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Dollard, john. The Dozens: Dialectic of Insult.
Reik, Theodor. Characteristics of Masochism.
Sachs, Hanns. The Measure in “Measure for Measure”.
1. Dollard, John.The Dozens.—Dozens is a game played predominantly by children and adolescents, who carry on the game by means of rhymes, whereas adults speak without rhymes and often improvise. It is a pattern of interactive insult widely distributed among American Negroes. The clean Dozens are distinguished from the dirty Dozens everywhere, though not always by name. In the latter accusations of incestuous or adulterous behavior are made on the part of the accused or his near relatives; in the former, jeers concerning the inferiority, stupidity or cowardice of the one addressed, or his relatives, are the stock in trade. The collective aspect of Dozens play is very important since the watching crowd serves as a sounding board for all insults, magnifying them and compelling adequate rejoinder. Fights are most likely to terminate the