Over the centuries, in many cultures, passing intestinal gas in the presence of others was considered inappropriate. Like any taboo, “air pollution” (especially uncontrolled) became the subject of jokes. Salvador Dalí devoted the longest chapter of his Diary of a Genius to various aspects of this activity. There Dalí classified intestinal gas output, pointing out the existence of links between the way it is released and personality (possibly conditioned by psychosomatic disorders of digestion). Dali’s main purpose in creating Treatise on Farting[footnote needed] was to shock readers.

Another artist who elevated the release of intestinal gas to an art form was Joseph Pujol, known as Fart (French: Le Pétomane). He used the muscles of the rectum, stimulated by the stream of intestinal gases, to make modulated sounds. His concerts were immensely popular in Paris at the turn of the 20th century, and the best-known piece improvised by the author in 1906 was Impression on the San Francisco Earthquake.

In the French comedy Capulet, intestinal gases released by the two main characters, Claude Ratinier and Francis Chérasse, become the signal bringing a UFO pilot from the planet Oxo.

According to an anecdote, the intestinal gases were the cause of the long-term emigration of Edward de Vere, Earl of Oxford. He happened to give them away while performing a bow to Elizabeth.