Judge — January 14, 1922 — page 3: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Explanation for Modern Readers This 1922 *Judge* cartoon depicts a domestic scene satirizing gender relations and social conventions of the era. A man confronts a woman about her whereabouts, asking if she attended a "mother's club meeting." She replies, "By my empty cigarette box"—implying she smoked through her supply while out, revealing her alibi through this evidence. The satire targets the growing independence of women in the 1920s (the "Flapper" era) and male suspicion of female autonomy. The joke assumes women's increasing freedom to leave home, smoke publicly, and participate in social activities challenged traditional domestic expectations. The man's skeptical interrogation reflects anxieties about changing gender roles during this transitional period.