Life, 1889-02-28 · page 1 of 22
Life — February 28, 1889 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "Two Heroic Souls" - Life Magazine, February 28, 1889 This satirical illustration depicts a conversation between two men discussing love and poverty. The caption quotes a woman telling a man named George that she loves him despite his financial struggles—that his poverty doesn't diminish her affection. The cartoon's title, "Two Heroic Souls," uses irony to mock what appears to be melodramatic Victorian sentimentality about romance transcending class. The elaborate decorative header with cherubs and classical imagery reinforces this mockery of romantic idealization. The satire targets the gap between sentimental declarations of love and harsh economic reality. The "heroic" framing sarcastically elevates what is essentially a couple's financial struggle into noble romance—poking fun at both the romanticism and the precarious circumstances working-class or lower-middle-class couples faced in 1880s America.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
turned travel son of at his depot, embled atform lemon- crowd. lepot.” | sayed NEW YORK, FEBRUARY 28, 1889. Entered at the New York Post Office as Second-Class Mail Matter. Copyright, 188, by Mircnet:. & Miter. ‘TWO HEROIC SOULS. “DeaR GeorcE, I DEEM IT ONLY JUST To TELL you THAT I AM NOT THE RICH GIRL THE WORLD THINKS ME. MY FATHER'S INCOME IS SMALLER THAN IT HAS BEEN, AND MY OWN PRIVATE FORTUNE, FROM MY LOSSES ON THE TURF, YIELDS LESS HAN THIRTY THOUSAND A YEAR,” “LULU, DEAR, DO YOU THINK ME A PORTUNE-HUNTER THAT FILTHY LUCRE INFLUENCES MY LOVE FoR you? Never! I\LOVE YOU ALLAPHE MORE FoR YOUR PovERTy,”