The dark interior of the earth.
The dark interior of the earth.
The simile that associates the bowels with the dark visceral centre of things is of long standing. The first known use of it is in Peter Morwyng’s translation of The treasure of Evonymus, 1559:
“Sum put to it wormes or bowels of the earth.”
Shakespeare was very fond of the imagery of ‘the bowels of’ and used it in several of his plays. In King Henry IV, Part I, 1596, he has Hotspur refer to ‘the bowels of the harmless earth’. In Richard III, 1594, he used ‘the bowels of the land’. In other plays he referred to ‘the bowels of’ – ‘the battle’, ‘the commonwealth’, ‘the French’, ‘thy sovereign’s son’, ‘the Lord’ and ‘ungrateful Rome’.
Trend of the bowels of the earth in printed material over time
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T UV W XYZ
American Animals Australian Bible Body Colour Conflict Death Devil Dogs Emotions Euphemism Family Fashion Food French Horses ‘Jack’ Luck Money Military Music Names Nature Nautical Numbers Politics Religion Shakespeare Stupidity Entertainment Weather Women Work
Have you spotted something that needs updated on this page? We review all feedback we receive to ensure that we provide the most accurate and up to date information on phrases.