In the common law of crime in England and Wales, a common scold was a species of public nuisance—a troublesome and angry woman who broke the public peace by habitually arguing and quarreling with her neighbours. The Latin name for the offender, communis rixatrix, appears in the feminine gender and makes it clear that only women could commit this crime.
The offence, which was exported to North America with the colonists, was punishable by ducking: being placed in a chair and submerged in a river or pond. Although rarely prosecuted it remained on the statute books in England and Wales until 1967.
Read more about Common Scold: The Offence and Its Punishment, Historical Prosecutions, Current Status of The Law
Famous quotes containing the words common and/or scold:
“If we use common words on a great occasion, they are the more striking, because they are felt at once to have a particular meaning, like old banners, or everyday clothes, hung up in a sacred place.”
—George Eliot [Mary Ann (or Marian)
“Women encourage men to be childish, then scold them.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)