Judge — April 2, 1927 — page 9: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Explanation for Modern Readers This satirical cartoon from *Judge* magazine mocks a wealthy woman's alimony settlement. The illustration depicts a courtroom scene where a young woman, after only one week of marriage, successfully sued for divorce and received $10,000 annual alimony—which the caption sarcastically calls "measly." The satire targets the perceived excess of wealthy women exploiting brief marriages for financial gain. The "pitiful cases" series format suggests ironic sympathy: the cartoon presents her complaint about the alimony amount as laughably inadequate, when $10,000 yearly was substantial income for the 1910s-1920s era. This reflects broader social anxieties about divorce, women's legal rights to spousal support, and wealth inequality. The courtroom's crowded gallery suggests public fascination with such scandals. The joke assumes reader agreement that the settlement is absurdly generous.