To foment or not to foment

[jakebarnes06]

Hi:

I'm in the editing phase of a story. A mild dispute has developed between my volunteer editor and me regarding my use of the word, "fomenting" in the second following paragraph.

Here's the scene: Michele seduced Jake. They just finished torrid sex to which Michele had introduced a minor kink or two. Jake cradled Michele in his arms while she calmed. The story continues.

"Eventually Michele stirred. I stroked her face and was surprised at the look that appeared. It wasn’t quite evil, but it certainly wasn’t civilized either. I knew something was "fomenting" in that sexually twisted brain of hers. She wasn’t finished yet, and she was going to take me on another of her little trips. I just had no idea where we were going."

What do you think? Is the verb, "to foment," appropriate here?

I appreciate your input.

Jake

 

[Lauren Hynde]

I'm pretty sure you're thinking of another word. In that context, fomenting doesn't mean anything...

 

[Lauren Hynde]

To foment is a transitive verb, so it needs a direct object which you don't have in that sentence, and it means "to incite".

You're probably thinking of "fermenting", but while we're at it, why the quotation marks?

 

[drksideofthemoon]

No, not really. I know what you are trying to say, but "foment" is not the correct word.

 

[drksideofthemoon]

To foment is a transitive verb, so it needs a direct object which you don't have in that sentence, and it means "to incite".

You're probably thinking of "fermenting", but while we're at it, why the quotation marks?

Yes, fermenting, or percolating would be much better choices...

 

[jakebarnes06]

Lauren and Darkside:

Thanks for your input. The VE wins again.

The quote marks were added just to make the word easy to identify within the paragraph. They are not in the story.

 

[Lauren Hynde]

The quote marks were added just to make the word easy to identify within the paragraph. They are not in the story.

OK, then.

Good luck with the story.

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

To foment is a transitive verb, so it needs a direct object which you don't have in that sentence, and it means "to incite".

You're probably thinking of "fermenting", but while we're at it, why the quotation marks?

Correct on all that, foment is not the right word here; it means to like "foment revolution" or "foment radical activism,' and actually that suggests some creative use of the word in a sexual context.

 

[Stella_Omega]

Correct on all that, foment is not the right word here; it means to like "foment revolution" or "foment radical activism,' and actually that suggests some creative use of the word in a sexual context.

Oh, I like the way you're thinking!

 

[Grushenka]

I am joining in past usefulness, but I do enjoy word questions, and found your thread title appealing .

Fyi, foment meaning incite is usually a 5th or lesser definition of the word, which is what you were originally thinking I presume. And yes, it's a transitive verb, its first meaning is specifically to bathe or lubricate with warm lotion. The meaning evolves into 3rd place usually to "become excited or heated", and down the road, so to speak, to instigate, incite, etc., and usually in a negative sense.

 

[jakebarnes06]

Grushenka:

Thank you for entering the discussion.

Trust for a moment that I was well aware of both of your general definitions before I used the word, although I'm not familiar with your 5th and 3rd references. [In my world, those references either are a bank or an opening lead in duplicate bridge.]

If I follow your analysis and if the activity which might be "fomenting" in Michele's mind were of a general nature that Jake could find it mildly unpleasant, then could "fomenting" be a correct word to use?

Regardless, I still like "fomenting" better than "brewing" which currently is substituted in the story.

 

[minsue]

Regardless, I still like "fomenting" better than "brewing" which currently is substituted in the story.

"I knew something was <insert here> in that sexually twisted brain of hers."

Forming? Percolating? Spinning? Buzzing away? Fermenting? () Building? Developing?

 

[Grushenka]

Trust for a moment that I was well aware of both of your general definitions before I used the word, although I'm not familiar with your 5th and 3rd references. [In my world, those references either are a bank or an opening lead in duplicate bridge.]

Excuse my dullness here, but were you making a joke?

If I follow your analysis and if the activity which might be "fomenting" in Michele's mind were of a general nature that Jake could find it mildly unpleasant, then could "fomenting" be a correct word to use?

Well, now that I've looked into this further, it may work, but your phrasing is awkward. How about, "I stroked her face and was surprised at the look on it, as if she were fomenting something nearly evil or uncivilized in that sexually twisted brain of hers."

I'm sure it could be stated a good number of ways, but yes, I think your use in the specifics of your character's impressions is correct. Fomenting definitely holds darker sway than brewing. I'm a librarian, btw, so I've access to several lexical databases. One sample of usage is this sentence from Swift: "These civil commotions were constantly fomented by the monarchs of Blefuscu."

p.s. Fomenting and fermenting are commonly used mistakenly for each other.

edited to add p.p.s. Now considered obscure (labeled so by the Oxford English Dictionary) is the term fomentress for a female fomenter. But, I strongly adivse not using it (unless you are entering the Humor and Satire category; might have been a hot title a couple centuries ago : The Fomentress).

 

[Lauren Hynde]

One sample of usage is this sentence from Swift: "These civil commotions were constantly fomented by the monarchs of Blefuscu."

That's a perfect usage of the word. "She was fomenting something in her brain", however, despite solving the original lack of a direct object, still sounds like a ridiculous usage. One can foment something external to oneself, but to foment something in one's own brain is akin to "She thought about having a thought".

(I think that the meaning of the word has evolved, and while historically the first meaning was, as you said, to bathe a body with a warm lotion, and from there it progressed to to heat up, to inflame, to excite, to stir up, and finally to to incite, to instigate, the latter meanings are today much more recognisable as the most common usage, and they do appear first in all modern dictionaries that at least I could get my hands on.)

 

[Lauren Hynde]

Regardless, I still like "fomenting" better than "brewing" which currently is substituted in the story.

If you have a fetish for the word, I think you need to alter the entire structure of the sentence to slide it in:

"Eventually Michele stirred. I stroked her face and was surprised at the look that appeared. It wasn’t quite evil, but it certainly wasn’t civilized either. Maybe it was the visit to the Museum of Sexual Depravities [or whatever it was that happened before in the story] that fomented something twisted in that brain of hers, but I could tell she wasn’t finished yet, and she was going to take me on another of her little trips. I just had no idea where we were going."

That's how you use the word. Something external foments sexual revolution or radical boudoir-activism in her. For Roxanne

 

[Grushenka]

Maybe it was the visit to the Museum of Sexual Depravities [or whatever it was that happened before in the story] that fomented something twisted in that brain of hers,

Perfect, much better than my example. Btw, it's the OED that gives the first definition I quoted.

I'm not a prig, certainly not about grammar despite my profession, so I say use the word if you prefer it, Mr. Barnes. It's certainly not as disturbing to my literary ear as 99% of what I read on this site.

 

[jakebarnes06]

Currently being somewhat bolstered by the fermented grape, I thank each of you for your wisdom.

I particularly like Lauren's idea about the trip to the Museum of Sexual Depravities being the cause of Michele's brain fomenting creative sexual activites, but our trip is not scheduled until tomorrow. This story does not involve time travel, so I guess I'm struck with "brewing." Oh well, I only can hope that whatever she brews will be as good as what she otherwise might have fomented.

Jake