Life, 1916-10-05 · page 42 of 42
Life — October 5, 1916 — page 42: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is an advertisement for the Rauch & Lang Electric automobile, presented as a satirical commentary on consumer culture rather than straightforward promotion. **The Image:** A luxury electric car is positioned beneath an ornate street lamp, with ivy trailing down. The composition sarcastically elevates the automobile to the status of fine art or urban monument. **The Satire:** The headline "Utility" and tagline "The Social Necessity" mock wealthy consumers' self-justifying language. By calling a luxury vehicle a "necessity" and claiming it satisfies "every desire," the ad gently ridicules how the affluent rationalize extravagant purchases as practical needs. **Historical Context:** This 1916 advertisement targets upper-class buyers during the early automobile era. Electric cars were expensive, fashionable alternatives to gasoline vehicles, particularly popular among wealthy urbanites. **The Joke:** Life magazine's satirical voice is evident in treating a status symbol as simultaneously essential and absurdly luxurious—highlighting the contradiction between "utility" and unabashed wealth display.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
October 5, 1916 Life knows no greater charm than lux- urious utility—available on the instant and under all conditions. Every con- ception achieved in the’ Rauch & Lang, Electric makes it also “The Social Necessity.” It is undeniably first in the thought of people of taste, judgment and means to satisfy every desire. Representatives in All Large Cities Rap eg “The Social Necessity” THE BAKER R & LCO., CLEVELAND, O.