Life, 1910-09-01 · page 42 of 48
Life — September 1, 1910 — page 42: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This cartoon satirizes class pretension and social mobility. Two men—one shabby and carrying papers (suggesting a newspaper vendor), the other well-dressed and top-hatted—have a brief exchange. The working-class man mentions he once sold papers himself, attempting camaraderie. The gentleman dismisses him, claiming he was "born a gentleman," implying innate superiority that transcends experience. The satire targets the wealthy man's snobbery: his claim to be "born" a gentleman contradicts the working man's actual labor and humble origins. The joke suggests that true character comes from work and experience, not birthright—a common Progressive-era critique of aristocratic pretension. The title "Life's Handicap" implies the working man faces obstacles the privileged ignore, despite their supposed shared humanity.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
A perfect complexion 1s to all who use this soap, Its 7A transparency 18 a sign o} ity. fp FERD. MULHENS, Cologne o/R, Germany MULMESS Send 15 Lents J. A. Mitchell F LAST AMERICAN, AMOS “JUDE pte, Ete, One Dollar, Net, “All the Muscles of the Clinging Hody Kelaed Not to become acquainted with Steve Wadsworth and follow him through the strange vicissitudes of his remarkable career is to miss intercourse with a human being of a kind rarely found between the covers of a book. — Baltimore American. LIFE PUBLISHING COMPANY, 17 West 31st Street, New York Beiihen Gentlemens Purnishing Garments for the Motorist, Riding and Shooting Outfits, Imported Mackintoshes, Heavy and Light. Send for Illustrated Catalogue BROADWAY, Cor. TWENTY-SECOND ST., NEW YORK Newport Branch, 262 Bellevue Avenue, after June 10th. E PINES ‘OF LORY, LIFE’S HANDICAP “You KNOW 1 SOLD PAPERS MYSELF ONCE.”” : “AM, THAT'S 17, MISTER, J WAS BORN A GENTLEMAN: