Az Eszterházy Károly Tanárképző Főiskola Tudományos Közleményei. 1994. [Vol. 2.] Eger Journal of American Studies. (Acta Academiae Paedagogicae Agriensis : Nova series ; Tom. 22)

STUDIES - András Tarnóc: "Who is Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?" Reflections of Political Correctness in a Distorted Mirror.

physically and intellectually active mature female. The tale is also heavily influenced by cultural relativism, the notion of assigning equal value to all cultures, especially prevalent in LRRH's responses to the wolfs advances calling his sexist and offensive remarks elements of an "entirely valid worldview." Garner's rewriting however is also the work of a master parodist incorporating the elements of satire. He virtually creates a written version of the straightman in order to increase the comic effect (Holman 484). However, in this straightman the mainstream American reader can recognize himself as his traditional assumptions of the sexist division of labor and his ageist concept of the elderly are struck down. The author, borrowing freely from Henry Beard and Christopher Cerfs The Official Politically Correct Dictionary and Handbook, also pokes fun at the oversensitivity of the PC mindset Garner employs exaggerations in order to enhance his satire as the end of the tale reminds the reader of Baron the Munchausen's tales. The other familiar technique of satire, incongruity, is also present as certain elements of the tale are given a PC explanation. Consequently the wolfs devouring of the grandmother is explained by ideology, and the lumberjack has to die to redeem himself for being a "tree butcher" ((Beard 95). Ill While these two tales are obviously caricatured and exaggerated versions of the original, they present a reliable picture of the US. in the postCold War era. The PC bedtime stories' emphasis on the victim as a new role model affirms the common wisdom that societies upon reaching a sophisticated level of economic, social and cultural development in lieu of real enemies invent new ones. It can be said that Garner provided a deconstructed version of the two folk tales. Following this philosophy's questioning of "previously unquestioned postulates of order," the author undermines the traditional 138