Life, 1922-02-09 · page 25 of 34
Life — February 9, 1922 — page 25: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a two-scene problem comedy by Henry William Hanemann satirizing courtship rituals and the impossibility of male behavior in 1910s-era dating. **Scene 1:** A man attempts polite small talk with a girl at a conservatory dance—discussing weather, mutual acquaintances, offering a cigarette. She becomes furious at his negligence, accusing him of rudeness for not engaging her properly, then storms off. **Scene 2:** The same man meets another girl and actively flatters her, compliments her dancing and beauty, and offers a cigarette. She's equally outraged, interpreting his attentiveness and cigarette offer as a seduction attempt implying she's loose. **The Satire's Point:** The sketch mocks the contradictory social expectations placed on men—damned either way. Polite detachment reads as indifference; genuine interest and gallantry reads as impropriety. The final caption—"Must we go anywhere to-night? Not unless you want to stay at home"—suggests women control outcomes despite their complaints, adding another layer of social commentary on gender dynamics.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
I. Part of a conservatory. A man; a girl.) I. MAN: Lovely dance, isn’t it? T fue Gree: Isn't it? “Lovely weather we're having. . . - “Aren't we, though?” “|r—er—you know Jack Meadow- fair, don’t you?” I don’t.” ( Silence.) Man (fumbling in the direction waistcoat): Er—er—may | Girt ly! Man: Ah! (Several moments constrained silence.) * Girt: What kind of cigarettes ser (brightening visibly) : astes. Why?” nothing.” (The man continues ke. The silence becomes oppres- Man (desperately): Nice mu- - LIFE .- What Is a Man to Do? A Problem Drama Tue Girt (passionately): I think you're the rudest man I've ever met. “What!” “T certainly do. ing and never me...” “But I never thought ... 1 had no idea...” Tue Gree (angrily): You certainly didn’t. And you expect me to stay out here, trying to make conversation with .. Thank Heaven, at least | can borrow one in the dressing-room. Excuse me! (She goes.) Tur Man: Well, I'll be... Sitting here smok- bothering to offer you. . (Scene: The same. The same man; another girl.) Tne Girt: But, | assure you, I'm no different from anyone clse. Tur Man: Impossible. Anybody that dances the way you do. . . “Do I dance very well?” “Indeed you do, And that isn’t all. He: Must we go anywhere to-night? . . . There’s something else about you —do you want me to tell you?” Tue Girt (archly): Y about me... . Tue Man: Well . . . (unconsciously they move closer to each other on the lounge), to begin with, J think you're the prettiest girl here to-night. (He opens his cigarette case and offers it to her.) Let's have a cigarette and he real comfy. Tue Girt: What! (Angrily she jumps to her feet.) Oh, that you should have the effrontery! How dare you! “What ... what's the matte “So that’s what you came here for, is it? And you thought I would... Oh! I never was so insulted... .” s—tell me “What are you talking about?” The Girt: a cigarette? (Angri How dare you offer me I beg your pardon... . 'y, she goes off, chin in air.) Well, I will be... Curtain, Henry William Hanemann, She: Not unless you want to stay at home, comicbooks.com