The Wasp — 1896 — page 342: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page contains the serialized story "Our Story: Hard Hit" alongside period advertisements. The narrative discusses marriage attitudes among bachelors in what appears to be late-19th or early-20th century society. The illustrated story focuses on three men discussing relationships, with one character (Bickersteith) performing a comedic "skirt dance" to entertain others at a club. The satire mocks conventional bachelor attitudes toward marriage and women—particularly the contradictory desires to remain free while simultaneously judging unmarried women. The central joke appears to be the absurdity of these men's romantic hypocrisy: they avoid commitment yet criticize women who similarly resist traditional marriage expectations. The skirt dance scene illustrates contemporary entertainment and social venues where such attitudes were performed and reinforced among male peers.