Under my skin

Posted by Smokey Stover on June 26, 2005

In Reply to: Not as nice posted by Smokey Stover on June 25, 2005

: : : : : What does "I've got you under my skin" mean?

: : : : It means that you have become so much a part of me it is as if you are under my skin. In short, it is one of the almost limitless declarations of love.

: : : : DFG

: : : Everybody sing:

: : : I've got you under my skin
: : : I've got you deep in the heart of me
: : : So deep in my heart, that you're really a part of me
: : : I've got you under my skin

: : Something or somebody getting under your skin also alludes to being an irritation - as if the object was an irritant lodged under the surface that the person could not refrain from scratching.

: : Usage such as "It really got under my skin" is common in the UK.

:
: : L

: Ditto U.S.

Thinking about this phrase, "under my skin," it seems to me that the use of the phrase by Cole Porter in a love song, in 1936, has seriously undermined the use of the phrase in its original meaning. "He gets under my skin," or "Don't let him get under your skin," are negative uses of the phrase, indicating an annoyance with him that goes more than skin deep, and can't be easily brushed off. I don't think any itching was ever involved, just annoyance and irritation. I think this obsessive or persistent aspect of the annoyance was what recommended the phrase to Cole Porter. "She's annoying, but I can't get her out of my system" is sometimes one stage on the path to love. But the great popularity of the song has made it less likely, I think, that you will hear the phrase used as it originally was. It has been preempted. SS