Who Really Had The Last Laugh?

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Who Really Had the Last Laugh? Everyone appreciates good jokes or pranks, but there is a fine line between funny and hurtful that should not be crossed. Ring Lardner’s short story “Haircut” revolves around a character that crosses that boundary not caring how it makes his victims feel. He was the prankster of the small town called Carterville. He played many pranks and jokes on the town’s people which caused them great embarrassment and shame. He showed no mercy to Julie, his wife and kids, or a fellow town’s man named Paul, who in turn got revenge for everyone who has ever been pranked by him. Jim’s occupation was selling canned goods who suffered from a drinking problem and whose family’s well-being was not his first priority. When he was to get paid he only gave his wife two-three dollars to support her and the kids. These dollars wouldn’t make it too far for his family, but she made due for at least the moment. His wife would have divorced him if she could but she had no way of supporting herself and her kids alone. She tried sowing dresses and selling them to the women around town to make money, but the business was too slow. She went to the extent of going to his boss in order for her to receive his checks because he spent all his money on alcohol instead of taking care of his family. After one or two times of her receiving his check, Jim starts to request his checks in advance. He felt he out smarted his wife and let the town know of what he did. Outside of that Jim would go to the extreme when playing prank’s, he once left his wife and kids standing in front of a circus thinking he was on his way to meet them to buy tickets. “Well, he didn’t have no intentions of bein’ there or buyin’ tickets or nothing. He got full of gin and laid round Wright’s poolroom all day.” Doctor Stair seen Jim’s wife and two kids standing outside the circus crying and asked what
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