Shiva38

Hi all,
I'd like to ask a question to native English speakers. I'm French and I'm doing a research on the French translation of Charlie and the Chocolate factory. I'd like to know what comes to mind when you hear the name Willy Wonka. What does it suggest ? Do you (and children especially) immediately think of willie=baby talk for penis or a pun on the word wonky? I'm actually trying to find out if Dahl chose this name just because it sounds good or if people (and children!?) directly think of something like "wonky willie"?
Waiting for your answers, Cheers!

MikeL

The name "Willie Wonka" is an interesting problem in interpretation. In the first place there is nothing necessarily smutty about the name "Willie" which is a diminutive of "William" and was quite common in the past. The slang term "willie" for "penis" is, I think, of American origin, and British children would probably not have been familiar with it when Dahl wrote his story. On the other hand the name "Wonka" is curious, to say the least. As you say, it evokes "wonky", but perhaps also, to those whose minds are not entirely pure (!), the word "wanker". The combination of the two names creates, to my mind, a strong possibility that Dahl intended a double entendre.

Shiva38

Thanks for your reply, it's much clearer for me now. I hadn't thought about "wanker", but as you said, it wouldn't be surprising that Dahl intended this double meaning, considering the books for adults he wrote!

als1805

Hello, I have to say, I have never linked Willy Wonka with either willie or wanker, I think it's probably because I first came across Willy Wonka as a child, so that link just wasn't there, and I think that would be the case with most people. Or perhaps I'm just sweet and innocent!

Exile

No, I don't think "willy" is American slang for the penis. The only place I've ever heard it is from the Brits, and I've studied US colloquialisms for 30 years.

We have plenty enough slang terms for that particular part of the body!

From the time I've been familiar with British slang (and I grew up near the Canadian border, so have been hearing it since I was quite young), I always thought "Willy Wonka" was a not so subtly disguised "willy wanker". And now that I've seen Johnny Depp as the creepiest Wonka imaginable, I'm even more firmly convinced.