Page 93 - DENG203_ELECTIVE_ENGLISH_IV

Elective English—IV

Notes problems Leacock tries to figure out whether they are content or not. Leacock doesn´t clarify if
he believes the rich are happy but it’s easy to assume that because even on the most concentrate
financial issues, they end up bitter. Even though the essay is not dynamic, there´s a lot of
narration.

Example: The essay is a perfect example of an important literary device: sarcasm. Stephen
portrays his opinion using sarcasm, it all depends on whether the reader gets it or not, but the
sarcasm used and some irony is what makes the text worthwhile. Also because he uses personal
experiences, the reader gets more engaged in the text and this helps him gain credibility.

Self Assessment

State true or false:
1. Stephen Butler Leacock is a renowned author of sharp humour and satire.
2. Stephen Leacock’s best-selling book was Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town.

3. The Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour was established to honour after his death annually
an outstanding Canadian humourist.
4. From 1910 till 1933, Stephen Leacock headed the Department of Economics and Political
Science at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec.
5. Are the Rich Happy written by Stephen examines the rich and whether they are happy.

5.3 Summary

Stephen Butler Leacock (1869-1944), is a renowned author of sharp humour and satire. His
short stories have some realistic irony exposing the social weaknesses of modern life.

In 1891, while teaching at the prestigious Upper Canada College in Toronto, Leacock
obtained a modern language degree from the University of Toronto. In 1903, after receiving
a Ph.D. in political economy from the University of Chicago, he joined the staff of McGill
University, Montreal, as professor of politics and economics.

Stephen Leacock was born in Swanmore, Hampshire. He was the third of eleven children
born to (Walter) Peter Leacock (b.1848), who was born and grew up at Oak Hill on the Isle
of Wight, an estate that his grandfather had purchased after returning from Madeira where
his family had made a fortune out of plantations and Leacock’s Madeira wine, founded in
1760.

Disillusioned with teaching, in 1899 he began graduate studies at the University of
Chicago under Thorstein Veblen, where he received a doctorate in political
science and political economy. He moved from Chicago, Illinois to Montreal, Quebec,
where he eventually became the William Dow Professor of Political Economy and long-
time chair of the Department of Economics and Political Science at McGill University.

Early in his career, Leacock turned to fiction, humour, and short reports to supplement
(and ultimately exceed) his regular income. His stories, first published in magazines in
Canada and the United States and later in novel form, became extremely popular around
the world. It was said in 1911 that more people had heard of Stephen Leacock than had
heard of Canada.

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