Definitely a noun, not a transitive verb
For the benefit of the reader, the title of my book ‘Like a Shag on a Rock’ may need a little explaining, especially if you’re from ‘across the pond’, so I will delve a little further into the meaning of the turn of phrase.
Thanks to the ‘Swinging Sixties’ and the likes of the Austin Powers film franchise, most people no longer associate the word ‘shag’ with the species of cormorant or type of tobacco / carpet pile; rather associate it in the coarser sense as a transitive verb – for the benefit of my own modesty as well as yours, I need not delve any further into that definition; other than to say that we use both the rational and emotional sides of our brain to interpret things and in this case, for some people, it is entirely possible that the actual meaning of this phrase becomes a lost or misconstrued in the process.
For those who are not familiar with the cormorant, they are a fish-eating bird most commonly found in coastal waters around the world in many different guises. A shag is differentiated from a cormorant due to presence of a pronounced crest. They fish by diving into the water and propel themselves with their webbed feet or occasionally with their wings. After fishing, they go ashore and dry their plumage by extending their wings towards the sun, often perched on a rock.
The idiom ‘Like a Shag on a Rock’ is a delightful turn of phrase from Australia and means the subject is either lonely, isolated or feeling exposed; rather than expressing a desire to engage in what could be best described as ‘uncomfortable coitus’.
This can be validated with such examples of a contentious politician or figurehead with few supporters or a loner in a social environment (Often further ridiculed with the moniker of a ‘billy no mates’.) To remove any doubt, I made sure that the idiom is employed by the resident Australian character John to mock my protagonist Tom, who is left somewhat perplexed due to the upward inflection that Australians tend to put at the end of their sentences; unsure whether he was asking a question or making a statement.
There is no one right way to interpret my choice of title as everyone will interpret it individually.
Rather than receive criticism, I have received laudable praise for the skill in which I have carefully crafted a purportedly puerile inelegant turn of phrase into something “with a serious literary pedigree.” Suffice to say, I did not set out to be intentionally provocative and in this case it is most definitely a noun, not a transitive verb.
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