Life — May 20, 1909 — page 2: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis This is a **Coca-Cola advertisement**, not satirical content. The page shows a man at a soda fountain operating a Coca-Cola dispenser beneath an arrow sign. The ad's central message uses arrows as a marketing device: "Whenever you see an Arrow, Think of Coca-Cola." The copy claims that arrows should redirect people to Coca-Cola fountains, establishing the brand as synonymous with refreshment. The advertisement lists practical benefits (cooling when hot, relieving fatigue, quenching thirst) and emphasizes taste ("delicious"), positioning Coca-Cola as an essential everyday beverage available "5c Everywhere." This represents early 20th-century brand-building through pervasive marketing symbolism—attempting to make the arrow an involuntary mental trigger for the product.