The Wasp — 1895 — page 773: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This satirical illustration depicts a well-dressed gentleman identified as "Mr. De Hoop" in conversation with a woman (Miss De Spudd). The dialogue references a social exclusion: De Spudd claims her family has never lived south of Market Street, implying that neighborhood is beneath their social standing. De Hoop's response—"they're not in our set"—reinforces this class-based snobbery. The ornate portrait on the wall behind them appears to be a family ancestor, emphasizing the characters' pretensions to aristocratic lineage. The satire mocks San Francisco's upper-class social hierarchies and geographic snobbery, where certain neighborhoods conveyed social status or disgrace. The cartoon ridicules how the wealthy used neighborhood geography and family pedigree as markers of exclusivity and worth.