Someone found the 18th-century version of the distracted boyfriend meme

The distracted boyfriend meme — that image in which a man checks out one woman while holding hands with another — gained popularity last summer, used to explain moral dilemmas like choosing between dealing with responsibilities or taking a nap. (The answer is always take a nap.)

The original image is just one piece of a multi-part stock photo series about love, infidelity, and the breakdown of a toxic relationship. And, upon further investigation, it seems this format (like the behavior itself?) has been around for at least a few centuries. 

More about Twitter, Memes, Culture, and Web Culture