Stephen Butler Leacock (1869–1944) was born in England and moved with his family to Canada as a child. He became a professor of economics and political science at McGill University in Montreal, but he is best remembered as one of the most popular humorists writing in English in the early twentieth century. His books include Literary Lapses (1910), Nonsense Novels (1911) and Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town (1912). With the Photographer comes from his collection Behind the Beyond (1913), in a group of pieces about "familiar incidents" of everyday life. Canada's annual prize for humorous writing, the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour, is named after him.
Leacock's typical method is to take an ordinary situation — opening a bank account, visiting a dentist, having a photograph taken — and tell it through a timid, slightly ridiculous narrator who exaggerates his own feelings, so that a small embarrassment becomes a comic disaster.
Worked examples
Example 1 (MCQ, 1 mark). Which of these is NOT true of Stephen Leacock? (a) He was a humorist (b) He taught at McGill University (c) He moved to Canada as a child (d) He wrote Julius Caesar.
Solution. (d). Julius Caesar is by Shakespeare. Leacock wrote humour, and With the Photographer comes from his collection Behind the Beyond (1913).
Why this scores: in a "NOT" question, underline the word before you read the options. The 2025 examiners' report records students losing a mark in a similar question by overlooking "NOT".
Example 2 (short answer, 3 marks). Describe Leacock's usual method of creating humour.
Model answer. Leacock takes an ordinary situation, such as visiting a dentist or having a photograph taken, and tells it through a timid, slightly ridiculous narrator. The narrator exaggerates his own feelings, so that a small embarrassment turns into a comic disaster. In this story, a simple wish for a photograph ends with a man in tears.
Why this scores: the ordinary situation (1 mark), the timid narrator (1 mark) and the effect of exaggeration with an example from the story (1 mark).
Example 3 (short answer, 4 marks). Leacock was a professor of economics and political science, yet he is remembered as a humorist. How does the story show that he understood people well?
Model answer. A person who studies how people behave notices small human weaknesses. Leacock notices several in the story. The narrator is so timid that he feels guilty for disturbing the photographer. The photographer is so proud that he forgets the customer is a person. Both are exaggerated, but we recognise them. We have all waited in a room where someone important kept us waiting, and we have all felt too shy to complain. The humour works because it is true to life.
Why this scores: it links the author's profession to his observation (1 mark) and gives two specific weaknesses from the text (2 marks), with a closing comment on why it is funny (1 mark).
Doubts cleared
Q. Do I need to remember the dates of Leacock's books? You should know that With the Photographer is from Behind the Beyond (1913). The other titles are for general interest; the board has asked about the story, not the biography.
Q. Was Leacock Canadian or English? He was born in England and moved to Canada as a child. In the exam, call him a Canadian humorist.
Q. What is a humorist? A writer who is known for making readers laugh through funny stories and essays.
Mistakes to avoid
- Calling Leacock an American writer or a poet.
- Writing his collection as Behind the Bench or giving the wrong year. It is Behind the Beyond, 1913.
- Giving a long biography when the question asks for one line about his style.
Check yourself
- What did Leacock teach, and where?
- Name the collection that contains this story.
- What kind of narrator does Leacock usually choose?
Answers: 1. Economics and political science at McGill University, Montreal. 2. Behind the Beyond (1913). 3. A timid, slightly ridiculous narrator who exaggerates his own feelings.