Life — July 20, 1916 — page 11: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "Life" Magazine Page: "The Egotist" This page satirizes self-centered materialism through a poem by Charlotte Becker titled "The Egotist." The illustration shows a well-dressed man relaxing by a rural stream while his horse waits nearby, captioned "Living Beyond His Income." The satire targets wealthy individuals who maintain expensive lifestyles despite financial limitations. The poem expresses the speaker's desire to escape mortality through sensory pleasures—rain, warmth, marble—suggesting how the egotist seeks comfort and immortality through material indulgence rather than meaningful living. The juxtaposition of the leisured gentleman with the caption "Living Beyond His Income" directly mocks this contradiction: appearing prosperous while financially unsustainable. This reflects early 20th-century American concerns about conspicuous consumption and economic excess among the upper classes.