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A slap or "smack" is a broad stroke made with the open hand, as opposed to a punch that is made with a closed fist. Slaps are frequently made across the face, but can be also made across hands or any other body part, and can use either the palm of the hand or the back of the hand.

Etymology and definitions

The word was first recorded in 1632, probably of imitative origin (onomatopoetic). The word is found in several English colloquialisms, such as, "slap fight", "slap-happy", "slapshot", "slapstick", "slap on the wrist" (as a mild punishment), "slap in the face" (as an insult or, alternatively, as a reproof against a lewd or insulting comment), and "slap on the back" (an expression of friendship or congratulations). In music, the term is used in jazz, referring to the action of pulling strings back and allowing them to smack the instrument. The word "slap" is frequently used to minimize the perceived violence of an act, even if the act was especially severe. One person may hit another across the face and injure them severely, but in calling it a slap, make it seem less severe, since slapping is often associated with minor violence.

In humans

The purpose of a slap is often to humiliate, instead of injure, the target. Depending on the severity of the slap, the victim may charge the assailant with assault. This may constitute a common assault. In many films and television programs, such as a film even titled Slap Her... She's French, girls and women typically slap boys, men and other females who offend them in some way and humiliate them, as occasionally occurs in real life. Such films have helped to create a cultural acceptance of women slapping men, at least as opposed to men striking women. This acceptance is probably partially linked to the fact that women are generally physiologically weaker and cause less harm than men when they slap. Studies show slapping to be used more in female acts of violence than male acts, males using different methods. Many females tend not to slap males now due to legal issues such as a slap possibly being counted as an assault. Slaps can often bring about controversy and humiliation, often when they are unexpected by the slapee. Studies have shown that women who inflict minor acts of violence, such as slaps, on their spouses, are more likely to be abused themselves. Men who are slapped by their wives for certain behaviors are more able to justify in their own minds return violence when their spouse does not perform well. Often the return violence is more severe than the initial slap. Thus, although society is more accepting of women who hit men than of men who hit women, women who slap statistically seem to be more likely to suffer from return violence than women who don't. Also, both men and women who are violent with their spouses are more likely to slap or spank their children as well.

In animals

Beavers slap their tails on the water as a danger signal. Female fish of the gambusia genus will slap males with their tail fins if they are over-aggressive in mating. Dolphins have been observed to slap the surface with their tails, possibly to express aggression or sexual impulses. Humpback whales will slap their tails on the surface as a warning. They have also been known to slap attacking killer whales with their tails to keep them away. Males use their tails to slap other male humpbacks in mating contests.

See also

• Spanking
• Corporal punishment in the home

References

1. slap, Online Etymology Dictionary
2. Oxford English Dictionary
3. Cotterill, Janet. Language in the Legal Process. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004. pp. 81-82, ISBN 0333969022
4. Renzetti, Claire and Raquel Bergen. Violence against Women. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2005. p. 45, ISBN 0742530558
5. ^ Loseke, Donileen et.al. Current Controversies on Family Violence. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, 2005. pp. 66-67 ISBN 0761921060
6. Denmark, Florence and Michele Paludi. Psychology of Women. New York: Praeger, 2008. p. 562 ISBN 0275991628
7. Robbins, Pamela Clark and John Monahan. "Mental Disorder, Violence, and Gender." Law and Human Behavior. (Dec 2003) 27.6 pp. 561-571.
8. Lamb, Michael. Parenting and Child Development in "Nontraditional" Families. Hillsdale: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1999. p. 311 ISBN 080582748X
9. Hall, Richard J. "Does Representational Content Arise from Biological Function?" PSA: Proceedings of the Biennial Meeting of the Philosophy of Science Association. 1990 pgs. 193-199
10. Warburton, Barbara and Clark Hubbs. "Reproductive Behavior of Gambusia heterochir." Copeia. (Dec 1957) 1957.4 pp. 299-300
11. Slooten, Elisabeth. "Behavior of Hector's Dolphin: Classifying Behavior by Sequence Analysis." Journal of Mammalogy. Nov 1994 75.4 pp. 956-964
12. Nature's Spirit Photography: Humpback Whale Facts

• Strikes (martial arts)