Sth as American as mom and apple pie

Question

Hi!According to Longman Dictionary of Contemprorary English, something is as American as apple pie is used to say that something is very typically American.However, I have seen "as American as mom and apple pie." Why "mom?" What has mom to do with something that is typical of America. Maybe "apple pie" something that Americans make and eat all the time. But what has the word "mom" got to do with being typical of America????Can anyone explain this please?Thanks

Mister Micawber · Accepted Answer

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'Mom' is an American expression for 'mother'.
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Magic79 · Answer

Thanks Micawber.
Yes, Mom = Mother. But how is that related to the idea of being typical of America. The phrase is "Sth as American as mom and apple pie" would only be said by Americans, not British, Australian, or any other person speaking English. The cited phrase is culturally tied to America.
My can you explain "mom" as something typically American?
One can understand "applie pie" being American by a quick visit to the supermarkets to see all the different pies offered for sale.
But "mom?"

Delmobile · Answer

It's just an elaboration of the apple pie idea. Sometimes http://www.google.com/search?q=baseball+mom+apple+pie&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a are thrown into the mix as well. Chevrolet had a commercial for a while with a catchy jingle about "baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Chevrolet."

Magic79 · Answer

Thanks for the addition Delmobile.
Hot dogs and baseball can be easily understood when you say:

Ignorance in geography is as American as hotdogs and baseball.

Meaning that it's typical and usual for Americans not to know much geography. It is just as common as hotdogs.

But how can you explain this:
Ignorance in geography is as American as mom.
How do you paraphrase it using the word "mother?"

Sorry for the inconvenience. If there is no clear explanation, I can understand. I am very tolerant of language ambiguity. I welcome as much analyzed language as chunked.

BarbaraPA · Answer

You wouldn't use the phrase "as American as mom." (period)

You'd say "as American as mom/motherhood and applie pie."

It's just an expression - don't try to read too much into it. Anything that is "as American as mom/motherhood and apple pie" is just very typically American.

The jingle that Del referred to was:
They go together
In the good old USA
Baseball and hotdogs
Apple pie and Chevrolet

Magic79 · Answer

Thanks Grammar. I understand that sometimes some of the logic behind some language get lost as time passes.

Thanks for helping.

Clive · Answer

Hi,
You might be interested in the expression, 'That's a motherhood issue'. This means everyone is afraid to say anything negative about it.

The word 'motherhood' is used like this in various phrases.

Clive

Anonymous · Answer

You're confused because this represents an incorrect usage -- it's a combination of two cliches, along the lines of "the 800-pound gorilla in the room," which combines "elephant in the room" (the big issue that no one will talk about) with "800-pound gorilla" (the powerful force whom no one can withstand).

This one combines "as American as apple pie," meaning characteristically (even stereotypically) American, with "motherhood and apple pie." This latter one is a bit hard to explain. It's used to characterize political rhetoric, in cases where a politician is only willing to say things with which no one could possibly disagree. When the politician claims to be a supporter of "world peace," a proper (ironic) response would be, "I wonder what his position is on motherhood and apple pie." Or when he states his support of lower taxes, one could say, "I'm sure he's in favor of motherhood and apple pie, too, but has he said what government programs he's willing to cut?"

Anonymous · Answer

Actually, the phrase is somewhat messed up as you have it, I believe.

See, in WWII, when going off to war, soldiers(when asked why) would say "for mom and apple pie."
Thus, apple pie is a significantly important food in America, and "mom" is just there to show our devotion to the idea of and devotion to family.

The phrase you have seems to be taken from there

I hope this helps.

Sth as American as mom and apple pie

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