When a pirate says this... what does it mean?
2006-10-21 00:57:45 · 13 answers · asked by klontinmybroek 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Mythology & Folklore
"Dead Man's Chest" (also known as Fifteen Men On A Dead Man's Chest or Derelict) is a fictional sailor's work song or "sea shanty" from Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island (1883), and a later expanded poem by Young E. Allison (1891). It has since been used in many later works of art in various forms. Some researchers believe Stevenson based the shanty on an actual song.
In the novel Treasure Island, the full song is not reported. The chorus is given in full:
"Fifteen men on the dead man's chest--
...Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!
Drink and the devil had done for the rest--
...Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!"
The book records only one other phrase from the song, near its end: "But one man of her crew alive, What put to sea with seventy-five."
According to research done by Skip Henderson there is an actual "legend" behind the song. The legend, which was possibly devised by Stevenson himself, says that the rhyme tells the tale of a time when Edward Teach, also known as Blackbeard, marooned a shipload of mutineers on Dead Man's Chest Island, a barren rock in Deadman's Bay on Peter Island near Tortola. The island has high cliffs, no trees, sparse vegetation and no fresh water. The men were equipped with only a single cutlass and a bottle of rum each. The intent was, one would assume, that the men would either starve or kill each other in a drunken brawl. A month later Teach returned to find that despite the blazing Caribbean sun and lack of supplies, fifteen men had survived. The shanty tells in part what became of the rest.
2006-10-21 01:57:27 · answer #1 · answered by BlueManticore 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
It's a Christmas song written and performed by Jimmy Buffett.
Pirates however do not say that. They say "Yo Ho Ho". I'm not sure what that means though.
2006-10-21 23:45:51 · answer #2 · answered by Cinnamon 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's yo ho ho and a bottle of rum...So he's saying yo ho's atleast two...bottle of rum....sounds the ship is going to be rocking....lol
2006-10-21 21:54:51 · answer #3 · answered by ? 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
3 ho's and a bottle of rum would probably make a good party for a pirate ...... :)
2006-10-21 01:02:16 · answer #4 · answered by ? 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's actually Yo Ho Ho, not Ho Ho Ho.
2006-10-21 01:02:20 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yo ho ho and a brain full of tricks.By the way, whats Yo ho ho's job?
2016-05-22 07:22:19 · answer #6 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yeah, it's "Yo Ho Ho, and a bottle of Rum ".....which could translate into, "Yeah, I'm happy; let's get drunk maties!"
2006-10-21 04:00:26 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Merry Christmas?
2006-10-21 01:05:41 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It means exactly that. He wants 3 hoes and a bottle of rum.
2006-10-21 01:01:14 · answer #9 · answered by Jimmy H 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It means he was never any good at writting lyrics. La La La and yo ho!!
2006-10-21 06:17:59 · answer #10 · answered by Requesting Rita 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋