Life, 1890-10-02 · page 1 of 16
Life — October 2, 1890 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "Reason Enough" - Life Magazine, October 2, 1890 This cartoon satirizes bachelor resistance to marriage. A well-dressed man stands uncomfortably while a woman sits nearby in what appears to be a parlor. The dialogue reads: "Why don't you marry one of them? Don't they know enough?" to which he replies, "Yes, they 'No' too much." The joke plays on a double meaning: women know too much (are too educated or opinionated), but more directly, they say "no" excessively—perhaps to marriage proposals or to the man's advances. This reflects late-Victorian anxieties about educated women's independence and their ability to refuse unwanted suitors. The cartoon mocks bachelors' frustration with women's agency while seemingly sympathizing with their predicament.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
VOLUME XVI. NEW YORK, OCTOBER a3, 18go. NUMBER 405. Entered at the New York Post Office as Second-Class Mail Matter. Copyright, 1890, by Mircuatt & Mitte, ee } REASON ENOUGH. “WHY DON'T YOU MARRY ONE OF THEM? Don't THEY KNOW ENOUGH?” “Ves, THEY *No' Too MucH.” comicbooks.com