You know, if my extensive education in feminism and gender issues has taught me anything, it’s that women of all walks of life have one thing in common: fainting at the slightest provocation. Amirite, ladies?
Of course, it’s not unheard of for a gentleman to indulge in a swoon, too – and who’s to judge? As long as he doesn’t make a habit of it, of course.
Shock and awe in Brussels, from Charles O’Malley, the Irish Dragoon The illustrator of Ethelinde, or, the Fatal Vow horrifying clown emerging from a coffin . A senseless lady, from Guy Rayner’s My Lady’s Novelettes (1871) Guy Rayner also features a senseless man! Or… maybe he’s just dead.Ugh, it’s going to be a pain to get her back over these rocks now that she’s out cold. (Jack Hinton But wouldn’t it be more exciting if you waited until the train was about to run her over before you rescued her? (Illustrated Penny Tales This southern lady, as depicted in the no doubt very impartial and unbiased La Vie Americaine I can’t help but think that corsetry might have something to do with all this fainting. (Moreton; or the Doomed House I can’t go any further… You go on ahead. And carry me with you! (Tales of the Castle Guard And to finish: a ponderous swoon from Mark Twain’s A Tramp Abroad , 1880.
The Sea of Books 