Life — February 13, 1913 — page 2: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Advertisement Analysis This is a **Wrigley's Spearmint gum advertisement**, not political satire. The ad uses humor to promote chewing gum by depicting two office workers—one trying to leave for lunch while his colleague physically restrains him. The joke plays on conflicting signals: the watch says it's too early for lunch, but appetite suggests otherwise. The ad claims gum serves a practical purpose: it suppresses hunger before lunch while also "brightens teeth and aids digestion, and purifies breath." This was typical early-20th-century advertising rhetoric, making health claims that would later be regulated. The bottom tagline, "The Flavor Lasts," emphasizes product durability—a selling point in an era when gum quality varied significantly.