Because the next day he seemed like he was able to carry on like nothing happened and didn't appear to be scarred for life from the beating he received from his mother.
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Back when I was a kid, most of us got whaled but good when we misbehaved, and we went to school the next day having long forgotten about it. We were a different and tougher breed.
The "soap blindness" scene really hits home with us older folks because in addition to any deserved punishment, we often got whacked for things that weren't our fault. Having a fantasy about an undeserved punishment causing our parents anguish is right on.
In that case Ralphie did drop the F bomb, so he wasn't really innocent. It did seem pretty harsh, though.
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True, but the way Ralphie was describing the relative merits of various soaps (he kind of liked Palmolive), it sounded like getting soap dosed was fairly routine which would kind of suggest (based on percentages) that somewhere along the line he got a mouthful of soap for something that didn't merit being soaped or something that he didn't actually do.
Children are only scarred for life when you don't beat them.
shareBelts, paddles, coat hangers, hair brushes, switches off trees, and bare hands--back when I was a kid there was no end to the creativity my dad brought to corporal punishment. Abuse? Naw, just another day in the life of a 1950s-1960s kid. The wooden coat hangers were my favorite, because they'd always break after a few whacks and he'd stop.
Also, taste-sampled my share of soap bars. That was my mom's specialty. Didn't work, though--I cuss worse than a sailor.
Also, taste-sampled my share of soap bars. That was my mom's specialty. Didn't work, though--I cuss worse than a sailor.
My mom rarely heard it from me, and only if I cut loose and didn't know she was within range. Today, I never cuss in front of kids, old ladies, preachers, or anybody else I sense might not appreciate it. But at other times...
shareseemed more like a massage.
shareIn my day, use of improper language (and not just swearing) led to being chased around the house and having one's mouth washed out with soap (yuck!).
shareIt would be funny if the sequel had him permanently disabled as an adult from that beating.
And he was on quest to find out who told on him.
It's really sad kids today aren't nearly as resillient as they were back in the old days.
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