Question: Given Ralphie's mother said no to the gun then why would his father give him one? Surely this would start an argument between them.
Rob245
17th Mar 2020
A Christmas Story (1983)
Answer: Even though she was probably still against it, it was Christmas and most likely didn't want to upset Ralphie by taking the Red Ryder BB gun away from him so she let him keep it.
8th Jan 2020
A Christmas Story (1983)
Question: If they were constantly being bullied then why didn't Ralph and his friends tell their parents about their bully? That and why take the same route home if they knew that's where he'd be waiting for them?
Answer: Until recently, bullying wasn't taken very seriously. Also, school kids don't take very kindly to the idea of 'snitching.' Scut might have gotten in trouble if they'd told their parents, but in the long run, that might have made things worse for them. As for taking a different route home, it's possible he altered where he ambushed them or that he wasn't there every single day.
Thanks it's just that when Mad Magazine did their spoof of this I wondered this as did they.
11th Dec 2019
A Christmas Story (1983)
Question: Why does Ralphie's father win a weird lamp instead of money and why is his mother jealous of it? Why not tell him how she feels about it? He might've listened.
Answer: The weird lamp was the prize, there was no cash prize. Just the hideous lamp. The mother is not jealous of the lamp at all, it is tacky and ugly and she doesn't want it displayed in her home. The dad only says she is jealous because he is being defensive and argumentative after the lamp is broken. The dad was very proud of his prize so telling him how she felt about it would hurt his feelings. Whether or not she intentionally broke the lamp is a mystery.
4th Dec 2019
A Christmas Story (1983)
Question: Why doesn't Ralphie's father realise he's the one who unintentionally taught his son how to cuss, much less buy his lame excuse?
Answer: Because it's a funny look at real life. It's common for parents to cuss around their children, then be shocked when the kids start using the language themselves.
Exactly right. My parents cussed quite a bit when I was a child, but the first time I ever swore in front of my mother, she thought I learned it from watching The Real World with my sister.
True. I'd forgotten I learned how to cuss from my folks.
Answer: I think he did know. When he tells Ralphie to get in the car after saying the bad word, he kinda laughs to himself. It's only after Mom razzes him about taking too long to change the tire that he decides to share that Ralphie swore.
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Answer: This was more in the past than in today's culture, but it wasn't all that atypical for a husband to simply ignore his wife's opinions and wishes in many matters, including what would be an appropriate present for their children, particularly a boy.
raywest ★