Life, 1915-02-11 · page 13 of 44
Life — February 11, 1915 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This satirical illustration depicts a nightmarish hallucination scene. The caption quotes a folk expression about waking in darkness and seeing disturbing visions—"things standin' in a row, a lookin' at me cross-eyed, and pinin' at me so." The engraving shows a person in bed on the left, while grotesque figures populate a fantastical landscape to the right, including what appears to be a castle or church structure. The densely-packed, distorted creatures embody the surreal quality of nightmares or alcohol-induced hallucinations. The satire likely mocks either superstition, paranoia, or possibly the effects of excessive drinking—common subjects for *Life* magazine's humor. The medieval/gothic aesthetic suggests fear of the unknown or supernatural anxieties, rendered through exaggerated visual chaos.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
SEEIN’ THINGS AT NIGHT “T Woke Up in the Dark and Saw Things Standin’ in a Row, A Lookin’ at Me Cross-eyed, and Pintin’ at Me So.” Comichooks (feyu)