Life, 1899-07-20 · page 1 of 20
Life — July 20, 1899 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis of Life Magazine, July 20, 1899 This page satirizes wealth and marriage among the wealthy. The cartoon depicts a dinner conversation where a man (likely named George) is being asked if he'd care to be rich. His response indicates wealth requires managing "too many things"—suggesting the complications of maintaining a fortune. The punchline argues that two million dollars is sufficient for comfortable living, but more creates burdensome obligations and prevents marriage. The satire targets late-19th-century anxieties about wealth accumulation: the idea that excessive riches paradoxically complicate life rather than simplify it. The ornate decorative borders and period clothing reflect 1899 aesthetic conventions. The cartoon mocks the upper class's rationalization of limited wealth as somehow preferable to abundance.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
VOLUME XXXIV. NEW YORK, JULY 20, 1899. NUMBER &69. Entered at the New York Post OMice as Second-Class Mall Matter. Copyright, 1899, by LIF PCBLISUING COMPANY. “WOLD YOU CARE TO BE RICH, GEORGET” “WHAT, REALLY RICH ?”* “OM, FAIRLY RICH; SAY TEN MILLIONS.’ “L THINK NOT. THERE LD BR TOO MANY THINGS ONR COULD DO, AND BETWEEN THE BOTHER OF DOING TURM AXD THR REMORSE OF NEGLECTING THEM IT WOULD BE A HAKD LIFE, NO ONE NERDS MORK THAN TWO MILLIONS, UNLESS IR WANTS TO MARRY." r oii comicbooks.com