Life, 1915-08-19 · page 21 of 48
Life — August 19, 1915 — page 21: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This Life magazine page addresses German-American identity during World War I. The cartoon depicts a grotesque crowned figure (representing German "Kultur"—culture/militarism) dominating smaller figures beneath it, symbolizing Germany's aggressive cultural and military expansion. The accompanying text argues that German immigrants and "hyphenated Americans" (those with divided loyalties) pose a challenge to American unity. The author contends that German Kultur "defies and despises" other civilizations and threatens American cohesion. The satirical point critiques German-Americans and those sympathetic to Germany for simultaneously opposing American military preparation while supporting efficient militarism—exposing what the author sees as their pro-German bias. The cartoon suggests German imperial ambitions threaten American values of individual liberty. This reflects WWI-era anxiety about loyalty and assimilation among immigrant populations.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“ SPEAKING OF CROWNS —— gestion was offered that if our im- migration laws were not improved so as to make our population more select and commendable, the tide of immi- gration would turn, and what Germans we have would begin to stream back to the old country. Probably not. There will be lean pickings in the Fatherland for long after the war and little attraction to g Gory immigration. Moreover, we have had small accessions from Germany of late years, and our original Germans who came here for political reasons seemed to like this country, and their descendants doubtless like it and will stick to it. Nevertheless, the Great War has brought out as it never was brought out before the fact that it is hard to be so many kinds of people 325 as we are at once. It is not impos- sible, but there are difficulties about it. As long as we could go along without any deeper internal rivalries than the eternal competition for a liv- ing the difficulties did not become Prominent, but since the German Kultur has transpired as something that defies and despises all the rest of civilization and practices to subdue and change it as devotees practice for the triumph of their creed , the difficulties have become easily visible. The cure for them would naturally be to devise and develop an American Aaron’s-rod Kultur that would swal- low all the others. Something has been done in that line. We have the public schools, albeit they are nibbled at all the time by adherents of various ideals that the public schools cannot teach, But not enough is done. Somehow it must be accomplished far more thor- oughly than is done yet, that when the question is put, “ Who is Who in the United States the answer, both prompt and definite, will be, “ The Americans!" HIS defining and crystallizing of nationalities seems to be one of the great results that is to be forced onto the world by the onset of the German Kultur, and how it is to be effected without the subversion of in- dividual liberty as we have known it is a great problem. One detail of the problem in this country is the provision of military and naval forces sufficient for our protection and to give a proper emphasis to our sentiments. It is a curious thing that the pro-Germans as a rule are able to combine opposition to a reasonable American prov this sort with hearty sympathy with the most efficient military nation in the world, The hyphenated Americans know that American activity in military Preparation just now would be unfa- vorable to Germany's pretensions. Con- sequently they oppose even the most moderate measures. n of comicbooks.com