Judge — May 4, 1929 — page 17: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This Judge page contains two satirical pieces: **Top cartoon**: A domestic scene where a husband, freshly released from jail, is being ejected by his wife through the doorway. The humor relies on the wife's dialect ("Lan' o' Goshen") and the absurdity of her timing—he's literally just gotten out that morning. **"Literary Luminaries" section**: This mocks Russian literature's popularity in America, specifically targeting authors like Tolstoy and Dostoevsky. The satire critiques their grim subject matter (poverty, suicide, violence) and suggests critics pretend to find it profound while actually finding it ridiculous. The poem ridicules both the dark themes and the assumption that publishing such novels represents genuine artistic merit or even ethical seriousness. **Bottom cartoon**: A brief joke about facial hair and dental hygiene—a man grows a mustache to contain soup while eating, though the punchline suggests he actually just needs dental work. The page represents American satirical attitudes toward highbrow European culture and domestic life.