Comprachicos
Encyclopedia
Comprachicos is a compound Spanish
neologism meaning "child-buyers," which was coined by Victor Hugo
in his novel The Man Who Laughs
. It refers to various groups in folklore
who were said to change the physical appearance of human beings by manipulating growing children, in a similar way to the horticultural method of bonsai
– that is, deliberate mutilation
. The most common methods said to be used in this practice included stunting children's growth by physical restraint
, muzzling
their faces to deform them, slitting their eyes, dislocating their joints, and malforming their bones. The resulting human monsters made their living as mountebanks
or were sold to lords and ladies to be used as pages or court fools.
's novel The Man Who Laughs
is the story of a young aristocrat kidnapped and disfigured by his captors to display a permanent malicious grin. At the opening of the book, Hugo provides a description of the Comprachicos:
According to research by John Boynton Kaiser in the Journal of the American Institute of Criminal Law and Criminology, "Victor
Hugo has given us a pretty faithful picture of many characteristic details of social England of the 17th century; but the word Comprachicos is used to describe a people whose characteristics are an unhistorical conglomeration of much that was once actual but then obsolete in the history of human society." Much that seems unimaginable today may have authentic roots in common practices of the seventeenth century.
One of the common creations of the Comprachicos was supposed to be artificial dwarfs, formed "by anointing babies' spines with the grease of bats, moles and dormice" and using drugs such as "dwarf elder, knotgrass, and daisy juice". The conception was known to Shakespeare, as Beatrice K. Otto pointed out, quoting A Midsummer's Night Dream:
Other means of creating this result were conjectured to include physical stunting by breaking or dislocating bones, and forcible constrainment, whereby growth was inhibited for a long enough period to create permanent deformation. Because of the demand for dwarfs and other novelties in the courts of kings at this time, this could have been a profitable occupation.
ese bride who disappears during her honeymoon in Europe
; years later her husband discovers she has been abducted, mutilated, and forced to work in a freak show.
"Comprachico" has been adopted as pejorative term used for individuals and entities who manipulate the minds and attitudes of children in a way that will permanently distort their beliefs or worldview. Twentieth century philosopher Ayn Rand
referred to educators of the time as "the Comprachicos of the mind" in her article "The Comprachicos." Her criticism was targeted especially toward educational progressivists
, but also grade-school and high-school educators.
In the 2010 album Immersion
by Australia
n Drum and Bass
band Pendulum
, one of the songs was named "Comprachicos", where the lyrics had references to manipulation and restraint.
The 2011 DC comic Batman and Robin #26 contained a villain whose father disfigured him after reading about the "Comprachicos" in Hugo's novel.
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
neologism meaning "child-buyers," which was coined by Victor Hugo
Victor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....
in his novel The Man Who Laughs
The Man Who Laughs
The Man Who Laughs is a novel by Victor Hugo, originally published in April 1869 under the French title L'Homme qui rit. Also published under the title By Order of the King...
. It refers to various groups in folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
who were said to change the physical appearance of human beings by manipulating growing children, in a similar way to the horticultural method of bonsai
Bonsai
is a Japanese art form using miniature trees grown in containers. Similar practices exist in other cultures, including the Chinese tradition of penjing from which the art originated, and the miniature living landscapes of Vietnamese hòn non bộ...
– that is, deliberate mutilation
Mutilation
Mutilation or maiming is an act of physical injury that degrades the appearance or function of any living body, usually without causing death.- Usage :...
. The most common methods said to be used in this practice included stunting children's growth by physical restraint
Restraint
Restraint may refer to:* A personal virtue. See self control.* Physical restraint, the practice of rendering people helpless or keeping them in captivity by means such as handcuffs, ropes, straps, etc....
, muzzling
Muzzle
A muzzle may be:* the snout of an animal* Muzzle , a device that covers an animal's snout* Muzzle , the mouth of a firearm* Muzzle , a song on The Smashing Pumpkins album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness...
their faces to deform them, slitting their eyes, dislocating their joints, and malforming their bones. The resulting human monsters made their living as mountebanks
Charlatan
A charlatan is a person practicing quackery or some similar confidence trick in order to obtain money, fame or other advantages via some form of pretense or deception....
or were sold to lords and ladies to be used as pages or court fools.
Historical References
Victor HugoVictor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....
's novel The Man Who Laughs
The Man Who Laughs
The Man Who Laughs is a novel by Victor Hugo, originally published in April 1869 under the French title L'Homme qui rit. Also published under the title By Order of the King...
is the story of a young aristocrat kidnapped and disfigured by his captors to display a permanent malicious grin. At the opening of the book, Hugo provides a description of the Comprachicos:
The Comprachicos worked on man as the Chinese work on trees. A sort of fantastic stunted thing left their hands; it was ridiculous and wonderful. They could touch up a little being with such skill that its father could not have recognized it. Sometimes they left the spine straight and remade the face. Children destined for tumblers had their joints dislocated in a masterly manner; thus gymnasts were made. Not only did the Comprachicos take away his face from the child; they also took away his memory. At least, they took away all they could of it; the child had no consciousness of the mutilation to which he had been subjected. Of burnings by sulphur and incisions by the iron he remembered nothing. The Comprachicos deadened the little patient by means of a stupefying powder which was thought to be magical and which suppressed all pain.
According to research by John Boynton Kaiser in the Journal of the American Institute of Criminal Law and Criminology, "Victor
Hugo has given us a pretty faithful picture of many characteristic details of social England of the 17th century; but the word Comprachicos is used to describe a people whose characteristics are an unhistorical conglomeration of much that was once actual but then obsolete in the history of human society." Much that seems unimaginable today may have authentic roots in common practices of the seventeenth century.
One of the common creations of the Comprachicos was supposed to be artificial dwarfs, formed "by anointing babies' spines with the grease of bats, moles and dormice" and using drugs such as "dwarf elder, knotgrass, and daisy juice". The conception was known to Shakespeare, as Beatrice K. Otto pointed out, quoting A Midsummer's Night Dream:
Get you gone, dwarf;
You minimus, of hindering knot-grass made;
Other means of creating this result were conjectured to include physical stunting by breaking or dislocating bones, and forcible constrainment, whereby growth was inhibited for a long enough period to create permanent deformation. Because of the demand for dwarfs and other novelties in the courts of kings at this time, this could have been a profitable occupation.
Modern references
The term comprachico is very uncommonly used in modern English except in reference or allusion to the antiquated folklore , but similar stories do exist in the English speaking world. For instance, a tale circulating since at least the 1980s tells of a JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese bride who disappears during her honeymoon in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
; years later her husband discovers she has been abducted, mutilated, and forced to work in a freak show.
"Comprachico" has been adopted as pejorative term used for individuals and entities who manipulate the minds and attitudes of children in a way that will permanently distort their beliefs or worldview. Twentieth century philosopher Ayn Rand
Ayn Rand
Ayn Rand was a Russian-American novelist, philosopher, playwright, and screenwriter. She is known for her two best-selling novels The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged and for developing a philosophical system she called Objectivism....
referred to educators of the time as "the Comprachicos of the mind" in her article "The Comprachicos." Her criticism was targeted especially toward educational progressivists
Educational progressivism
Progressive education is a pedagogical movement that began in the late nineteenth century and has persisted in various forms to the present. More recently, it has been viewed as an alternative to the test-oriented instruction legislated by the No Child Left Behind educational funding act...
, but also grade-school and high-school educators.
In the 2010 album Immersion
Immersion (album)
Immersion is the third studio album from Australian electronic rock/drum & bass band Pendulum. The album was announced in early 2009, with the name being confirmed in December 2009. The album was released 21 May 2010 in Australia and Ireland, and 24 May for the rest of the world, followed by a UK...
by Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n Drum and Bass
Drum and bass
Drum and bass is a type of electronic music which emerged in the late 1980s. The genre is characterized by fast breakbeats , with heavy bass and sub-bass lines...
band Pendulum
Pendulum (band)
Pendulum is an Australian drum and bass and electronic rock band founded in 2002 in Perth by Rob Swire, Gareth McGrillen, and Paul Harding.Swire and McGrillen were members of the rock band known as Xygen. After hearing Konflict's "Messiah" at a club, they were inspired to enter into the drum and...
, one of the songs was named "Comprachicos", where the lyrics had references to manipulation and restraint.
The 2011 DC comic Batman and Robin #26 contained a villain whose father disfigured him after reading about the "Comprachicos" in Hugo's novel.