The Wasp — 1893 — page 355: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page features a dramatic illustration with dialogue in quotation marks beneath it, presenting what appears to be a theatrical or literary tragedy. The image shows a man gesturing upward in despair while a woman in a long dress stands nearby. The text below—labeled "A MODERN HORROR" and credited as an extract from a fifteen-act tragedy—depicts a melodramatic domestic scene involving characters named Angelina and Enrique. The dialogue suggests jealousy, infidelity, and emotional anguish ("If you don't accept me, Angelina, I swear I'll prove that you've been unfaithful"). The satire likely mocks overwrought theatrical conventions of the era, exaggerating Victorian melodrama's emotional excess. The "modern horror" appears to be satirizing contemporary stage tragedies that prioritize emotional histrionics over realistic storytelling—a critique of popular dramatic entertainment.