Poetry · Chapter
Judge Geo. A. Cooke explained
A brief, humorous poem about Judge Geo.
What happens
A brief, humorous poem about Judge Geo. A. Cooke, a Chicago lawyer who enjoyed hunting raccoons along the Mississippi River until a bee, sharing a tree with a raccoon, stung him on the lip.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
This is the story's dramatic climax because the speaker confronts the painful realization that his child’s lov…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingThemes in this chapter
- Humor and Satire
The poem uses a lighthearted, rhyming anecdote about a judge's hunting mishap with a bee.
Characters to notice
- George K. Schmidt
The subject of the poem, a Chicago lawyer and judge who hunts coons.
Key passages
“The judge used to pack up his grip And hunt coons on the old Mississip’, Till one time a bee, Who shared the coon’s tree, Gave his honor a kiss on the lip.”
Judge Cooke would travel with his bag to hunt raccoons along the Mississippi, until a bee that lived in the same tree as a raccoon stung him on the lip.
Summarizes the entire poem's narrative.
