On the protection of face and also innocence.

[dreadedcandiru2]

The interesting thing about the upcoming week is not that we're introduced to Thelma's new love interest or that this is the last time we actually see Mrs B before Elly wonders why she didn't do more for an old lady who she didn't especially like or care about. The interesting thing is that yet again, Elly expected that The Quality Women would show up and lynch her stupid ass because Lizzie wanted to know what was going on around her and asked questions instead of doing what a nice child would do and being in a total fog where she didn't know anything and didn't care to know either because that way, her lack of curiosity or interest wouldn't cause trouble for her parents.

This fear of what people might say or think if the kids knew what was going on around them or knew things that made their folks upset or scared or embarrassed can best be formulated as follows:

Foob Fact Forty-Three: Given the Pattersons' exaggerated dread of public embarrassment, they seem to be at pains to suppress their children's curiosity so as to shield themselves from censure.

This need to keep the children from saying something that might make people who don't actually give a photon in a solar wind about what they say or think that it says anything at all about Elly's competence has an interesting side effect that the Pattersons aren't aware of. Said interesting bit of blowback is that we live in a world in which people ask themselves who exactly Elly thinks she's fooling when she acts like Lady Muck or what precisely does she think is going to happen if her children do things like ask someone to their face what's going on.