The Wasp — July 24, 1880 — page 2: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis of "The Illustrated Wasp" (July 24, 1880) This satirical illustration depicts a mechanical device or robot—labeled "MONOLITH"—operating various tools while riding a donkey. The robot has clock faces for eyes and an industrial appearance. Below the image, the caption asks "CAN HE DO IT?" The cartoon appears to be commentary on mechanization and automation in the industrial era. The robot's construction from pipes and industrial materials, combined with its command of multiple tools, likely satirizes anxieties about machinery replacing human labor. The donkey beneath suggests tension between old (animal-powered) and new (mechanical) technologies. Without additional context from the magazine's text or contemporary events, the specific reference remains unclear, though it clearly engages 1880s debates about technological progress and labor displacement.