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Can anyone tell me the origin of the American phrase, "Sticking it to the man"? ?

This phrase that appeared in popular movie starring Jack Black, "House of Rock" also appeared verbatim in a quote today in an online newspaper. I understand the context and meaning of this phrase, but want to know if the origin this phrase really came from the above mentioned child's movie, or if it has more historic roots.

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  • 1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    this is from wikipedia

    History

    The term "the Man" in the American sense dates back to about 1918, when it was commonly used as a code word for the warden of a prison. According to conservative African-American writer and professor Thomas Sowell, the term "being hassled by the man" was used by poor farmers in the post American Civil War South to refer to the "Bank Man" who would hassle them about the late payment of debts. In the Southern U.S. states, the phrase came to be applied to any man or any group in a position of authority, or to authority in the abstract. The phrase was also an underworld code word for police or other law enforcement or penal authorities. It was also a term for a drug dealer. It came to be applied by blacks to whites, especially in the role of oppressors; see for example, Newsweek, August 3, 1964: "It is time to let The Man know that if he does something to us, we are going to do something back." The use of this term was expanded to other counterculture groups and their battles against authority, such as the Yippies, which, according to a May 19, 1969 article in U.S. News and World Report, had the "avowed aim ... to destroy 'The Man', their term for the present system of government". The term eventually found its way into ironic usage, such as in a December 1979 motorcycle ad from the magazine Easyriders which featured the tagline, "California residents: Add 6% sales tax for The Man." It was also used in the late 60's when young kids were "sticking it to the man" (father). By doing many things their parent thought they would never do.

    The use of the term 'the man' as a form of praise has an older provenance. One example of this usage dates to 1879 when Otto von Bismarck commented, referring to Benjamin Disraeli's actions at the Congress of Berlin, "The old Jew, he is the man."

  • Anonymous
    5 years ago

    Perhaps, but I'm not fully convinced

  • Anonymous
    5 years ago

    Can someone tell what is the correct answer for this question?

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