The Wasp — September 6, 1879 — page 8: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis of "The Royal Hottentots" This is a theatrical burlesque script and illustrations satirizing Victorian attitudes toward colonialism and race. The play mocks British imperial pretensions by depicting African characters ("Black Hottentots" and "White Hottentots") in absurd situations involving a slave ship and colonial hierarchy. The left illustration shows a figure labeled "King and Chancellor" in exaggerated caricature style typical of 19th-century racist imagery. The right illustration depicts a chaotic court scene with multiple characters. The satire appears to ridicule both the colonizers' pomposity and their casual brutality toward colonized peoples, though the execution relies heavily on dehumanizing racial caricatures standard to the era. The "burlesque" format suggests mock-heroic treatment of imperial ventures. This reflects Victorian-era entertainment that was simultaneously critical of colonialism while employing deeply offensive stereotypes.