Life, 1886-02-04 · page 1 of 16
Life — February 4, 1886 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "A Sense of Decency" - Life Magazine, February 4, 1886 This cartoon satirizes class pretension and social hypocrisy. A wealthy woman (identified as "Miss Mamie") walks with her child and companion past what appears to be a poor or working-class neighborhood. The dialogue reveals the satire: **Miss Mamie** claims Mr. Parks' family is "awfully common" and asks "shall we bow?" **Mamma** responds they certainly won't—such people are beneath acknowledgment. **Little Edith** innocently observes she's "going to bow, Mamma, or else spread this umbrella"—suggesting she'll use the umbrella as protection, implying the poor are dirty or diseased. The joke mocks upper-class snobbery: the wealthy woman simultaneously judges others as "common" while displaying crude, indecent behavior through her child's blunt contempt. The irony critiques how the wealthy equate social status with actual morality or decency.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
On TT dm FS Ft 7 et VOLUME VII. ARICA NEW YORK, FEBRUARY 4, 1886. G NUMBER i162. Entered at New York Post Office as Second-Class Mall Matter. Copyright, 1686, by MITCHELL & MILLER. A SENSE OF DECENCY. Miss Mamie: HERE comes THAT MR. PARKS. HIS FAMILY ARE AWFULLY COMMON, SHALL WE BOW? Mamma: No, MY DEAR ; CERTAINLY NOT. Little Effie (new to the business): 1 aM GOUO TO BOW, MAMMA, OR ELSE SPREAD THIS UMBRELLA,