The pineapple (Ananas comosus) is a tropical plant and fruit that's probably native to Uruguay, Brazil or Paraguay. It is a tall (1–1.5 m) herbaceous perennial plant with 30 or more trough-shaped and pointed leaves 30–100 cm long, surrounding a thick stem. The pineapple is an example of a multiple fruit: multiple, spirally-arranged flowers along the axis each produce a fleshy fruit that becomes pressed against the fruits of adjacent flowers, forming what appears to be a single fleshy fruit. The leaves of the Smooth Cayenne cultivar mostly lack spines except at the leaf tip, but the Spanish and Queen cultivars have large spines along the leaf margins. Pineapples are the only bromeliad fruit in widespread cultivation. Unlike most flowers, some bat-pollinated wild pineapples open at night and close during the day.
Pineapples and sex[edit]
The pineapple is often associated with sexual activity.
- The word pineapple was originally applied to the reproductive organs of conifer trees (now termed pine cones).
- The fruit and flower are part of the reproductive system of the plant.
- As a multiple fruit where a great number of sexual parts come together, the pineapple has been used as a symbol for a sexual orgy.
- The wild pineapple opening up at night has been used as a sexual reference.
- Some refer to the pineapple as the biblical fruit of temptation in the Garden of Eden, linking it with sexual intercourse and the loss of virginity.
- JonBenét Ramsey, a 6-year-old beauty pageant winner and Discordian saint, was discovered murdered and possibly sexually-molested with recently-eaten pineapple in her stomach. Many investigators believe she was fed pineapple by her molester and murderer.
- As the fruit contains zinc which is important in building the male sex hormone testosterone, it's eaten for sexual prowess in Thailand.
- A common belief, especially among college students, was that drinking pineapple juice could improve the taste of semen.
- The Moche people of ancient Peru worshipped fruits and often depicted pineapple in their art, sometimes with sexual connotations.
Pineapples and violence[edit]
The hand grenade is sometimes called a pineapple due to the device's resemblance to the fruit. The word pineapple is frequently used this way in Iam Fleming's James Bond novels.
Discordian pineapple[edit]
In their book Ek-sen-trik-kuh Discordia: The Tales of Shamlicht, the Ek-sen-trik Discordians adapted the pineapple from the original college group Ek-sen-triks CluborGuild. The mascot of the college club, Pat Pineapple, became the patron saint of the Discordian group. They equate it with the Golden Apple that Eris (Discordia) used to create the chaos that led to the Trojan War.