Comments on: Puce

By: Justine Larbalestier » Puce Redux

Justine Larbalestier » Puce Redux — Tue, 16 Aug 2005 00:06:19 +0000

[...] the wonderous Pulp Fiction bookstore in Brisbane, just added this comment to the long ago puce thread. I think it worthy of elevation to a post of its own. He wrote: I know that the historical [...]

By: ron

ron — Mon, 15 Aug 2005 23:48:53 +0000

know you’re busy an’ all… but when you get a chance, I think we should re-open the discussions regarding puce.

I know that the historical origins were worked over and the flea blood/shit thang was put forward and everyone was fairly happpy with that and it seemed to be the end of the discussion…

but I don’t think that’s all there is.

I think the actual colour changed – and relatively quickly in hostorical terms – and became something else entirely.

certainly now – according to richard (source: decorator and paint
charts) and leanne (source: printers’ colour guides) – it’s either
either a cherry-ish red or an orange-y pink.

but even as far back as heyer’s georgian setings i think it had already taken this road. whenever it’s used in her works it either – if used in the
context of a male wearing it suggest dandyism or effeminacy – or when a woman is involved it seems to be vulgarity or a younger girl wearing something showy and inappropriate.

neither suggest a sedate flea blood/shit purple-y brown to this little black duck.

i think we need a whole social history here. could be a great idea for a thesis… or maybe a popular history volume to supplement that wonderful book “mauve” from a few years back – (tho’ doubt one could find that puce made nearly as earth-shattering an
impact as that aforementioned shade of purple! astonishing!)

one way or another, it aint over yet.

By: Tess

Tess — Fri, 08 Jul 2005 04:50:40 +0000

Well…those are some pretty fashion conscious fleas then.

By: Shelly Rae

Shelly Rae — Thu, 07 Jul 2005 16:50:26 +0000

The link may just be one of those quirky linguist ones but I’d read that puce was the color of fleas. Puce colored fabrics were chosen by people who frequently had fleas and did not want them to show…which is to say, just about everyone in the not so distant past (and a few even today!). With fleas, it is not simply the insect itself that is annoying, but the “dirt” they create. In other words “flea poop” that contains digested blood which will stain clothing. Hence, puce.
See? All those years of studying medieval lit do come in handy sometimes!
Anon,

By: deborahb

deborahb — Thu, 07 Jul 2005 13:12:39 +0000

Flea coloured? I would’ve said a kind of purple, & on reflection yes, a kind of brownish purple perfectly describes the colour in my head.

By: David Moles

David Moles — Thu, 07 Jul 2005 02:45:07 +0000

Whoa. I’ve been sure all my life it was a kind of pale bilious green. I knew I shouldn’t have skipped the assignment in my freshman year creative writing contest where the instructor told all the guys to go out to either a fabric store or a flower store and learn about colors….

By: lili

lili — Wed, 06 Jul 2005 23:50:53 +0000

puce means flea in french. lots of people made puns about joan of arc in her day, because she was known as ‘la pucelle’: the maid/virgin. but her enemies called her ‘la puce’: the flea.

and so endeth the lesson.