Life, 1887-11-10 · page 1 of 16
Life — November 10, 1887 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "After the Ball" - Life Magazine, November 10, 1887 This page depicts a domestic scene titled "After the Ball," showing a conversation between a young couple and an older woman (likely the wife's mother or chaperone, Mrs. Grundy). The satire concerns proper Victorian courtship behavior. The young woman (Evelyn) is being scolded for acting "outrageously" with the Cuthbertson brothers at a ball. The older gentleman (G.Y.C.) responds by defending his own marital conduct, claiming he's "done all [his] flirting since I was married"—implying that respectable men only flirt *after* marriage, not before. The joke targets Victorian gender double-standards: wives were expected to be demure before marriage, yet husbands apparently had license for continued flirtation afterward. The satire mocks this hypocrisy through the older man's casual admission.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
YOLUME X. NEW YORK, NOVEMBER 10, 1887. : NUMBER 254. Entered at New York Post Offce as Second-Class Mail Matter. Copyright, 1887, by Mrroweit & Mnige. AFTER THE BALL. Gay Young Chaperone: EVELYN, DEAREST, YOU MUST BE MORE CAREFUL OF Mrs. Grunpy. YOU ACTED OUTRAGEOUSLY WITH THOSE CUTHBERTSON BROTHERS TO-NIGHT. Evelyn: Way, 1 saw Jack FOLLIBUD DOING THE MADLY DEVOTIONAL WITH YoU. WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE ME DO? G. ¥. C.: FOLLOW MY EXAMPLE. I'VE DONE ALL MY FLIRTING since 1 WAS MARRIED, comicbooks.com