Life, 1915-01-07 · page 15 of 44
Life — January 7, 1915 — page 15: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**Top Cartoon:** A satirical scene titled "A 'Vie de Boheme' Audience" depicts fashionably dressed women at what appears to be a theatrical or social event. The caption jokes that "season gowns must accord with the music"—mocking the pretension of high society, where attendees obsess over coordinating their expensive clothing to the performance rather than genuinely engaging with art. **Bottom Cartoons:** Two contrasting scenes illustrate moral philosophy: "To Err Is Human" shows a man scolding another, while "To Forgive Canine" depicts a dog forgiving its master despite mistreatment. The juxtaposition suggests humans are hypocritical—quick to judge each other but readily forgive animals. **"Averted Disasters" Essay:** Commentary on American media's tendency to predict catastrophes that never materialize. The example cites the Literary Digest claiming the New York Cotton Exchange opening "relieved" the South of disaster. The author argues that despite dire predictions from publicists and authorities, America's resilience causes predicted crises to "silently steal away"—a satirical critique of sensationalism and false alarmism.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
~ A “VIE DE BOHEME” AUDIENCE (1o BE EN REGLE THIS SEASON COWNS MUST ACCORD WITH THE MUSIC) E all seem to have soft spots in our hearts for declarations of independence , W pots i arts for declarations of independence Averted Disasters of those who are already independent, but when it comes to those who are still dependent making such declarations, we find it more difficult, to be sure. ITH the opening of the New York Cotton Exchange, the Literary Digest tells us, “the South was re- lieved of the shadow of complete dis- aster, which has been hanging over it for many weeks”. Which reminds us that none of the “complete disasters” which our pub- licists so frequently threaten us with is ever staged as advertised, Every now and then they confront us with an acute crisis and prognosticate the most dire catastrophe unless we do a certain thing. Sometimes our worthy authorities do what is wanted; some- times they don’t; but whether they do or not, there is that enduring some- thing in our national warp and woof which causes the “complete disaster” to fold its tent like the Arabs and as TO ERR 1S HUMAN P TO FORGIVE CANINE silently steal away.