In the last ten years bullies have gained serious attention as cyber-bullies have inflicted emotional damage so serious that some victims have resorted to suicide to escape their tormenters. Mid- to late-twentieth-century popular depictions of bullies paint them in a different light, mythologizing these figures as threatening in appearance, but ultimately harmless. These images show bullies’ power as rooted in language—their toughness is constructed in tough talk. Confronting ...