• antidote101@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      30
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      edit-2
      8 months ago

      Toilet, which was pronounced with a fancy french accent in the past, would cover everything from the room, to the ass, to what’s produced. Putting all those meanings in one word was supposed to cover up the process a bit, give it a bit of class and discretion.

      I believe the title can thus be translated to “The Ass of a Sex Goddess”.

      • I_Fart_Glitter@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        2
        ·
        8 months ago

        It’s from the French toilette, which originally meant “dressing room” from toile, meaning cloth. It’s used as a euphemism like “restroom” or “washroom” but also still means “getting dressed routine.” Eau de toilette (English: toilet water) doesn’t mean water from the shitter, it means perfume.

    • AnalogyAddict@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      21
      ·
      8 months ago

      “Toilet” is also a word for fixing up your appearance, doing everything you do to get ready to go out.

    • MrZee@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      18
      ·
      edit-2
      8 months ago

      Yeah, I did some searching and see that the painting is known by that name but didn’t find anything discussing where the name comes from.

      Wikipedia states that the original title was “La Venus del espejo” which translates to “The Mirror’s Venus”

      https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rokeby_Venus

      • SonicBlue03@sh.itjust.works
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        15
        ·
        edit-2
        8 months ago

        So the original title was “The Mirror’s Venus” but they decided to go with “The Toilet of Venus”? Brilliant.

      • Canadian_Cabinet @lemmy.ca
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        12
        ·
        8 months ago

        So neither the English nor Spanish Wikipedia pages mention it, but La Venus del espejo can also mean Venus of/from the mirror referring to her appearance in said mirror. No idea where they got toilet from. It couldn’t be a translation mistake as neither word is anywhere similar to one another

    • z00s@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      3
      arrow-down
      9
      ·
      8 months ago

      I mean, tbh it sounds like a euphamism for “cumslut” lol

      • tsonfeir@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        9
        ·
        8 months ago

        Her role encompasses aspects of sexuality and fertility, certainly, but to define her as a “cumslut” would be an oversimplification of her significance in Roman culture.