Word of the Day

Monday April 19, 2010

visceral [VIS-er-uhl]

adjective

Of or pertaining to the viscera.
Obtained through intuition or instinct rather than from reasoning, intellect or observation, as a visceral reaction.
Dealing with base emotions; earthy, crude.

He plans to include a Watts riot sculpture by Purifoy in his exhibition -- an assemblage rescued last year from a private owner in Las Vegas. "It's a very powerful, visceral -- also melancholy -- piece because of the burnt materials," said Mr. Perchuk, who is deputy director of the Getty Research Institute. "And its whereabouts were completely unknown since the 1960s."

Jori Finkel, "Unearthing Lost Treasures In California", New York Times, Mar 18, 2010
"The Pacific" weaves those two goals together remarkably well, though there are a few slow patches and awkward transitions. The series' most notable achievement is that, in depicting the battles of Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima, Peleliu and Okinawa, the creators of "The Pacific" have come up with some of the most visceral, intense, affecting war footage ever committed to film.

Maureen Ryan, "WW II miniseries shows its mettle", Chicago Tribune, Mar 14, 2010
Our meditation of his death should be more visceral, and affect us more, because it is of a thing already done.

John Donne (1572 - 1631) An English poet. Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions Together with Death's Duel (1624)

Origin of the Word

Visceral, approximately 1570, derives from Middle French visceral, from Medieval Latin visceralis "internal," from Latin viscera, "internal organ."