Leacocks Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town :: Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town Essays

Leacocks cheer Sketches of a Little Town     It takes a certain caseful of character to see the humour in everyday life.It takes an even greater character to express the humour in ways that other populate can appreciate and subsequently find gaiety therein. Stephen Leacockis such a character, and his compilation of short stories Sunshine Sketchesof a Little Town recognizes, and assists the reviewer to recognize, onesneed to laugh at their surroundings, their culture, and the people thatinteract in their lives.     Leacock is cognize for his profound ironic and satirical wit but, in thecase of Sunshine Sketches, he offers aspects of tragic irony and sagaciousinsight with regards to everyday, wee- township life as well, which serves tofurther enhance the value of his humour.     Just as Leacock was interested in the techniques of humor, he wasinterested in the language of humor. Besides the careful survival of the fittest oflanguage , said Leacock, humor demanded a great naturalness of language,the use of phrases and forms so simple that writers straining after effectwould never get them. Critics tangle that one of the main reasons forLeacocks success was that his style was that of a talker rather than awriter. Another said...He talked to the world. And the talk was good.(Curry. p.242-243)     Satire is define as a genre in which the author attacks some object, employ his means of wit or humour that is either fantastic or absurd. In thecase of Sunshine Sketches, Leacocks target is a fictitious modest town insouthern Ontario, which could be, and often is, compared to any other smalltowns across the country. Leacock immerses the reader amidst a collectionof ordinary characters who become frightful due to Leacocks grasp ofthe comedy within human nature and the range of mountains of small-town culture andtradition.     By utilizing elements of both comic and tragic irony, whic h by rendering suggest varying divisions between words or events and theircontexts, Leacock not merely creates a humorous environment for hischaracters, but also one in which the reader may laugh at situations andidiosyncrasies which are strikingly akin to their own. Events such asthe sinking of the Mariposa Belle in six feet of piddle and the subsequentrescue attempts by Mariposans, the comedic courting rituals of theextremely shy putz Pupkin, and the inane attempts to raise money on behalfof the church are all examples of these sharp, ironic situations.     To understand the irony in any work, one moldiness first appreciate thecontext of such a work. With regards to Sunshine Sketches, the town of