Life — October 21, 1915 — page 11: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page from *Life* magazine (page 739) presents a satirical illustration with a moral lesson. The sketch depicts a solitary figure in tattered clothing standing in a cave entrance, beneath a sign reading "HOPE ABANDONED" (likely referencing Dante's "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here"). The cave walls are labeled with various human vices and failures: "DESPAIR," "MISFORTUNE," "BARBARIANISM," "IGNORANCE," "ATROCITIES," and "CRUELTY" among others—representing moral and social evils. The accompanying Longfellow quote advocates for inspiring lives that leave positive "footprints on the sands of time," contrasting sharply with the hopelessness depicted. The cartoon satirizes humanity's tendency toward vice while advocating for moral aspiration and legacy-building through virtuous living.