Athens Area High School - Athenian Yearbook (Athens, PA)

Page 9 text:

THE ATHENIAN 7 Although Irving does not give us any tedious moralizing in his works, still in Tom Walker and the Devil he cleverly satirizes the selfish man who works only for his own good. A modem profiteer might well profit by reading this satire. Tom Walker gets more than he bargained for. Cartoons are sometimes rather sarcastic but the better ones carry no bitter sting. One cartoonist shows how to stop the H. C. L. He pictures crows in the nest labeled H. C. L. flying down into the cornfield called United States Industries. No words are needed. We all see that to lower the H. C. I., one must find its sources. Lowell in a Fable for Critics criticises not only his friends but also himself. He is broadminded enough to see faults even in himself. “And his failures arise (though he seems not to know it» From the very same cause that has made him a poet,— A fervor of mind which knows no separation, Twixt simple excitement and pure inspiration. There’s Lowell who’s striving Parnassus to climb With a whole bale of isms tied together with rhyme.” What is the use of scolding, making everyone unhappy, when one is able to correct faults in a much better manner ? Let us not embitter people by our sarcastic remarks, but help them by our kindly humor in correcting some little fault. Mary C. Moore ’20. The humor of making light of any serious matter is the humor of “grin and bear it.” Even when facing death more than one soldier who just escaped being hit by a shell would jump up and shaking his fist say, “Fritzie didn’t have my number on that shell.” It is this atit-tude which helps to guide us over the rough paths and finally makes us come out victorious. We would not care much for one who w'ould allow himself to become dow nhearted at the first sign of defeat. Many things of very great importance have been ridiculed in such a way as to make them very insignificant. It is impossible to pick up a magazine or newspaper without finding one or more cartoons. Often these cartoons ridicule some important national question or some of the heads of the government. Even our President doesn’t escape the cartoonist’s eye and very often he is found the object of the cartoonist’s pen. But they are depicted in such a way that it brings a smile to our lips and perhaps to the victim himself. Mark Twain brings this out in Innocents Abroad. The guide attempted to show the wonderful bust of the statue of Columbus. “Santa Marie! zis ze bust! zis ze pedestal.” This is the reply that he received from the American tourist: “O, I see, I see,—happy combination—very happy combination indeed. Is—is this the first time this gentleman was ever on a bust ?” We cannot help but see the humorous side. It is part of our life and it should not be denied. The old saying, “Laugh, and the world laughs with you,” is an assurance which we really need to help us throughout our daily life. Beatrice Warren ’20. The humor that is best liked by American people is perhaps that of exaggeration. In Innocents Abroad, Mark Twain wept over the tomb of Adam. He said, “How touching it was, here in a land of strangers, far away from home, and friends, and all who cared for me, thus to discover the grave of a blood relation. True, a distant one, but still a relation. The fountain of my filial affection was stirred to its profoundest depths, and I gave way to tumultuous emotion, and wept.” Then when the guide pointed out the mummy of an Egyptian, they very soberly asked, “Is he dead ?” The guide lost his temper and cried, “Yes, yes, ten thousand years dead!” Then there is the humor of exaggeration shown by cartoons. These are usually drawn for the purpose of bringing before the public in a ridiculous way some event of national interest. An example of this is one of the many cartoons upon the worldwide prohibition. One is a picture of a small town that is supposed to be inhabited by bugs. There is an army of them dressed up to represent real people, and they are marching Mr. Toad to jail. The charge for his arrest is—he is full of hops. This brings before the public a serious subject in a funny way.

Page 8 text:

6 THE ATHENIAN Also, we wish to mention how well the class of 1919 is doing and also the previous classes. There has been a rumor that has been prevalent for several years that graduates of A. H. S. are not allowed to enter any college or normal school. This is a wrong impression as one young man who graduated in the class of 1916 went to Cincinnati University and was transferred to Cornell. The students from last year’s class have gone to different Normal schools and universities. There are three young men in State College: two girls in West Chester; three in Syracuse University; three girls in Columbia; one boy in Temple University. Nearly all the rest of the class of 1919 is doing office work. This is certainly a very good showing, and we hope that the rest of the classes of A. H. S. will do as well as the previous classes, and we are sure they will. Kathryn Birney ’20. SOME PHASES OF HUMOR The humor found the most frequently and commonly in life comes from foibles. We may be curious, vain, and absent minded, or even have a larger share of sentimentality that we can wisely use. All these traits are humorous to others, although we may not be able to see it that way ourselves. We find everywhere a great deal of vanity, of which Mr. Leo Hunter in Pickwick Papers is a striking example. While discussing poetry with several of his acquaintances he was surprised to find that they were not familiar with the fact that his wife was a poet. In order to show them how great his wife’s poetry really was and how she “doted” on poetry, he recites the poem. It commences: “Can I view thee panting, lying On thy stomach, without sighing. Can I unmoved see thee dying On a log, Expiring frog ?” Miss Vanity goes tripping down the street all decked out, looking out of the corner of her eye to see if you are watching. The longer you watch the more humorous it will seem, and I’ll wager before long you’ll laugh. Why ? Because vanity is humorous. What child does not smile, when Grandpa, after searching a long time for his glasses, impatiently exclaims, “Goodness sakes, child, I wish you would find my glasses. I have hunted high and low.” 1 hen the smile grows broader and the eyes wander directly to the shiny head of Grandpa, who seeing the gaze, quickly lifts an investigating hand. Of course he finds his glasses and then he says, “Ch dear, I am so absent-minded.” But neither our vanity or our absentmindedness get us into as much trouble as curiosity sometimes does. “Curiosity killed a cat.” Well it didn’t kill our cat but she had a real sore paw for her inquisitiveness. She was curious to know what a certain basket contained. So quietly approaching it, she thrust her paw in to investigate. Eut when she withdrew it something was attached to her toes. She jumped and scrambled around the room trying to shake the obstacle off, but it would not let go. So I came to her rescue and removed the creature, which proved to be a crab. It amused me to see what the cat’s curiosity led her into. The humor due to foibles is very closely connected with daily life because we are always on the alert to find out other people’s failings and laugh at them. The smiles that they bring to our faces help to make life more cheerful and to drive away the blues. Myrtle Jones ’20. Though satire is usually thought to be bitter, still we have come to associate with it a more human and kindlier meaning. It may be used to bring about reform through kindly ridicule. Bret Harte in his Condensed Novels satirizes authors for their exaggeration in a very humorous manner. Ke shows Cooper’s tendency toward melodrama; for instance.—“The well aimed bullet had done its work. Entering the open throat of the grizzly it had traversed its body only to enter the throat of the California lion, and in like manner the catamount, until it passed through into the respective forehead of the bull and the buffalo, and finally fell flattened from the rocky hillside.”

Page 10 text:

 TIIK ATHENIAN Then there is the exaggeration that is shown in funny papers. I really cannot see anything so very funny about them however, for no real live person ever said or did the things that these people are supposed to do. If people can actually appreciate and enjoy them, it does not show very high ideals. Everyone likes to laugh, and no one should spend a day without having a laugh, but it is best to have some joke or funny thing that would be natural. We must keep up the standard of American humor and not let it be lowered. Katherine Russell ’20. TREES IN LITERATURE Since the earliest times trees have been used as symbols of strength and sturdiness and many fancies have been woven about them in both poetry and prose. Lowell gives us a pretty idea in Rhoecus by telling us that a beautiful woman is the soul of the oak. For sturdiness let us quote Holmes who says:— “In fact there’s nothing that keeps its youth So far as I know as a tree and truth.” Pryant calls the forest the first temples with mighty columns in which men worshipped before they learned to hew and fashion them into shelters. The elm is called the most beautiful of trees. In Tongues in Trees, we find: “1 he elm in all the landscape green Is fairest of God’s stately trees. She is a gracious-mannered queen, Full of soft bends and courtesies.” The wind blowing in the pine trees is usually associated with sighing or moaning. Longfellow says in the Song of Hiawatha: “Heard the sighing of the pine trees Heard the moaning of the branches.” Whittier does not make the pines so melancholy in My Playmate, when he says: “The pines were dark on Ramoth Hill Their son was soft and low.” Many writers write of trees for themselves, drawing no lesson from them or relating them in any way to human life. As an example we have Mrs. Broughton, who writes: “The blowing of the summer trees Made a murmur in the land.” Some trees in America also have histories. Among these are the Charter Cak and the Elm under which Fenn made his treaty with the Indians. Anna Smith ’20. ADVICE TO THE JUNIORS The class of 1920 wish, before leaving the school, to give the Junior class a little advice which, I am sure, they will be able to profit by. We do not think it wise to allow you to enter into the realm of seniorhood without having first given you the advice of which you are so sorely in need. We have often wished to reprimand you but have been able to keep silent only in the hope that some day you would mend your ways, but alas! you do not. The class of 1920 has few faults; in fact they are so small that they are scarcely noticeable in comparison with those of the Juniors. We know that you are a very remarkable class but why so independent ? Your class average is not so high but that it could be higher, and I think that if you look back a little you will see that the Second Year is steadily gaining on you. Your class has a few politicians, but why don’t they talk a little about class interest and awaken your class to the fact that it is living ? Theodore, in regard to politics, don’t you think you should be a Progressive next year ? I’m sure you would be an aid to the party with your oratorical ability and it might help you to get over your retiring nature.