Life, 1900-11-08 · page 15 of 20
Life — November 8, 1900 — page 15: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This illustration satirizes courtship and romantic rejection in early 20th-century society. A well-dressed man in riding clothes stands among potted plants, reassuring a woman that he won't do anything "desperate" after her refusal of his (presumably romantic) advances. The satire targets Victorian/Edwardian romance conventions: the woman's fear that rejection might drive him to grand, "romantic" gestures (possibly dramatic or even dangerous acts). Her admission that she rejected him *specifically* because she feared he'd become romantically reckless mocks both genders—his predictability and her manipulation of expected male behavior. The potted plants appear decorative rather than symbolic. The joke relies on the audience recognizing period dating rituals and the exaggerated emotional responses expected from suitors.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
RECONSIDERED. He: you X&uD NOT PEAR. I SHALL DO NOTHING DESPERATE JUST BECAUSE YOU HAVE REFUSED NE. “THEN, DARLING, I REPENT. IT WAS ONLY THE THOUGHT THAT YOU MIGHT DO SOMETHING ROMANTIC THAT MADE ME REFUAE YoU."