Going feral 🏃♂️🐾
Meaning
To revert to a wild, untamed, or uncontrolled state, often referring to behavior or appearance.
Origin
The term 'feral' itself comes from the Latin word 'fera,' meaning 'wild beast.' For centuries, 'feral' was used in a biological sense to describe domesticated animals that escaped and returned to a wild state, regressing to their natural instincts. Think of runaway cats or dogs in a city, living off scraps and avoiding humans. This literal meaning easily lent itself to a metaphorical one. When people started describing someone as 'going feral,' they were drawing a parallel to these animals. It conjured images of shedding societal norms and civility, embracing a more primitive, instinct-driven existence, often with a hint of both danger and liberation.
Going feral represented with emoji🏃♂️🐾
This playful juxtaposition of a runner and paw prints invites a dialogue on the wildness that lurks beneath our civilized veneer. It functions as a whimsical reminder that even in our most determined strides, a primal essence can emerge, echoing the untamed spirit within.
Examples
- After a week without showering, he started to look like he was going feral.
- The cat, usually so docile, went feral when it saw the bird stuck in the window.
- Without any adult supervision for a weekend, the children threatened to go feral and build a fort out of the sofa cushions.
- The stray dog, no longer accustomed to human kindness, seemed to be going feral in the overgrown garden.
Frequently asked questions
No, 'going feral' is not a formal psychological term but rather a popular idiom. It describes a reversion to a wild or untamed state, drawing a metaphor from formerly domesticated animals returning to a wild existence.
The opposite of 'going feral' is likely 'being socialized' or 'being domesticated.' These terms describe the process of adapting to societal norms, learning control, and embracing structured behavior, contrasting with the untamed nature implied by 'going feral'.
Yes, 'going feral' can sometimes be used positively to describe shedding societal pressures and embracing a more authentic, uninhibited, or liberating way of living. It can imply a freeing of oneself from constraints, even if the imagery is wild.
The metaphorical use of 'going feral' likely emerged as the biological meaning of feral animals became widely understood, probably gaining traction in the late 19th or 20th century. This allowed the concept of abandoning civilization for a wilder state to be applied to human behavior.