Life, 1887-11-17 · page 1 of 16
Life — November 17, 1887 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "At the German" — Life Magazine, November 17, 1887 This satirical cartoon depicts a formal dance or social gathering scene. The caption explains the joke: at a German (a type of formal dance popular in the 1880s), "the leader clasps his hands and each man takes a girl, one man being left out." The humor lies in the social awkwardness of this dancing tradition—when there's an odd number of participants, one man is inevitably excluded and left without a partner. The dialogue between Miss D. and Mr. C. references the discomfort of this situation, with the woman expressing surprise at the "unexpected pleasure" of the arrangement while the man notes he was told to "take what I could get," suggesting he received an undesirable or consolation partner in this social game.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
fen Cents } “Cors = & NEW YORK, NOVEMBER 17, 1887, NUMBER 255. Entered at New Vork Post Office as Second-Class Mail Matter. Copyright, 1887, by Mrrowart & Mruise. AT THE GERMAN. (Figure—in which the leader claps his hands and each man takes a girl, one man being left out.) Miss D.: REALLY, MR. C., THIS 18 QUITE AN UNEXPECTED PLEASURE. Mr. C.: AM, ves, WELL, YOU SEE, THE LEADER TOLD ME TO TAKE wHaT I couLD aT. comicbooks.com