Since properly brought up young ladies and gentlemen learned to dance before they were old enough to be out socially, one assumes this piece satirizes the rising middle class and their pretensions. Notice that “taught to dance” is italicized and followed by exclamation points. The people to the left appear to be learning posture tortuously as well.

Published by Wallis & Son, artist unknown. From the British Cartoon Collection of the Library of Congress via Wikimedia Commons.