Life — April 6, 1916 — page 18: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is a satirical illustration imagining what household servants would say about their employers "if the servants were to tell them what they really think of them." The image shows what appears to be wealthy, well-dressed figures (likely representing the upper class) while servants or working people observe them. The satire critiques the class divide and suggests servants harbor critical, unflattering opinions of their employers that social convention prevents them from expressing. This reflects early 20th-century social commentary on class hierarchies, worker discontent, and the gap between public propriety and private sentiment. The humor comes from the implicit contrast between deferential servant behavior and their actual hidden judgments—a common satirical theme in *Life* magazine's social criticism.