TAR BABY

a tar doll, set up by a roadside, which so irritates Br'er Rabbit by its unresponsiveness that he strikes it until he is stuck tight. From the book Uncle Remus, His Songs and His Sayings (1880) by Joel Chandler Harris, 1848 - 1908, American journalist and author. It is a book of folk tales told by Uncle Remus, an aging Negro servant, whose stories are based on traditional fables of his race. Many of the characters, such as Br'er (Brother) Rabbit, are animals endowed with human qualities. See also Br'er Rabbit in this glossary. —SHSBC Binder 5 Approved Glossary

n.a tar doll appearing in a well-known story by American journalist and author Joel Chandler Harris (1848-1908). The story of the tar baby appears in the book Uncle Remus, His Songs and His Sayings (1880) and later in the book The Tar Baby Story and Other Rhymes by Uncle Remus (1904), both written by Harris. (Tar is a black, thick, sticky substance.) Harris' stories dealt mainly with animals and in the Tar Baby Story, a fox makes a doll out of tar and sets it up by a roadside to catch Br'er (brother) Rabbit (a character in the book). Br'er Rabbit approaches the tar doll and starts to talk to the doll asking it questions. The doll never responds and remains silent. Angered by this, Br'er Rabbit strikes the doll and becomes stuck, he finally gets both his hands, feet and head stuck in the tar doll, all of which is being observed by the fox. The story ends ambiguously and it is not clear whether the rabbit escapes or is eaten by the fox.

a tar doll, set up by a roadside, which so irritates Br'er Rabbit by its unresponsiveness that he strikes it until he is stuck tight. From the book Uncle Remus, His Songs and His Sayings (1880) by Joel Chandler Harris, 1848 - 1908, American journalist and author. It is a book of folk tales told by Uncle Remus, an aging Negro servant, whose stories are based on traditional fables of his race. Many of the characters, such as Br'er (Brother) Rabbit, are animals endowed with human qualities. See also Br'er Rabbit in this glossary.a tar doll, set up by a roadside, which so irritates Br'er Rabbit by its unresponsiveness that he strikes it until he is stuck tight. From the book Uncle Remus, His Songs and His Sayings (1880) by Joel Chandler Harris, 1848 - 1908, American journalist and author. It is a book of folk tales told by Uncle Remus, an aging Negro servant, whose stories are based on traditional fables of his race. Many of the characters, such as Br'er (Brother) Rabbit, are animals endowed with human qualities.