Battling Clean Up and Striking Out by Dave Barry - Essay Example

Battling Clean-up and Striking Out by Dave Barry: A Critical Review Dave Barry is a humor columnist, he has been in this career for over a quarter of a century now, and his work has appeared in more than 500 newspapers in the United States and abroad. One of Barry's most respected and well-known works is that of Battling Clean-up and Striking Out, of which is going to be the topic of discussion in this paper. By thoroughly addressing and examining this particular column, we will not only be able to understand what the column itself is about but as well we will be able to gain a better and more informed point of view on Dave Barry himself.

As well we are going to be discussing my own personal view in regards to how well I conform to Barry's generalization about my gender, in what ways I am stereotypically male or female, and whether or not such generalizations as this one of Barry's amuse or merely annoy me. This is what will be dissertated in the following. The basic premise of this particular column is about the different sensitivity of men and women to dirt and to sports, and Barry uses humor consistently throughout it, while at the same time pointing out factual information as well.

Barry makes stereotypical remarks throughout this column, such as the fact that basically 'all women care about is cleaning up and men care about sports'. In regards to my own personal opinion and how well I conform to Barry's generalization here, I would say that the answer to this would go hand in hand with the issue of what ways I am stereotypically male or female. I am female, however I do not consider my only worries to be in regards to 'dirt', and in fact I enjoy sports very much. Therefore, in regards to Barry's stereotypical generalizations, I would actually consider that I am more stereotypically male in this case.

As well, in regards to whether or not such generalizations as this amuse or merely annoy me, I can honestly and truthfully say that they amuse me. Generalizations such as the ones that Barry produces in his Battling Clean-up and Striking Out column, are not harsh or cynical in any way, but are rather general stereotypes that can be seen in the world around us everyday. I find them to be amusing, and they are even more obviously kidded about in this column by Barry in order to allow readers to see that he is joking around.

Generalizations such as this certainly can be made to be crude or hurtful, but in this work of Barry's, they are anything but. Dave Barry is an intelligent and incredibly humorous writer, and this work of his goes to prove this. He is making light in this work about a situation that has been going on for as far back as we can all remember, and if anything he is allowing the issue to be raised and discussed in a manner that is not as serious and severe as it most often is taken in other forums.

Works Cited Barry, D (1997). Dave Barry's Greatest Hits. New York: Ballantine Books.