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Boy Friday

A young woman is puzzled when her boyfriend’s father says he was looking for someone who needs a good boy Friday. It’s most likely a reference to Daniel Defoe’s 1719 novel Robinson Crusoe. The title character spends 30 years on a remote tropical island and eventually saves the life of an islander who becomes his helper. Crusoe decides to call him Friday, since that’s the day of the week when they first encountered each other. Over time, English speakers began using the term man Friday to mean a manservant or valet, and later the term girl Friday came to mean an office assistant or secretary. This is part of a complete episode.

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