The Wasp — November 29, 1879 — page 8: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis of "Baruch Koweski, Le Juif Polonais" This page is a **playscript**, not a political cartoon. It's Act II of a three-act play written by Salmi Morse, performed expressly for *The Wasp* magazine. The drama concerns Michel, a wealthy innkeeper, his family, and various characters including servants and a notary. The dialogue involves marriage articles, inheritance disputes, and family conflicts—typical Victorian-era theatrical fare. While the play's title emphasizes the protagonist's Polish-Jewish identity, the visible dialogue focuses on mundane domestic matters: property disputes, parental concerns about children's marriages, and legal documents requiring a notary's signature. Without additional context about Morse's intent or contemporary Jewish stereotypes in 1870s satire, the satirical angle remains unclear from this page alone.