phrases, sayings, idioms and expressions at

French saying - taking salt to erase memory

Posted by Bob on August 15, 2003

In Reply to: French saying - taking salt to erase memory posted by Patricia on August 14, 2003

: In Eugene Ionesco's play "The Chairs", written originally in French, an old woman reassures her husband that she does not remember his often repeated story . . that she actually takes salt to help her forget . . . want to know the origins of this . . . or any infor to make sense of it

I'm going out on a limb here, because I directed The Chairs ... 30 years ago (!) and haven't had much contact with it since. (Besides, it's Theatre of the Absurd, and you're not supposed to "make sense of it.") Nevertheless, I'll venture to say that since people used to take "a dose of salts" as a purgative, to cleanse the bowel, the old lady is taking salt to cleanse the memory, to protect her from the yammerings of her old man.

© 1997 – 2024 Phrases.org.uk. All rights reserved.