The Wasp — 1879 — page 131: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page continues a serialized article by Sarah Morse titled "Phases of History: Not Generally given in Detail." The text and accompanying illustrations depict various emotional and social scenes from everyday life—a contentious couple, laborers at rest, a woman at her toilette, figures in boats. The narrative describes human conflict and passion: romantic jealousy, workplace frustrations, maritime accidents. The satirical intent appears to be contrasting grand historical narratives with mundane domestic dramas and working-class struggles—suggesting that "real" history consists of ordinary people's petty grievances and misfortunes rather than heroic events. The illustrations humorously dramatize these commonplace human predicaments as worthy of historical documentation.