The Troubles of Dictionary Jaques

This Sunday page strip by Carey follows Jacques, a hapless character whose attempts to apply dictionary definitions to real situations produce slapstick chaos. Each panel depicts a literal interpretation gone wrong—from trying to 'eradicate' a mean man by stabbing, to "scarifying" someone by frightening them. The strip employs the visual vocabulary of early newspaper comics: sequential panels advancing a narrative, speech balloons carrying dialogue and thought, and exaggerated figure drawing. Character-driven humor comics like this populated Sunday newspaper sections in the early 1910s, establishing the visual and narrative conventions that would become foundational to the comic book medium. Carey's work exemplifies how strips moved beyond single-panel gags toward sustained comedic stories told through image and text.