Re: Can't
died in a corn field - pure guesswork
Posted
by The Fallen on January 31, 2002 In Reply to: Can't
died in a corn field posted by Susan Z on January 31, 2002
: I was wondering the meaning and origin of "Can't died in a cornfield". My mother
used to tell me this whenever I said I can't do it.....
Re meaning, I'd assume
something along the lines of "if you don't at least try, you'll always be bound
to fail". As to origin, and this is a freely admitted stretch, I wonder if it's
biblical? My scriptural knowledge is rusty, but didn't Cain the crop-minder kill
Abel the herdsman in a cornfield? I therefore wonder if it's a far-fetched pun,
with the "can't" being a sound-alike for the opposite of "can" and therefore meaning
Abel. It almost sounds plausible in some seriously skewed way... is "can't" pronounced
"cain't" in some States?
- Re: Can't/cain't R. Berg 01/31/02
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