Judge, 1921-07-09 · page 9 of 36
Judge — July 9, 1921 — page 9: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "The Opposing Sex" by Katherine Negley This satirical piece humorously depicts married life from a husband's perspective, portraying wives as controlling forces that thwart male autonomy and leisure. The narrative follows a typical day: the husband must eat breakfast despite lacking appetite to avoid his wife's concern; he's interrupted from reading the newspaper by her gossip; a business meeting is disrupted by his wife demanding he purchase expensive fabric; dinner is an unappetizing corned beef and cabbage; his evening plans are derailed by mandatory socializing; and he cannot even read the paper before bed due to her reminders about morning schedules. The opening cartoon shows "Husky William" preferring surfing to marital obligations, establishing the theme that men desire escape from domestic constraints. The satire reflects early-20th-century gender dynamics: wives as household managers wielding subtle but absolute control, husbands as reluctant participants in domestic and social obligations, and marriage as fundamentally about male surrender of independence. It's humorous precisely because it exaggerates this power imbalance for comic effect.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Drawn by Joun Coxrcuen Husky William—Say wor Ye uke, Henry, BUT YER CAN GIVE ME SURF-BATHIN’ EV’RY TIME! The Opposing Sex the lady who sits opposite you at the breakfast table. For breakfast there are oranges, cereal, Te opposing sex is represented by hot cakes, bacon, eggs and coffee. You do not feel like eating a thing, but you know the wife will want to know what is the matter and insist on sending for a doctor if you do not eat. You eat. You prop up the paper and read the headlines while she serves the breakfast. You hope to finish the paper, but she begins to tell you how bad the youngsters next door are, how scandalous Mrs. Smith acts when the installment collector calls, and the lovely hat Mrs. Wells has. You lay aside the paper and listen. After breakfast you notice with joy you have ten minutes to spare. You slump down in the Morris chair and open the paper again, but the aforesaid lady warns you that the clock is slow and you had better start. You start. At ten in the morning, you go into a conference and tell the stenographer not By KATHERINE NEGLEY to disturb you unless something very, very important comes up. The deal is almost closed when the telephone rings im- peratively. It is the wife. She wants you to go to the Silk Store at noon and get her a yard of $2.69 crépe de chine. If you tell the clerk who wants it, she will know what kind to give you. You had planned to waste only ten minutes on lunch and get back to some left-over business at the office—but you buy the silk. At night, when you turn the corner of your street, you smell cabbage cooking. You hope it is not at your house—but it is. There is nothing but corned beef and cabbage. You hate it—but you eat it. After dinner, you slip on your house- slippers and smoking-jacket and take up the paper. You plan to read what is happening at home and abroad, where wages are likely to go and where prices are, and what the stock ticker is ticking. The wife sits opposite sewing. You sigh in blissful content. The telephone rings. You pray it is no one asking you to go out. Your prayer is answered in the negative. The Walkers have unexpected company and want you to go over. You would rather stay home— but you go. The Walkers have rolled up the rug and are playing the victrola when you arrive. You pray there will be one man left over and you will be the man, but there is a lady left over besides you. “She smiles, the others are on the floor, there is only one thing for you to do’... . and you do it. After the dancing, Mrs. Walker serves cake and coffee. You cannot sleep if you drink coffee before going to bed, you open your mouth to decline, but catch your wife’s eye—and drink. You think you can look over the paper anyway before going to-bed, even if it is midnight when you get home, but the aforesaid lady reminds you about having to get up in the morning—and, oh, well, what is the use of trying to oppose them? They always get their own wayin the end anyway. comicbooks.com