Judge — July 7, 1900 — page 3: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis of Judge Magazine Page **Top Cartoon: "Shakespeare in Possumville"** This satirizes a dramatic club's production of "Merchant of Venice," with Antonio and Bassanio visiting a character named Shylock for money. The setting is a seedy establishment (Rabbit Inn, bar, barber shop) rather than Venice. The humor derives from transposing Shakespeare into a low-class American setting, mocking both amateur theatrical productions and the pretensions of small-town drama clubs attempting classical plays. **Bottom Cartoon: "A Reminder"** A domestic scene where a man playing violin tells his wife to "say, take this dime and move along." The wife responds sarcastically: "How do you suppose I can break my hens of setting if you keep playing 'All I want is my chicken'?" The joke plays on the song title's double meaning—treating the wife's complaint about his violin playing as literally about chickens, creating absurdist humor typical of Judge's style.