Life, 1901-04-11 · page 1 of 22
Life — April 11, 1901 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Life Magazine, April 11, 1901 This page features a satirical cartoon titled "The Doctor" with accompanying dialogue: "In your wife's present condition, sir, she must have no sudden shock. Then I'd better come home at three o'clock to-morrow morning as usual." The joke satirizes infidelity and marital discord. A doctor advises a husband that his wife needs calm and no shocks during her illness. The husband's response—that he'll continue his habit of arriving home at 3 AM (implying he's been out carousing or with another woman)—reveals his obliviousness or callousness to her condition. The humor targets the husband's selfishness and the era's presumed acceptance of such marital indiscretions among certain men. The ornate border and decorative header are typical of Life's design aesthetic.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
VOLUME XXXVIIL. vr ah hiCANy Sum Sen a NEW YORK, APRIL 11, 1901. = Entered at the New York Post Oftice as Second Class Maff Matteg..0 Copyright, 1900, by Lirx PUBLISHING ComPaxY, The Doctor: 1% YOUR WIFE's PRESENT CONDITION, SI, SUE MUST HAVE NO SUDDEN SHOCK, “THEN I'D BETTER COME HOME AT THREE O'CLOCK TO-MORROW MORNING a8 USUAL.” NUMBER 962,