Puck — October 17, 1877 — page 3: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis of Puck Page 3 This page contains three separate prose articles rather than political cartoons: 1. **"What Goeth On at Present"** - A satirical commentary on urban winter life, mocking a fashionable barber's pretentious behavior and the shallow vanities of city society. 2. **"Rural Pleasures"** - A humorous account of the author's country boarding experience, contrasting idealized rural life with its actual hardships (poor water, meager meals, uncomfortable accommodations). The satire targets romantic notions of pastoral life. 3. **"Bercher"** and brief notes on Vassar College and Deadwood City society - Short miscellaneous items about social issues. The page's satire focuses on **class distinctions and lifestyle illusions**—both urban affectation and rural romanticism are debunked as equally foolish. The humor derives from exposing gaps between expectation and reality.