T13:11:29Z")
I have no idea what the significance is, but William McCullough used the title “Through the Canebrake” for a Civil War novel > **[Amazon.com: Through The Canebrake: 9780595216086: McCollough, William: Books](https://www.amazon.com/Through-Canebrake-William-McCollough/dp/0595216080)** > > Amazon.com: Through The Canebrake: 9780595216086: McCollough, William: Books ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/5 "2024-09-23T13:13:31Z")
“Canebrake” is apparently also short for “Canebrake rattlesnake”, presumably one that lives in canebrakes. Maybe it’s felt that excrement passes so easily through a canebrake rattlesnake that it’s as proverbial in that way as a goose. [Canebrake Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/canebrake). I see that **Si\_Amigo** published this while I was writing my own entry. ---
**Author:** ![GailForce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/dfb087/32.png) [@GailForce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GailForce)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/6 "2024-09-23T13:23:01Z")
No reference to Goldwater? Google tells me that “canebrake” also appears in Joyce’s Ulysses. No Goldwater there either. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/7 "2024-09-23T13:40:11Z")
> [@GailForce](#): > > No reference to Goldwater? _You’re_ the one who brought Goldwater into this. If you want to tie him to the quote, _you_ go search for it. in the OP you don’t even seem to be sure that he used the phrase. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/8 "2024-09-23T13:41:38Z")
> [@GailForce](#): > > Wot is a canebrake? It’s where Tennessee Ernie Ford was raised by an ol’ mama lion. (According to the song “Sixteen Tons”.) ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/9 "2024-09-23T13:43:30Z")
Good Lord, I found it. Gore Vidal quoted Goldwater using the phrase with regard to Nixon: > [@](#): > > [[image]](https://books.google.com/books?id=oU0iAAAAMAAJ&q=goldwater+canebrake&dq=goldwater+canebrake&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=1&printsec=frontcover&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiU_PP1mNmIAxWMC3kGHWFbHbs4ChDrAXoECA4QAQ) > > [ > > ### An Evening with Richard Nixon - Page 71 > > [books.google.com](http://books.google.com) › books > ]([Google Books](https://books.google.com/books?id=oU0iAAAAMAAJ&q=goldwater+canebrake&dq=goldwater+canebrake&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=1&printsec=frontcover&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiU_PP1mNmIAxWMC3kGHWFbHbs4ChDoAXoECA4QAg)) > > [Gore Vidal](https://www.google.com/search?sa=N&sca_esv=60dc7b8df89f0db7&sca_upv=1&biw=1280&bih=585&tbm=bks&tbm=bks&q=inauthor:%22Gore+Vidal%22&ved=2ahUKEwiU_PP1mNmIAxWMC3kGHWFbHbs4ChD0CHoECA4QBQ) · 1972 · ‎Snippet view > > Found inside – Page 71 > > … _Goldwater_ , how would you characterize Mr. Nixon’s presidential campaign four years ago ? _GOLDWATER’S_ VOICE OVER Hell , Nixon just went sashayin ’ around the country like shit through a _cane- brake_ … INTERVIEWER’S VOICE OVER Mr … [https://www.google.com/search?q=goldwater+canebrake&sca\_esv=60dc7b8df89f0db7&sca\_upv=1&tbm=bks&ei=LHDxZtv4Er7XptQP76boqAU&start=10&sa=N&ved=2ahUKEwjbvoDvmNmIAxW-q4kEHW8TGlUQ8tMDegQIEBAE&biw=1280&bih=585&dpr=1.5](https://www.google.com/search?q=goldwater+canebrake&sca_esv=60dc7b8df89f0db7&sca_upv=1&tbm=bks&ei=LHDxZtv4Er7XptQP76boqAU&start=10&sa=N&ved=2ahUKEwjbvoDvmNmIAxW-q4kEHW8TGlUQ8tMDegQIEBAE&biw=1280&bih=585&dpr=1.5) ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/10 "2024-09-23T13:48:06Z")
The quote (from Vidal’s book) continues > [@](#): > > I don’t think Barry – one of the few people in this narrative that comes off as an honest man – will mind my quoting him. From Gore Vidal’s **An Evening with Richard Nixon** p. 71 (1972) ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/11 "2024-09-23T15:21:50Z")
Goldwater was, of course, the scion of one of Arizona’s leading pioneer-turned-fatcat families dating back to the Arizona Territory days. Canebreak being a southeastern thing I find it odd a southwestern politician would use that phrase which is (was?) evidently pretty obscure. Stuff was a LOT more regional in the 1970s USA than it is today. ---
**Author:** ![GailForce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/dfb087/32.png) [@GailForce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GailForce)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/12 "2024-09-23T17:54:37Z")
Yes. I’ve enjoyed that play and even own the book. Obviously haven’t read it in years. When I searched Google, it gave me results but no “Goldwater.” I wonder what you did to get it to spit up the Vidal play. I still have no idea what Goldwater was talking about. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/13 "2024-09-23T19:07:35Z")
From the Stephen King reference, I figured that going like shit through a canebreak referred to smashing through an obstacle without difficulty, a colorful southern phrase that need not be taken literally. ---
**Author:** ![GailForce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/dfb087/32.png) [@GailForce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GailForce)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/14 "2024-09-23T19:11:18Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > going like shit through a canebreak referred to smashing through an obstacle without difficulty, Yeah, but that doesn’t fit what Goldwater said, does it? In that context, it’s more like “wandered around without a plan.” > [@CalMeacham](#): > > Nixon just went sashayin ’ around the country like shit through a _cane- brake_ ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/15 "2024-09-23T19:33:42Z")
> [@GailForce](#): > > When I searched Google, it gave me results but no “Goldwater.” I wonder what you did to get it to spit up the Vidal play. I looked in Google Books. That will often give you references you won’t find in straight Google. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/16 "2024-09-23T20:08:16Z")
Contextual WAG: Canebrake = cane = reed, pipe, straw, an unobstructed tube. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2024, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shit-through-a-canebrake-query/1007617/17 "2024-09-23T21:29:22Z")
Trivia note, in case anyone doesn’t already know: “Canaveral,” as in the cape is Spanish for “canebrake.” “Canebrake” was also the name of a top secret military device in one episode of the original “Hawaii Five-O.”