The Wasp — 1893 — page 282: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This cartoon depicts two figures meeting on what appears to be a beach or boardwalk. The woman, wearing fashionable 1890s attire with a large hat, confronts a man from behind. The caption presents a social dilemma about introductions and propriety. The woman's complaint—that the man spoke to her without a proper introduction—reflects Victorian-era social conventions regarding formal etiquette. Her counter-argument exposes the logical paradox: how can one be properly introduced if the other person won't speak? The satire likely critiques the rigid social rules governing interaction between unmarried men and women in the 1890s, highlighting how such strict conventions created awkward, contradictory situations. The "problem in ethics" is the impossibility of following all the rules simultaneously.