AC Electrical Circuit Analysis: Series RLC Simulation 

It might be used to create a delay, for example, the rising voltage across it could energize a relay that connects a power amp to a loudspeaker. This way, the loudspeaker doesn't produce a "thump" when the amp is turned on.

Not if you do it correctly. In AC circuits, a common beginner's error is to ignore the phase angles. In such a case, you can come up with different (incorrect) values. Consider it this way: ultimately, the voltage divider rule is just a convenient form of Ohm's law. To keep it simple, consider two resistors, R1 and R2, in series with source E. The "long way" using Ohm's law is to find the current (I=E/Rtotal), and then multiply that result by the resistor of interest (e.g., VR1=I*R1). If you substitute the original expression for I in that second equation, you get VR1 = (E/Rtotal)*R1, which can rewritten as VR1 = E*(R1/Rtotal) (voltage divider rule).