First Aid for Dora
Encyclopedia
"First Aid for Dora" is a short story
by P. G. Wodehouse
, which first appeared in the United States
in the July 1923 issue of Cosmopolitan
and in the United Kingdom
in the August 1923 Strand
. It features the irrepressible Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge
, and was included in the collection Ukridge
, published in 1924.
; intrigued, he finds the girl is one Dora Mason, secretary
to Ukridge's Aunt Julia, a novelist.
Later, having won some money on the Derby
, Corcoran promises his friends a night out, but returning home to dress, he finds Bowles has let Ukridge borrow his evening suit. Dismayed, Corcoran must in turn borrow an ancient outfit from Bowles, which in addition to being rather snug, smells rather strongly of moth-balls
, rendering his evening less than pleasant.
Seeing Ukridge enjoying himself in his fine clothes, Corcoran upbraids him strongly, but hears that Ukridge is entertaining the pretty Dora. The next day, Ukridge arrives with the news that, attempting to smuggle the girl back into his aunt's house, they were caught by a police officer, who woke the aunt, who in turn sacked Dora. Corcoran suggests asking their respectable friend George Tupper to put in a good word for the girl.
Later Ukridge returns with the news that Tupper's appeal has failed, and further upsets Corcoran by informing him that Aunt Julia now expects a visit from the writer, posing as a journalist from her favourite magazine, Women's Sphere, sent to interview her. Arriving at the house, he meets Aunt Julia in the company of another woman, introduced to him as a Miss Watterson, and finds her far less intimidating than expected. However, she soon reveals that Ukridge's thin plot has been see through, and that Miss Watterson is in fact the editor of Women's Sphere, sending Corcoran away in shame and embarrassment.
Arriving home, he finds Ukridge on his couch, and hears that Dora has found work elsewhere and the scheme need not go ahead. Ukridge had known this the previous day, but had omitted to inform his friend and spare him his ordeal.
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
by P. G. Wodehouse
P. G. Wodehouse
Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, KBE was an English humorist, whose body of work includes novels, short stories, plays, poems, song lyrics, and numerous pieces of journalism. He enjoyed enormous popular success during a career that lasted more than seventy years and his many writings continue to be...
, which first appeared in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in the July 1923 issue of Cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan (magazine)
Cosmopolitan is an international magazine for women. It was first published in 1886 in the United States as a family magazine, was later transformed into a literary magazine and eventually became a women's magazine in the late 1960s...
and in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in the August 1923 Strand
Strand Magazine
The Strand Magazine was a monthly magazine composed of fictional stories and factual articles founded by George Newnes. It was first published in the United Kingdom from January 1891 to March 1950 running to 711 issues, though the first issue was on sale well before Christmas 1890.Its immediate...
. It features the irrepressible Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge
Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge
Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge is a fictional character from the short stories and novels of P. G. Wodehouse.Ukridge is a schemer who will do anything to increase his funding -- except, of course, work. An alert and creative opportunist, he makes sure that no kindness shown to him, however...
, and was included in the collection Ukridge
Ukridge (short stories)
Ukridge is a collection of short stories by P.G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom on June 3, 1924 by Herbert Jenkins, London, and in the United States on March 19, 1926 by George H. Doran, New York, under the title He Rather Enjoyed It....
, published in 1924.
Main characters
- Stanley Featherstonehaugh UkridgeStanley Featherstonehaugh UkridgeStanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge is a fictional character from the short stories and novels of P. G. Wodehouse.Ukridge is a schemer who will do anything to increase his funding -- except, of course, work. An alert and creative opportunist, he makes sure that no kindness shown to him, however...
, the irrepressible entrepreneur- Julia Ukridge, his haughty writer aunt
- Dora Mason, Julia's secretary and companion
- Julia Ukridge, his haughty writer aunt
- Jimmy Corcoran, Ukridge's writer friend
- Bowles, Corky's landlord, an ex-butler
- George Tupper, an old schoolfriend of Ukridge and Corcoran
- Muriel Watterson, a friend of Julia's, editor of Women's Sphere
Plot
Our narrator Jimmy Corcoran spots Ukridge helping an attractive young girl onto a busBus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
; intrigued, he finds the girl is one Dora Mason, secretary
Secretary
A secretary, or administrative assistant, is a person whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, communication & organizational skills. These functions may be entirely carried out to assist one other employee or may be for the benefit...
to Ukridge's Aunt Julia, a novelist.
Later, having won some money on the Derby
Epsom Derby
The Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, internationally as the Epsom Derby, and under its present sponsor as the Investec Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...
, Corcoran promises his friends a night out, but returning home to dress, he finds Bowles has let Ukridge borrow his evening suit. Dismayed, Corcoran must in turn borrow an ancient outfit from Bowles, which in addition to being rather snug, smells rather strongly of moth-balls
Mothball
Mothballs are small balls of chemical pesticide and deodorant used when storing clothing and other articles susceptible to damage from mold or moth larvae ....
, rendering his evening less than pleasant.
Seeing Ukridge enjoying himself in his fine clothes, Corcoran upbraids him strongly, but hears that Ukridge is entertaining the pretty Dora. The next day, Ukridge arrives with the news that, attempting to smuggle the girl back into his aunt's house, they were caught by a police officer, who woke the aunt, who in turn sacked Dora. Corcoran suggests asking their respectable friend George Tupper to put in a good word for the girl.
Later Ukridge returns with the news that Tupper's appeal has failed, and further upsets Corcoran by informing him that Aunt Julia now expects a visit from the writer, posing as a journalist from her favourite magazine, Women's Sphere, sent to interview her. Arriving at the house, he meets Aunt Julia in the company of another woman, introduced to him as a Miss Watterson, and finds her far less intimidating than expected. However, she soon reveals that Ukridge's thin plot has been see through, and that Miss Watterson is in fact the editor of Women's Sphere, sending Corcoran away in shame and embarrassment.
Arriving home, he finds Ukridge on his couch, and hears that Dora has found work elsewhere and the scheme need not go ahead. Ukridge had known this the previous day, but had omitted to inform his friend and spare him his ordeal.
See also
- List of Wodehouse's Ukridge stories