Judge, 1912-06-01 · page 9 of 24
Judge — June 1, 1912 — page 9: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This piece by Barbara Blair satirizes the contradictory social expectations placed on young girls. The narrator, an "impossible child," observes how adults demand girls behave as "dere little things"—demure, compliant, silent about observations—while simultaneously resenting their honesty when they speak plainly. The humor lies in the child's frank observations of adult hypocrisy: women who praise each other's appearances insincerely, who scold children for directness, and who expect childish deference without granting children autonomy or time to speak. The title "Dolly Don't" suggests rules imposed on girls. The comic dialogue shows adults ("Jots," "Wiskers") gossiping about someone named Aubrey with typical social pretense. The satire critiques how society trains girls toward artificiality and silence rather than authentic self-expression—making them "impossible" through impossible contradictory demands.
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Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Y BIG bruther Wil sez wimen iz like rabits. Yu cant ever tele wich way a wuman is goin to jump, but I kan cos she all mos all ways jumps op me. I hav konkluded my own sex iz a mystury. It is difikult for an in- ozent litle child to understand wim- en. Sumtimes wen I mene tu be rely kind toa wuman she luks mad enuff to ete me, an glares at me wile she sez over her sholder to sum uther wuman in a tired voice, that imposible child. In komplermenting a wuman it iz all ways best to find out fers SUN WORSHIPPERS. Dolly By BARBARA BLAIR. imposible child is not kompelled to put on a klene dress and hav her hare curled to see her muther’s frends as often as a dere little thing. A dere litle thing iz a child who drops her eyes and holds on tu everything she gets in a swete way Don't. wat she hasent got and kompler- ment that. Life teches me I am an imposible child wen I have made sum budy mad. At all uther times I am a dere litle thing. It iz far plesenter tu be an imposible child than a dere litle thing. An Owlized him ?"* Yes; every place he went they hooted."” without expresing her rele opinyuns. An impossible chid iz wun who sez tu klerely for her own and uther peopul’s kumfort. Yu never know wat an im- possible child will say next. Often this iz becos they dont giv the child time to say it. Very freqkently the sub- jeck is changed wen I begin to talk by a wuman whose hare or kom- plexyun wont stand the scrutiny of an inocent little child. My big sistur had a laun party yesterday afternune and I wuz aloud to wander among the guests in a new pink sash and with my hare hanging in long ringlets down my back, One wuman with dark hare said—-Wat a butiful gold that child’s hare iz. It iz just the kolor mine ust tu be. Then anuther wuman ina swete voce sed Before I met yudere? The uther wuman luked at her and sed hautilee, Cer- comicbooks.com