The Wasp — 1896 — page 71: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This cartoon depicts a domestic dispute between a husband and wife. The caption indicates the woman complains her husband won't see her or spend time with her—he's always out. The man responds that he'll "smash every bone in your body for roasting him," threatening violence. The satire critiques domestic abuse and marital discord. The "choice of evils" presents two equally troubling scenarios: a neglectful, absent husband versus a violently abusive one. The woman's friend offers sympathetic advice that she "always seemed able to have the last word in every argument," suggesting women's limited power—even verbal resistance invites physical retaliation. This reflects period anxieties about marriage, gender conflict, and the normalization of domestic violence in late 19th/early 20th-century society.