BA English Modern Essay'My Tailor' by Stephen Leacock

MY TAILOR  

Stephen Leacock

Leacock is humorous writer. He was born in Hampshire , England in 1869. No doubt that he
has written some serious works, like, Elements of political Science but he is best known for
his humorous writing.
My Tailor”, is taken from a recollection of humorous pieces called. ‘Further Foolishness’.
But in this essay he blends humor with pathos. In this essay, the writer projects the
character sketch of his tailor in a very funny way. He knows his tailor for the lat thirty
years. Whenever the writer went to him he always found him standing at the back of his
shop weaving the measuring tape around his neck. He always welcomed the writer with a
smiling face. He had only two kinds of cloth at his shop I  e Tweed and Serge and the  writer
had to choose either one of them. He had a peculiar style to show the cloth to the writer. He
used to show it standing on one leg and with one leg lifted and bending it. . It was a good
way to get his cloth to be appreciated by the customers.  He taken the measurements of the
writer long ago after that he only measured the chest and added half an inch in it every
time just  to flatter the writer. He started his discussion with weather. He never permitted
the writer to talk about the bill. This issue was always was settled through correspondence.
He asked the writer for the payment of the bill only when there arrived large consignments
from Europe.
One day when the writer went to his shop, he was surprised t see that the tailor was not
standing there at his usual place. He was told that he had died. It shocked the writer that he
could not imagined to die. He thought that he was not the object of death as he always
thought him as a machine. The writer was informed that his business was not going well for
the past many years. And it caused his death
personal life.  The writer did not even know that he had a wife and a daughter. He was told

that he was a sideman of church and also played the flute. . The writer left the shop with a

sad heart. His picture appeared in his imagination and his voice sounded in his ears.

What is the message of the short story?
The story has a moral message. In this story the writer draws out the character sketch of
tailor. The tailor is a normal human being. He is just like the other men in this world. He
runs a shop   in order to meet his basic necessities of life. He is professional.  In any case , he
wants to keep his customers happy. He always welcomes his customers with a smiling face.
He talks about weather. He has a nice style to get his cloth appreciated by the customers.
The writer knows him for the past thirty years. May be, he visits him twice a week. But he is
unable to know the real problem faced by the tailor. His relations with the tailor are based
on materialism only. He never knows that he has a wife and a daughter. And also that he is
a side man of  the church. He does not know that his tailor is lover of music and he plays
flute very well.
So, when he is told that the tailor has died, he is not ready to believe in this news. He thinks
that his tailor is immortal. He is not an object of death. The message of the story is that
materialism destroys the relations. This is a materialistic world and we only know others
only to the extent of our needs.

Leacock, in this essay, blends humor with pathos, discuss?
Basically this is humorous essay but Leacock blends humor with pathos. The essay consists
of two parts. First part tells the character of the tailor in a very funny way while in the
second part; the author gives some sad details of the character of the Tailor. The first part
of the essay makes us smile but the second one makes the reader weep.
Whenever the writer goes to is shop, he welcomes the writer with a smiling face. He has
only two kinds of cloth at his shop. The writer has to choose either one of them. Usually he
talks about weather. The way of his showing the cloth to the customers is humorous. He
never asks the writer for the payment of the bill. This problem is tackled through correspondence.

Important Points:

1.      It is a humorous essay in which Leacock sketches his tailor

2.      He is in contact with his tailor for the past 30 years, he considers him as an immortal object

3.      For the past thirty year ,there is not even a slight change in the postures of his tailor

4.      He welcomes the writer with his usual smile and starts his discussion with the weather

5.      He has always only two kinds of cloth Tweed and Serge in his shop

6.      He shows the cloth to the  writer on his bended leg standing on the other

7.      His measuring tape is always hanging in his neck and he always measures the writer only from his chest

8.      He asks his assistant to add half an inch in the measurements, just to flatter the writer

9.      One day, tailor is not in his shop, on asking, he is informed that tailor has died

10.  The writer is not ready to believe in this news as he thought the tailor an immortal object

11.  He further knows that his business was not going well which became the cause of his death

12.  The tailor was a religious person, and a good flute player, he had a wife and a daughter