Life, 1916-10-12 · page 15 of 44
Life — October 12, 1916 — page 15: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This cartoon depicts the French Revolution, specifically the period of upheaval against Queen Marie Antoinette and her minister. The caption states: "The people begin to murmur at Queen Marie Antoinette and her Minister of Marine." The image shows aristocratic figures in period dress being confronted or threatened by common people, illustrated through the chaotic gathering and body language. The "murmuring" referenced suggests growing public discontent and revolutionary sentiment among the masses. The accompanying text on the page ("See the Man") discusses broader philosophical questions about social systems and civilization, appearing to comment on whether orderly systems or natural chaos better serve society—likely meant to relate conceptually to the revolutionary upheaval depicted in the cartoon below.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
a Oa) Advertisements You Have Never Seen BANG! There Goes | Another Se} ' FLABBY SKID ROTTEN RUBEER, CHEESECLOTH AND: A PLIM-FLAM GUARANTEE, Ys Poor As They Make Trem’ i | | 1 i | \ See the Man O and behold the man. The man is very, very busy. What is the man doing? The man is earnestly intent upon skinning his neighbor. Why does the man wish to skin his neighbor? Because that is the eminently proper thing to do in the highly civilized age in which he finds himself. Is it not dishonorable to skin one’s neighbor? Oh, no; quite the contrary. In the twenty-third verse of the nineteenth chapter of the gospel according to St. Fiscal, it says: Blessed is he that skinneth his neighbor for he shall wax fat and prosperous and he shall be re- spected of men and the words that falleth from his lips shall be as pearls of wisdom. But how about the neighbor who is skinned? Does he not feel sorely ag- grieved? Oh, no. It is all in the day’s work for him. It merely makes it necessary for him to go forth and find a neigh- bor that he may likewise skin. Do you mean, then, that your civil- ization is based upon a skinning sys- tion is based upon a helter-skelter, hit-or-miss chaos that is Feaherhohf Music Box fi With Non-stop ~~ Records“ ad Ga Be Timown From Axy Waxpow without form or system. If there were system, there would be no skinning. Why don’t the people get together and change it into a more sane and or- derly arrangement? Because they are too busy skinning thei ighbors. — Ellis O. Jones. i ‘ler My Swany Or _ Fg PHYSICAL j/’ » TRAINING: 7 You Are-Anp Loox Ar ME | _ Now! HERCULES MEGILLICUDDY. No Danger Foxe FATHER: My son is taking algebra under you this term, is he not? Hicn Scnoot Teacner: He has heen exposed to algebra, but I doubt if he will take it. LA REVOLUTION REPUBLICAINE THE PEOPLE BEGIN TO MURMUR AT QUE RIE WILSONETTE AND HER MINISTER OF MA‘ . comicbooks.com