Judge — May 16, 1925 — page 8: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Two Cartoons About Social Pretension **Top cartoon:** The Joneses order a shade tree by mail with workers ready to plant it. The humor satirizes the wealthy family's attempt at instant, ostentatious landscaping—suggesting they want the appearance of an established, genteel home without patience or genuine cultivation. The "Joneses" reference alludes to keeping up appearances and social competition. **Bottom cartoon:** A man in rain aims a gun at a cat, saying "Henry—I'll shoot that cat so he won't wake poor Mary." This appears to mock exaggerated consideration for one's spouse or absurd solutions to minor problems—killing a cat rather than tolerating it waking someone. The humor lies in the extreme, ridiculous response. Both cartoons mock middle/upper-class pretension and domestic absurdities of the era.