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bed in common

English translation: share the same bed (that is, the sea)

12:51 Dec 25, 2012
English language (monolingual) [PRO]
Poetry & Literature
English term or phrase: bed in common
When serenely advancing on one of these journeys, if any strange suspicious sights are seen, my lord whale keeps a wary eye on his interesting family. Should any unwarrantably pert young Leviathan coming that way, presume to draw confidentially close to one of the ladies, with what prodigious fury the Bashaw assails him, and chases him away! High times, indeed, if unprincipled young rakes like him are to be permitted to invade the sanctity of domestic bliss; though do what the Bashaw will, he cannot keep the most notorious Lothario out of his bed; for, alas! all fish --------------------bed in common. --------------------As ashore, the ladies often cause the most terrible duels among their rival admirers; just so with the whales, who sometimes come to deadly battle, and all for love. They fence with their long lower jaws, sometimes locking them together, and so striving for the supremacy like elks that warringly interweave their antlers. Not a few are captured having the deep scars of these encounters,—furrowed heads, broken teeth, scolloped fins; and in some instances, wrenched and dislocated mouths.

Thank you!
Michael Kislov
Russian Federation
Local time: 03:33
Selected answer:share the same bed (that is, the sea)
Explanation:
I think the idea is that unlike a human husband, who can keep a rival male away from his wife by shutting his house, a whale shares the same environment with all other whales, with no physical barriers, and it is therefore impossible to prevent a rival from approaching; all the whale can do is chase him away. So although to bed can mean to mate or have sex with someone (to go to bed with someone), I think here it simply means that all whales share the same bedroom.

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Note added at 46 mins (2012-12-25 13:37:08 GMT)
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It would be more accurate to say that all fish share the same bedroom, or that they go to bed in the same (common) space.
Selected response from:

Charles Davis
Spain
Local time: 02:33
Grading comment
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED
3 +2share the same bed (that is, the sea)
Charles Davis
4are promiscuous
B D Finch
4mate
Yvonne Gallagher
3sea's bed OR seabed
Vieres LLC


  

Answers


22 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +2
share the same bed (that is, the sea)


Explanation:
I think the idea is that unlike a human husband, who can keep a rival male away from his wife by shutting his house, a whale shares the same environment with all other whales, with no physical barriers, and it is therefore impossible to prevent a rival from approaching; all the whale can do is chase him away. So although to bed can mean to mate or have sex with someone (to go to bed with someone), I think here it simply means that all whales share the same bedroom.

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Note added at 46 mins (2012-12-25 13:37:08 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

It would be more accurate to say that all fish share the same bedroom, or that they go to bed in the same (common) space.

Charles Davis
Spain
Local time: 02:33
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 236

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Claudia Luque Bedregal
8 hrs
  -> Thanks, Claudia, and best regards :)
agree  Veronika McLaren
3 days 3 hrs
  -> Thanks, Veronika, and Happy New Year :)
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5 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
sea's bed OR seabed


Explanation:
"all fish share the sea's bed" or "all fish share the seabed"

This adds a pun / double meaning (seabed=the floor/bottom of the sea) I'm not sure if it's nicely poetic or terribly cheesey, but it occurred to me so I thought I'd share it!

Best,
V

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Note added at 5 hrs (2012-12-25 18:15:13 GMT)
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P.S. Sorry, the subject line should have read "share the sea's bed" or "share the seabed"

Vieres LLC
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
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20 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
are promiscuous


Explanation:
The (archaic) verb "to bed" means to have sex with (not necessarily in a bed). To put it in modern English, he is saying that fish are promiscuous.

B D Finch
France
Local time: 02:33
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 84
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2 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
mate


Explanation:
whales, who sometimes come to deadly battle, and all for love.

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Note added at 5 mins (2012-12-25 12:56:16 GMT)
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it means that unlike some animals that form partnerships or have mates for life, that these whales will mate any chance they get. So, a young "Lothario" or lover will try to mate with whatever female is available so cashesoccur between the male whales like amongst stags

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Note added at 5 mins (2012-12-25 12:56:48 GMT)
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Happy Christmas!

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Note added at 33 mins (2012-12-25 13:24:19 GMT)
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typo: Clashes occur

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Note added at 1 day1 hr (2012-12-26 14:47:14 GMT)
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After all, no animals have "bedrooms" (including the elks he mentions and their battles over "love") so I still believe this means

to bed=to mate any chance (at every opportunity) they get (as BDF puts it, they are promiscuous). The reference to "Lotharios supports this view

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Note added at 1 day1 hr (2012-12-26 14:48:54 GMT)
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to "mate" is a polite way of saying fornicate/have sex with or the other 4 letter word

Yvonne Gallagher
Ireland
Local time: 01:33
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 317
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