Where do you Get that Noise? by Ring Lardner
The work is a satirical portrayal of life in America’s baseball leagues, rendered through a series of extended, witty dialogues among players and team figures. Set against a backdrop of wartime economic and social disruptions, the narrative follows the banter and debates among players as they discuss trades, team performance, and the state of baseball. The characters dissect a recent trade involving a popular player, comparing the perceived value of the exchanged players while questioning motives behind the deal. Their conversation quickly reveals underlying tensions, as one player’s constant argumentative nature and penchant for embellishing his credentials become a source of both humor and frustration. Throughout the narrative, the dialogue touches on various aspects of baseball culture. The players comment on the effects of weather—comparing summers of excessive rain to those of relative dryness—and attribute changes in attendance partly to the war, which has strained public finances and altered leisure priorities. They engage in a running discussion about the peculiarities of playing conditions in different cities, attributing poor hitting to environmental factors like heavy smoke, excessive dirt, or even the disruptive influence of nearby trees. Simultaneously, the text provides a humorous look at personal rivalries and individual flaws. Characters boast about their own prowess while ridiculing the habits and weaknesses of teammates, such as a tendency to overthink batting technique or wild swings that lead to double plays. The dialogue is peppered with ironic commentary on baseball statistics, trading strategies, and the influence of factors such as golf, which is humorously blamed for conditioning players to hold back their swing. The narrative also delves into the interplay between personal life and the sport. Players weave discussions of off-field matters—ranging from family anecdotes and hometown memories to remarks on the attractiveness of women—into the fabric of baseball talk. Reflections on these topics underscore the idea that, even in a game as mechanical as baseball, personal pride and cultural biases shape attitudes toward the team and the sport. A recurring refrain in the work serves as a verbal hook, punctuating the dialogue and often signaling skepticism toward outlandish assertions about everything from weather manipulation by military artillery fire to the benefits or detriments of foreign-born players in boosting local attendance records. This refrain encapsulates the skeptical, humorous approach of the narrative, as characters navigate the absurdities of their everyday professional lives. In essence, the work is an incisive commentary on the dual nature of baseball as both a competitive sport and a reflection of broader societal themes. It exposes how external pressures—economic hardship from war, shifting social preferences, and cultural differences among players—affect not only the business side of the game but also the personal fortunes and egos of those who participate in it. The humorous tone, combined with the acerbic wit of the dialogues, critiques both the idealism and the inherent contradictions within the world of professional baseball.
By Ring Lardner · First published 1919 · Genre: Sports Fiction, Humorous Fiction, Satire · 7 chapters · 8,618 words
First lines
The trade was pulled wile the Phillies was here first trip. Without knockin' nobody, the two fellas we give was worth about as much as a front foot on Main Street, Belgium. And the fella we got had went better this spring than any time since he broke in. So when the news o' the deal come out I says to Dode, I says:
"What's the matter with Pat -- tradin' Hawley? What's he goin' to do with them two he's gettin' -- make ticket takers out of 'em? What's the idear?"
"It does look like a bad swap for us," says Dode. "Hawley's worth six like them you're givin' us, and he ain't only twenty-seven years old."
"That's what I'm tellin' you," I says. "The deal looks like you was tryin' to help us out."
What this Textopian page supports
Where do you Get that Noise? is listed on Textopian as a novella by Ring Lardner, dated 1919 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Novella
- Author: Ring Lardner
- Date: 1919 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Sports Fiction, Humorous Fiction, Satire, Regional American Fiction, Historical Fiction
- Length: 8,618 words
- Structure: 7 chapters, 271 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Very Easy (5th Grade or below)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for Where do you Get that Noise? by Ring Lardner
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
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Genres
- Sports Fiction — The narrative centers on baseball, player trades, and game dynamics, which drive the plot and dialogue.
- Humorous Fiction — The witty, colloquial banter and absurd situations create a strong tone of humor throughout the work.
- Satire — The dialogue and narrative use irony and exaggeration to mock sports culture and societal norms.
- Regional American Fiction — The use of local dialect and culturally specific references situates the narrative firmly in American regional life.
Tags
satire · humor · short story collection · American literature · 20th century · irony · social commentary · sports · journalism · realism · prose · critique