Have other fish to fry: why should you hurt them?

Have Other Fish To Fry: Why Should You Hurt Them?

ByGuider Reading Time: 2 minutes
When we know the harm that blows cause whip, one has the right to wonder why one should inflict such pain on an adorable little pet. Rest assured, the expression “have other fish to fry” is to be taken in the sense figurative ! Explanations.

What Does The Expression “Have Other Fish To Fry” Mean?

The expression “to have other fish to fry” means to have other things to do, to have more important than those we are told about, more pressing matters to settle; more serious topics to discuss or even more serious problems serious to solve. The Anglo-Saxons have other Pisces to fry! (“other fish to fry”).

When Writers Have Other Fish To Fry

From yesterday to today, 4 quotes excerpts from literary works:

  • “…But understand, Monsieur le Baron, that they have other fish to fry than taking care of the fifty thousand love affairs in Paris.” » (Balzac Splendors and Miseries of Courtesans, 1838);
  • “I tried in vain to show him that we had, for the time being, other fish to fry than to curse the inaccuracy of this unfortunate map. (The Escape. Story of two prisoners French escapees from the Hammelbourg camp, 1917);
  • “You learn to dance around sixteen or seventeen,” I said. At that age, I had other fish to fry. » (Leo Malet The sun is born behind the Louvre, 1954);
  • “I’m going to hand you over to you soon, I’ve put things in place.” Now I have other fish to fry. » (Herve GuibertTo the Friend Who Didn’t Save My Life, 1990).
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Why Hurt Cats?

THE whip is an Instrument consisting of a cord or a leather strap attached to a handle and used to inflict a punishment to an animal or a human. Whipping means to hit with this instrument whose straps cause severe pain. The little feline domestic is a nice ball of fur who lives in many families. What could the adorable cat have done to deserve such a punishment ? Nothing ! Indeed, we will see that the phrase should not be taken literally.

“Having other fish to fry”: funny variants

For the record, our adorable cat has sometimes given way to another ball of fur, as evidenced by this quote taken from The Memoirs of Vidocq (1829): “Madame would like to see the priest. Mister the preist ? Ah! He has many others dogs to whip…” During the same period, in a private correspondence, the poet and singer Alexis Piron wrote in these terms to Abbé Legendre: “For the Nué Mergé, she has many other dogs to curry than your verses. If the formula “have other fish to fry” remains the best known of all, some amusing derivatives, extracts from literary works, deserve to be quoted:

  • have other snakes to devour (1801);
  • Have other cats at comb (1831);
  • have other hares to run (1838);
  • have other goats to keep (1841);
  • have other pigeons plucking (1875);
  • have other rockets to unravel (1880).

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