Suzanne L. Bunkers
Dorothy Parker was not only a wit also a chronicler and a harsh critic of 1920s-1930s
social roles. Her poems and short stories are not simply "cute" or
"funny"; they also function as a vehicle for social criticism. Of particular
importance is Parker’s use of stereotypical female characters to satirize, more bitterly
than playfully, the limited roles available to American women during the Twenties and
Thirties, decades when the predominant image of the American woman was that of the
sexually free, even promiscuous, flapper.
In keeping with her purpose as a satirist, Parker’s poems and short stories criticize
the status quo rather than define new, three-dimensional female roles. As a result, her
women characters generally evoke mixed reactions from the reader: they seem pitiable, yet
they grate on the reader’s nerves. They appear to be victimized not only by an oppressive
society but also be their inability to fight back against that society. It would be easy
to conclude that Dorothy Parker is hostile toward the "simpering spinsters" or
"rich bitches" she portrays in her poems and stories, but to do so would fail to
take into account her satiric purpose and technique. Dorothy Parker is not satirizing
women per se; rather, she uses her pitiable, ridiculous women character to criticize the
society which ahs created one-dimensional female roles and forced women to fit into them.
From Suzanne L. Bunkers, "’I Am Outraged Womanhood’: Dorothy Parker as
Feminist and Social Critic." Regionalism and the Female Imagination 4
(1978): 25-35.
Emily Toth
Dorothy Parker (1893-1967) was, officially, the wittiest woman of the 1920s, and the
best example of what I would call the more traditional female humor. Her wit was a weapon
. . . . [a]nd she specialized in truths close to home . . . . Some of her witticisms came
from her sympathies — especially with underdogs, human or canine. . . . She was
especially expert at the game of embrace-and-denounce. . . . And her barbs were frequently
directed at women, and women who lived the kind of independent, emancipated life she did.
I call Dorothy Parker’s humor traditional primarily because of its targets. As all
satirists do, she attached affectation and hypocrisy, but like such traditional satirists
as Juvenal and Swift she often attacked women — for such stereotyped traits as cattiness,
backbiting, and competition. While her short stories do tend to be more sympathetic, her
verbal barbs and her poems — most of them from the 1920s — were composed for a mostly
male audience, the other members of the Algonquin Round Table.
From Emily Toth, "Dorothy Parker, Erica Jong, and New Feminist Humor."
Regionalism and the Female Imagination 2, no. 2 (1977): 70-85.
Nancy A. Walker and Zita Dresner
Dorothy Parker is one of the few female humorists who are frequently included in
anthologies and critical studies of American humor, a fact that may have more to do with
her participation in the famous Algonquin Round Table during the 1920s than with an actual
critical appreciation of her work. In fact, in the foreword to his collection The Best
of Modern Humor (1983), Mordecai Richler explains that he has not included Parker’s
work because he finds it "brittle, short on substance, and . . . no longer very
funny." Yet it is precisely the substance of Parker’s work — its bittersweet,
serio-comic depiction of the sexual double standard and uneasy relations between men and
women — that has made it relevant to women’s experience for the past sixty years. The
story of "Mrs. Parker," as she was known to her friends, has particular appeal
to Americans: the outwardly witty, self-confident person who is actually despairing enough
to attempt suicide more than once. And if it is her legend that has kept her work in
print, readers should be grateful for it.
From Nancy A. Walker and Zita Dresner, eds. Redressing the Balance: American
Women’s Literary Humor from Colonial Times to the 1980s. Jackson and London:
University Press of Mississippi, 1988. 257.
See also Nancy A. Walker. A Very Serious Thing: Women’s
Humor and American Culture. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1988.
32e
Другие работы по теме:
Nat King Cole Essay Research Paper NAT
Nat King Cole Essay, Research Paper NAT KING COLE BORN MARCH 17, 1919 DIED FEBRUARY 15, 1965 BORN NATHANIEL ADAMS COLES HE WAS THE FIRST AFRICAN- AMERICAN WHO BECAME A SUCCESS WITH THE WHITE AUDIENCE.
Miles The Autobiography Essay Research Paper Miles
Miles, The Autobiography Essay, Research Paper Miles Davis and John Coletrane Miles, The Autobiography This book, written by Miles Davis, is the autobiography tht he wrote a few years before he died. In this book I found how he first became interested in jazz. It also explains how he became one of the best jazz players of all time.
Penelope By Dorothy Parker Essay Research Paper
?Penelope? The poem ?Penelope? by Dorothy Parker describes the relationship between Odysseus and his wife, Penelope. The manner in which Penelope, the narrator, speaks of her husband and his journey is somewhat sarcastic and resentful. This poem shows her perceptions of Odysseus, and also the role women have played in the past.
On The Bench Essay Research Paper In
?On The Bench? Essay, Research Paper In his essay, ?On The Bench?, Robert Parker shows the trials and tribulations of trying to be both mentally and physically strong. He writes about how horrible it is being thin and weak, and having to hold on to his wife?s arm when it is windy out. I hope that this essay was intended to be humorous, because it did in fact make me laugh.
Mark Twain 2 Essay Research Paper Samuel
Mark Twain 2 Essay, Research Paper Samuel Clemens better known as Mark Twain speaks best about the American experience through is unique literary voice, and through his classic writing techniques. His humorous writing tone, accomplished by over exaggeration, brought him to be one of the finest American fiction writers of his time.
Richard Iii Essay Research Paper Richard was
Richard Iii Essay, Research Paper Richard was a bad guy. This was one of his speeches: Was ever woman in this humor wooed? Was ever woman in this humor won? I?ll have her, but I will not keep her long.
Elements Of The Argument
: “What Is Poverty?” Essay, Research Paper Elements of the Argument: “What is Poverty?” Steve Ross Expository Writing Dr. Nancy Nester Final 10/25/96 What do you consider poverty to be? Do you have a definitive
Humor In A Midsummer Night
’s Dream Essay, Research Paper Shakespeare uses many ways to portray humor and make his plays a success because of it. He created a careful mix of love with humor to create a success called “A Midsummer Night?s Dream.” The focus of this paper is to describe how Shakespeare uses humor in his play.
A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur
’s Court By Mark Twain (1835 – 1910) Essay, Research Paper Mark Twain was fascinated by Sir Thomas Malory’s “Morte d’Arthur.” According to his notebook, Twain dreamed one
Humor In Acts Essay Research Paper On
Humor In Acts Essay, Research Paper On January 23, 2001 Professor Walker gave our class his presentation titled ?Humor in the Book of Acts?. Some of the things he said have caused me to look at the way I read the New Testament in a different light. Even though I had read it a number of times before I never realized some of the humor or funny situations that he pointed out.
Artificial Intelligence Essay Research Paper Perhaps one
Artificial Intelligence Essay, Research Paper Perhaps one of the most complex pieces to the human puzzle is our sense of humor. A sense of humor not only involves intelligence and comprehension but also an array of emotions. It is not enough to just understand something humorous, but it is also necessary that an emotional and physiological response be able to occur for a person to have a sense of humor.
Passolini Essay Research Paper Passolini
Passolini Essay, Research Paper Passolini’s movie included short tales displaying the irony and humor that take place in Italian religious communities. For example, one tale was about a convent filled with devoted nuns that decided to hire what thought was a poor, deaf, mute man. They hired this man as the gardener for their convent.
Austen Jane 2
Austen, Jane “Pride And Prejudice” Essay, Research Paper Jane Austen’s intricate novel exhibits dry, subtle humor. She paints her genteel and refined characters with a
Miles Davis Essay Research Paper Miles Dewey
Miles Davis Essay, Research Paper Miles Dewey Davis was born on the 26th of May 1926, in Alton, Illinois. He became famous around the world for his incredible trumpet and flugelhorn playing, but he was
Charlie Parker At Storyville Essay Research Paper
Charlie Parker at Storyville The set by Charlie Parker, at Storyville is a perfect example of bop or bebop. It fits almost all of the criteria we use to define bop. These criteria include, but are not limited to: fast tempo, display of instrumental virtuosity, complex melodies and harmonies, an unresolved character, highly syncopated and masterful improvisations.
Walt Disney Essay Research Paper This book
Walt Disney Essay, Research Paper This book is about the life of Walt Disney, an American legend. The Arthur begins the tale with a view of the family before Walt Disney’s birth
Get In Essay Research Paper Click Here
Get In Essay, Research Paper Click Here If YOU Have Friends! Can’t find the paper you need? Try Collegiate Care Comparing Casablanca to 1984 Charlie Parker at Storyville
Personal Mission Statement Essay Research Paper I
Personal Mission Statement Essay, Research Paper I believe that the following statements are very true for my personal mission statement. Hear both sides before judging. This statement most people should remember. So often people judge and say what they are thinking at the spur of the moment before really thinking the situation over and hear other sides before speaking.
King Lear By William Shakespeare 1564
– 1616) Essay, Research Paper Since King Lear’s setting is pre-Christian Britain, some readers chafe under the sort of nihilistic fatalism that colors the characters’ thinking (”As flies to wanton boys we are to the
Waltz Essay Research Paper Themes in The
Waltz Essay, Research Paper Themes in The Waltz The Waltz by Dorothy Parker was written during a time when women were just beginning to understand that they could assert their own personal identities. Dorothy Parker wanted to show the movement away from the Victorian ideals of the day towards a more liberal urban America.
Dorothy Parker Essay Research Paper
“Inventory” ‘Four be the things I am wiser to know: Idleness, sorrow, a friend, and a foe. Four be the things I’d been better without: Love, curiosity, freckles, and doubt.
Death In Life And Love In Dorothy
Parker’S Poetry Essay, Research Paper Dorothy Parker, an accomplished American poet, exposes the darker side of human behavior through her epigrammatic style of poetry. She believed that a writer must say what he feels and sees. She specialized in the hard truths, particularly about death, in both life and love.
Satire In Dorothy Parker Essay Research Paper
Dorothy Parker was born in 1893 and died in 1967. She is known for using a mixture of humor, satire, and sarcasm in her poems. Satire is a literary work holding up human vices and follies to ridicule of scorn. Three poems in which she uses humor, satire, and sarcasm are “R?sum?”, “Comment”, and “One Perfect Rose”.
Elwyn Brooks White Essay Research Paper Elwyn
Elwyn Brooks White Essay, Research Paper Elwyn Brooks White was an American author. He wrote to influence people?s lives. Everyone who was lucky enough to pick up one of his writings never walked away without benefiting from
Comparison Essay Essay Research Paper Comparison EssayTwo
Comparison Essay Essay, Research Paper Comparison Essay Two individuals dominate the late night airwaves, Jay Leno and David Letterman. Leno uses a conservative humor and Letterman’s humor is progressive. While the two shows claim to be different, they both follow the same format. Both shows include a ten-minute stand up routine, strange co-hosts and interviews with celebrity guests.
Mr Essay Research Paper Aspects of the
Mr. Essay, Research Paper Aspects of the Perfect Female The ideal woman of today’s society would contain the following qualities: intelligence, honesty, a sense of humor, spontaneity, assertiveness,
Transendentalism Through Franklin Emerson And Thoreau Essay
, Research Paper With the amount of changes in the narrative, it is no surprise Faulkner is known as the most inventive experimenter in the American modernist prose, and that later American novelists look back fearfully at his shadow (Parker cover). Throughout each of these chapters Faulkner has presented the story in non-sequential bits and pieces, with many flashbacks into the past through the minds of several different people.
Romeo And Juliet By William Shakespeare 1564
– 1616) Essay, Research Paper Perhaps Shakespeare’s most famous play, Romeo and Juliet combines the contrasting elements of humor and sorrow, bawdiness and civil strife, and innocent love and ignorant hate to rouse
Analysis Essay Research Paper In her poem
Analysis Essay, Research Paper In her poem One Perfect Rose, Dorothy Parker misleads the reader throughout the first and second stanzas into believing this poem is a romantic tribute to a tender moment from her past through her word choice and style of writing. However, the tone of the entire poem dramatically changes upon reading the third and final stanza when Parker allows the reader to understand her true intention of the poem, which is a cynical and perhaps bewildered view of the memory.
A And P Essay 1 Essay Research
Paper Sammy vs. the Grocery Store In the story, A & P , John Updike differentiates the views of Sammy and the store with many eye-catching techniques. By presenting the store as the antagonist, the reader gains Sammy sense of view about things through his close detail and humor of situations. Well before the dramatic opportunity presents itself for Sammy to quit his job, his narrative voice has established his individualism, imagination and his subversive sense of humor that already set him at odds with his jobs dull routine.
Crying Essay Research Paper Thomas Pynchon The
Crying Essay, Research Paper Thomas Pynchon The Crying of Lot 49 The Crying of Lot 49 was the second novel written by Thomas Pynchon, published in 1966. This postmodern work of literature is filled with black humor and satire, yet the author manages to incorporate intellectually challenging material. The story begins when Oedipa Maas, a practical but restless woman married to a disk jockey, finds out that she has been made executor of the estate of Pierce Inverarity, a wealthy developer and ex-boyfriend.
1St Confession Essay Research Paper The story
1St Confession Essay, Research Paper The story ?First Confession? is a story about a troubled boy who is tormented by his sister and his grandmother and is forced to go to confession for his first time and he just refuses to go. He plots to kill his grandmother and tries to kill his sister with a butter knife and this is why he is scared to go to confession, because he is scared to be judged.