Life, 1902-08-14 · page 13 of 20
Life — August 14, 1902 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three distinct satirical pieces: **Top cartoon**: A melodramatic scene mocking overwrought Victorian fiction—a damsel-in-distress scenario with exaggerated dialogue ("Base-born wretch, unhand that woman!") that parodies cheap serial literature and stage plays. **Middle dialogue**: A conversation between Mr. Caine (likely Hall Caine, a popular novelist of the era) and an interviewer. The satire targets Caine's reputation for gloom and self-importance. He's mocked for his pessimistic writing style ("Jeremiah and the Book of Job"), pretentious self-regard about advertising his own genius, and grandiose claims about creating tourist demand for the Isle of Man. **Bottom cartoon**: A field mouse interrupting a marital dispute, requesting the wife move her foot from the mouse's front door so his wife can exit. Dark humor satirizing human selfishness and domestic conflict through animal perspective. **Humor theme**: The page ridicules Victorian melodrama, literary pretension, and pessimism, while finding dark comedy in everyday life's small indignities.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
139 England doesn’t expect every _., man to have a sense of humor, ™ put it really isn’t fair of you to plunge us into such depths of gloom. Jeremiah and the Book of Job are rather similar to your work in spirit, though in literary elevation there is a differ- ence.” “Yes, they were hardly up to my methods. There is a lack of local color, and yet a good deal might have been made \out of Palestine. But it is time for my daily reading from the Manx.” And he slowly faded away, while the sea wept more bitterly along the strand. J. G. ” "T= about nerve !"" “ How now?” “Why, the hotel I was staying at burned down, and the next day I gota bill for a fire in my room.” BASE-BORN WRETCH, UNHAND THAT WOMAN! AND TWEN YOU WILL RECEIVE THE WORST THMASH- INO oF Youn Live. “THAT L SHALL, NOBLE KNIONT, UNLESS YOU'LL KINDLY HOLD MER TILL 1 GET AWAY.” in the church pew. Still, we appreciated Glory, and she, you know, was just a little"— “Not nearly so much es I should have liked. Some day I hope to give the world a novel containing my ideal woman.” “Will she be of the Glory or the Mona order?” “Very much Glorified.” “Then your next young person will not be the torment of a philanthropic young man, or a danger signal to pol- iticians, but a golf girl.” “I think,” said Mr. Caine, dreamily, “that she will combine slumming and sparring.” the blessed public!" I sighed softly. “Yes, the public doubtless is waiting for a revelation of that kind. I have taught it to expect things from me.” “You have, indeed!” “And I flatter myself that I know how to advertise.” “Pears’ soap isn’t to be compared with you in the matter of advertisement. Of course, cleanliness is an- other story.” « “You know that I have really made the Isle of Man for tourist trade.” “Poor little Man! Its size might have protected it.” “There is no doubt that it has received the Hall-mark of my genius. But hereafter I shall require a broader field.” “But couldn't you introduce a little cheerfulness? RS. DIMPLETON: Why don’t you get your life insured ? DimpLeton: What's the use? well enough, and I'll probably outlive you. “ Well, you always did look on the dark side.”’ I'm The Field Mouse: excvsn MB, MADAM: RUT WOULD YOU KINDLY TAKE YOUR POOT OFF MY FRONT DOOR? MY WIPE WANTS TO COME OUT. comicbooks.com