The Wasp — 1878 — page 313: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This two-panel satirical cartoon depicts apartment living complaints. The upper panel shows a tenant on the fifth floor attempting to kill a wasp with a long pole while others watch in a bedroom. The lower panel shows two tenants—one on the fifth floor and one on the sixth floor—arguing about noise: the lower tenant demands the upper tenant "stop that infernal baby cart," while the upper tenant counters to "stop that diabolical Music." The satire mocks the close quarters and noise disputes inherent to multi-story apartment living, where residents' activities constantly disturb neighbors above and below. The humor lies in the irony that both tenants are simultaneously bothering each other, with neither able to enjoy peace. The "French flat" setting suggests this was commentary on emerging urban apartment culture, likely unfamiliar or novel to American readers at the time.