Mopery
Encyclopedia
Mopery is a vague, informal, and usually humorous name for minor offenses. The word is based on the verb to mope, which originally meant “to wander aimlessly”; it only later acquired the overtones of “bored and depressed”. The word mope appears to have first been used in the 16th century, and appears in Shakespeare's works.
In 1970, in Columbus, Ohio
, mopery was defined as “loitering while walking, or walking down the street with no clear destination or purpose”, and was used by police to stop and interview counterculture
“hippies” who were regarded as unsavory. Some of those arrested were aggressively prosecuted by public prosecutor Karl T. Chrastan. In discussions of law
, “mopery” is used as a placeholder name
to mean some crime whose nature is not important to the problem at hand. This is sometimes expanded to “mopery with intent to creep” or "mopery with intent to gawk".
(Gravity's Rainbow
) and Dashiell Hammett
(The Thin Man
), among others, for whom it is usually a comic accent. In Catch 22 (Joseph Heller
, 1961), the mildly rebellious Cadet Clevinger is court-martialed by three angry officers, who accuse him of “breaking ranks while in formation, felonious assault, indiscriminate behavior, mopery, high treason, provoking, being a smart-guy, listening to classical music, and so on”.
Raymond Chandler in his 1949 novel "The Little Sister" uses the term, making Marlowe, whilst in police custody, say of a murder victim (Orrin Quest) "If he'd lived long enough you'd have had him up for mopery".
The 1944 comic novel Low Man on a Totem Pole by H. Allen Smith
contains this line: “The girls stop at nothing short of mopery to get in the papers, mopery being the old English misdemeanor of exposing oneself in front of a blind man on a public highway”.
The 1984 film Revenge of the Nerds
contains the following dialog:
Sergeant: See that man over there, we arrested him for mopery.
Booger: What's mopery?
Sergeant: Mopery is exposing yourself to a blind person.
In episode 7 of Season 3
of Psych
, "Talk Derby to Me", Shawn Spencer accuses Burton Guster of mopery when he attempts to hide in the car.
In 1970, in Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
, mopery was defined as “loitering while walking, or walking down the street with no clear destination or purpose”, and was used by police to stop and interview counterculture
Counterculture
Counterculture is a sociological term used to describe the values and norms of behavior of a cultural group, or subculture, that run counter to those of the social mainstream of the day, the cultural equivalent of political opposition. Counterculture can also be described as a group whose behavior...
“hippies” who were regarded as unsavory. Some of those arrested were aggressively prosecuted by public prosecutor Karl T. Chrastan. In discussions of law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
, “mopery” is used as a placeholder name
Placeholder name
Placeholder names are words that can refer to objects or people whose names are either temporarily forgotten, irrelevant, or unknown in the context in which they are being discussed...
to mean some crime whose nature is not important to the problem at hand. This is sometimes expanded to “mopery with intent to creep” or "mopery with intent to gawk".
In fiction
The word mopery has been used by authors Thomas PynchonThomas Pynchon
Thomas Ruggles Pynchon, Jr. is an American novelist. For his most praised novel, Gravity's Rainbow, Pynchon received the National Book Award, and is regularly cited as a contender for the Nobel Prize in Literature...
(Gravity's Rainbow
Gravity's Rainbow
Gravity's Rainbow is a postmodern novel written by Thomas Pynchon and first published on February 28, 1973.The narrative is set primarily in Europe at the end of World War II and centers on the design, production and dispatch of V-2 rockets by the German military, and, in particular, the quest...
) and Dashiell Hammett
Dashiell Hammett
Samuel Dashiell Hammett was an American author of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories, and political activist. Among the enduring characters he created are Sam Spade , Nick and Nora Charles , and the Continental Op .In addition to the significant influence his novels and stories had on...
(The Thin Man
The Thin Man
The Thin Man is a detective novel by Dashiell Hammett, originally published in Redbook. Although he never wrote a sequel, the book became the basis for a successful six-part film series which also began in 1934 with The Thin Man and starred William Powell and Myrna Loy...
), among others, for whom it is usually a comic accent. In Catch 22 (Joseph Heller
Joseph Heller
Joseph Heller was a US satirical novelist, short story writer, and playwright. His best known work is Catch-22, a novel about US servicemen during World War II...
, 1961), the mildly rebellious Cadet Clevinger is court-martialed by three angry officers, who accuse him of “breaking ranks while in formation, felonious assault, indiscriminate behavior, mopery, high treason, provoking, being a smart-guy, listening to classical music, and so on”.
Raymond Chandler in his 1949 novel "The Little Sister" uses the term, making Marlowe, whilst in police custody, say of a murder victim (Orrin Quest) "If he'd lived long enough you'd have had him up for mopery".
The 1944 comic novel Low Man on a Totem Pole by H. Allen Smith
H. Allen Smith
For the congressman see H. Allen SmithHarry Allen Wolfgang Smith was an American journalist and humorist whose books were popular in the 1940s and 1950s, selling millions of copies....
contains this line: “The girls stop at nothing short of mopery to get in the papers, mopery being the old English misdemeanor of exposing oneself in front of a blind man on a public highway”.
The 1984 film Revenge of the Nerds
Revenge of the Nerds
Revenge of the Nerds is a 1984 comedy film satirizing social life on a college campus. The film stars Robert Carradine and Anthony Edwards, with Curtis Armstrong, Ted McGinley, Julia Montgomery, Brian Tochi, Larry B. Scott, John Goodman, and Donald Gibb...
contains the following dialog:
Sergeant: See that man over there, we arrested him for mopery.
Booger: What's mopery?
Sergeant: Mopery is exposing yourself to a blind person.
In episode 7 of Season 3
Psych (season 3)
The third season of Psych originally aired in the United States on USA Network from July 18, 2008 to February 20, 2009. It consisted of 16 episodes. James Roday, Dulé Hill, Timothy Omundson, Maggie Lawson, Corbin Bernsen, and Kirsten Nelson reprised their roles as the main characters...
of Psych
Psych
Psych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks and broadcast on USA Network. It stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observational skills" and impressive detective instincts...
, "Talk Derby to Me", Shawn Spencer accuses Burton Guster of mopery when he attempts to hide in the car.
Sources
- William Safire, On Language, New York Times, June 5, 1988.