Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Language/2013 November 24

= November 24 =

Japanese movie wallpaper, what's the name of the movie
This is the wallpaper, it's about serial killer Tsutomu Miyazaki. What's the name of the movie? Thank you all. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 190.178.179.53 (talk) 13:47, 24 November 2013 (UTC)
 * "Yume no naka, ima mo" which would mean "In a dream, even now". I don't know the official English title, but that is a translation of the Japanese.  KägeTorä - (影虎)  ( TALK )  15:01, 24 November 2013 (UTC)
 * It's not a movie, but a book written by Miyazaki. See . Oda Mari (talk) 18:20, 25 November 2013 (UTC)

Cannon metaphors
Dear colleagues! I'm writing on a German WP article, about "cannon metaphors", most of which originated during the times of Kaiser Wilhelm (example Kanonenfieber cannon fever, a kind of stage fright in the face of war...). To show the difference, how cannon metaphors are used in different cultures, I decided to add sections about English and French cannon metaphors. Cannon fodder (Kanonenfutter) is the first that comes to mind. "A loose cannon" is another typical English one (with a French background). Do you have other suggestions from the (US or British) English language? Cannon, cannon ball, cannon whatever? The When and Why I can then research myself. Thx  GEEZER nil nisi bene 16:32, 24 November 2013 (UTC)
 * The Cannonball Run, for one. And the train song, "Wabash Cannonball". And anyone who can throw a baseball or football with exceptional force and distance is said to have a "cannon" for an arm. Somewhat indirectly, a German WWI cannon called "Big Bertha" led to that term being synonymous with any big, powerful or noisy machine. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 17:58, 24 November 2013 (UTC)


 * Julian Adderley became known in high school as "Cannonball" Adderley, but that was a corruption of "cannibal", because he had an appetite that knew no limits. --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  19:07, 24 November 2013 (UTC)


 * "In the cannon's mouth" meaning a dangerous situation comes from Shakespeare's "Seven ages of man" monologue. "The cannon's roar" might fit the bill too - I found it mentioned in a 19th century nursery rhyme but must be much older. The question is a little complicated, because an English-speaking WWI soldier would have talked about "guns" rather than "cannons" which infers an obsolete muzzle-loading weapon - "cannon" is not a direct translation of "kanon". Alansplodge (talk) 20:05, 24 November 2013 (UTC)
 * "Hoist with your own petard" might do I suppose, since a petard was a type of artillery. Alansplodge (talk) 20:07, 24 November 2013 (UTC)
 * Cannon (TV series). ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 13:41, 25 November 2013 (UTC)


 * There's the expression "Trust in God and keep your powder dry", which roughly means to stay alert and prepared, although I'm not sure if the gunpowder is meant to be used in a cannon or gun. StuRat (talk) 14:00, 25 November 2013 (UTC)
 * I believe it referred originally and primarily to the powder for a flintlock musket, where damp powder was likely to cause a misfire, a particular problem for infantry of the period. DES (talk) 17:41, 26 November 2013 (UTC)


 * Son of a gun refers to cannons, and has several meanings. SemanticMantis (talk) 19:50, 25 November 2013 (UTC)
 * So far: Great! THANKS! ... now a visit in the fr:wp.  GEEZER nil nisi bene 21:44, 25 November 2013 (UTC)


 * Canon law refers to religious law. A pun on this, "Cannon law" means the rule of force or the law imposed by conquest. DES (talk) 17:45, 26 November 2013 (UTC)
 * When the queen has a baby, they fire a 21-gun salute. When a nun has a baby, they fire a dirty old canon....Old joke, sorry.  KägeTorä - (影虎)  ( TALK )  18:35, 26 November 2013 (UTC)
 * Pachelbel's? ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 19:30, 26 November 2013 (UTC)


 * From Tennyson's The Charge of the Light Brigade:
 * Cannon to left of them,
 * Cannon in front of them
 * Volley'd and thunder'd;
 * Storm'd at with shot and shell,
 * Boldly they rode and well,
 * Into the jaws of Death,
 * Into the mouth of Hell
 * Rode the six hundred.
 * ...  --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  19:45, 26 November 2013 (UTC)
 * ...  --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  19:45, 26 November 2013 (UTC)