William Quincy Belle: Phallic Symbolism: intentional or not

I suppose I should start with something profound about Freudian analysis and our collective pysche or an erudite reference to antiquity and our roots with the Greeks and Romans, but in reality, this all started when, by random chance, I ran across the picture of a young lady on the ground holding her legs up with the Tower of Pisa in the background. - Okay, it's not profound, but it was funny. - From there, I typed "phallic symbolism" into Google and the merriment started. Pictures, animated GIFs, and articles both scholarly and humorous were bountifully listed off in a never-ending stream of guffaws and "what were they thinking".

Boy, do I feel inadequate now.

People's Daily Tower
A new headquarters for the People's Daily newspaper has been under construction since 2013 and is slated for completion in 2014. In May 2013, China attempted to censor jokes about its phallic shape. -Wikipedia

I guess Go Daddy wasn't the only one to decide to put not too subtle sexual references in their publicity. Besides, seven inches? Come on, the average sub is only five and a half.

Maybe Winston thought Mr. Studly could impress the ladies with his "Super King". - Length? What about girth? - But I would be quick to point out that such famous women as George Sand and Marlene Dietrich were noted for smoking cigars. Ah, so you can get length and girth and what woman wants a man with a little cigarette?

Okay, I can't say this one is unintentional. It seems pretty deliberate to me and does respond quite well to a few fantasy porn clips. No, I am not kidding. Who needs a Sybian when you have a 5 speed dual-clutch manual with overdrive? Add in a pump action hand brake, and your car is, well, orgasmic.

Ypsilanti Water Tower
The tower was designed by William R. Coats and constructed as part of an elaborate city waterworks project that began in 1889. Located on the highest point in Ypsilanti, the tower was erected in 1890 at a cost of $21,435.63. Today the tower[, called "the brick dick" by locals,] is frequently joked about for its phallic shape. It has become a well-known landmark in Ypsilanti, and due to the building's shape and location, the tower is frequently used by residents as a point for providing directions for visitors and residents. -Wikipedia

Note: A long-standing urban legend holds that the tower will crumble if a virgin ever graduates from nearby Eastern Michigan University. (Thanks, Ms. Quote, for the reference.)

Miss SheLa's Detroit Rock City Photography
Miss SheLa is an graduate of Eastern Michigan University with a Bachelor Degree in Fine Arts & a Minor in Art History. She has been shooting photography seriously for 10 years, and shoots Rock & Metal Concerts for Real Detroit Weekly Magazine. She also is a photojournalist for Examiner.com (Detroit & National Concert Links) and is also a correspondence for Backstageaxxess.com.

Apparently, architects will have to pay more attention to what can be seen from above. In Dixon, Illinois, the Christian Science Society decided to build their new church around an old tree rather than tear in down. The results, as seen by Google Earth, have been titillating many people. (see CBS Chicago Oct 31/2013) However, kudos to the church for having a sense of humor about it as they posted on their Facebook page "Giant fig leaf coming soon".

Oops. The unintended consequences of light and shadow? I have no idea where this is but it does look like a British double decker bus in the background.

A little conversation, a couple of drinks, then he leans over and whispers in the lady's ear, "I have a tropical storm in my pants."
She replies, "Is that true or is that just a 'phallicy'?"

I'm a sex addict! Ahhh, I'm seeing porn everywhere!!!

Last but not least
In the 2nd half of 2011, we were all witness to the Republican process of selecting their candidate to run against Obama. This stellar group of crazies had many notables but Michele Bachmann stood out as one of the dumbest people I have seen since Sarah Palin strode onto the world stage. (see my blog: Michele Bachmann, a Corn Dog and the Oral Office - Aug 14/2011)

On August 13, 2011 in Ames, Iowa, Ms. Bachmann was declared the winner of The Iowa Straw Poll, humorous unto itself, but the real fodder for comedians was the picture of the victor chowing down on a corn dog. Out of all the captions that were subsequently added to this photograph by mischievous writers everywhere, this one stood out as my all-time favourite.

I TOLD you I could take on Obama!!!

References

my blog: Yonic Symbolism: intentional or not - Jul 22/2014
Being an equal opportunity type of guy, I couldn't leave the ladies out of the fun. But first, I had to find out the female equivalent of phallic.

Wikipedia: Phallic architecture
Phallic architecture consciously or unconsciously creates a symbolic representation of the phallus. Buildings intentionally or unintentionally resembling the human penis are a source of amusement to locals and tourists in various places around the world. Deliberate phallic imagery is found in ancient cultures and in the links to ancient cultures found in traditional artefacts.

Symbolism
In art and architecture, acutely vertical buildings are often seen as a symbol of masculinity and horizontal buildings are seen as more feminine. The terms "phallic verticality", "phallic erectility" and "phallic brutality" have been referred to by architectural theorists, including the likes of French sociologist Henri Lefebvre, who argued that buildings of phallic architectural type metaphorically symbolize "force, male fertility, masculine violence". Phallic erectility "bestows a special status on the perpendicular, proclaiming phallocracy as the orientation of space" while phallic brutality "does not remain abstract, for it is the brutality of political power."

Oh great, now I have building envy.

Wikipedia: Most Phallic Building contest
The World's Most Phallic Building contest was a contest held in 2003 by Cabinet magazine to find the building which most resembled a human phallus.

After months of entries and discussion, the Ypsilanti Water Tower in Ypsilanti, Michigan, was announced as the winner, although the winner of a readers' poll was the Florida State Capitol building in Tallahassee. Another notable nominee was the Torre Agbar (Agbar Tower) in Barcelona.

Cabinet noted that the Ypsilanti Water Tower, called "the brick dick" by locals, "is clearly the world's most phallic".

Hey, don't blame me. It's just a banana and a cantaloupe.