Life, 1888-11-08 · page 1 of 14
Life — November 8, 1888 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis of "What Sent the Screen Over" This Life magazine page from November 8, 1888 satirizes a romantic/social scandal involving named figures. The dialogue indicates: - **Sophy** has accepted a proposal from "Mr. Charles Fleetwood" the previous night - **Pauline** (who doesn't know about the engagement) is shocked - **Mr. Fleetwood** is accused of being a "sensitive man" who was rejected by four girls within six months, then pursued Sophy and "gets fat on it" The humor centers on a man's desperation and opportunism in courtship—he rebounds from repeated rejections to win over Sophy, whose acceptance apparently causes such emotional upheaval that it "sent the screen over" (knocked it down in shock). The satire mocks both masculine romantic persistence and the social drama surrounding engagements in 1880s society.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
VOLUME XII. NEW YORK, NOVEMBER 8, 1888. Entered at the New York Post Office as Second-Class Mail Matter. Copyright, 1888, by Mitcuet. & Muar. WHAT SENT THE SCREEN OVER. Sophy (who accepted Mr. Charles Fleetwood the night before): Does MR. FLEET- WOOD STRIKE YOU AS BEING A SENSITIVE MAN, PAULINE? Pauline (who doesn't know of the engagement): GRactous, No! A MAN WHO HAS BEEN REJECTED BY FOUR GIRLS WITHIN SIX MONTHS AND GETS FAT ON IT CANNOT BE, WHy, SoPHY | WHAT'S THE MATTER? comicbooks.com