Life, 1916-12-07 · page 42 of 94
Life — December 7, 1916 — page 42: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two satirical pieces about contemporary American society. **"Dad's Holiday Mood"** (top right) mocks the commercialization of Christmas and consumer excess. The poem describes a father indulging in holiday shopping—racing cars, furs, rubies, sedans, and toys—while making "tips and calls for cash," ending with dark irony about "riding to a smash" (financial ruin). It critiques how fathers feel pressured to spend lavishly during the holidays. **"Preparedness"** (bottom) shows a woman instructing a dog named Hector not to bark at Santa Claus. The humor lies in treating the dog as a rational actor who needs reminding of social niceties—a gentle satire on household dynamics and discipline. The page's title dialogue mocks social mobility: someone claims modern society produces parasites in one generation instead of taking three generations to make a gentleman—suggesting rapid moral decline among the newly wealthy or socially climbing classes. All three pieces reflect early-20th-century anxieties about commercialism, social status, and changing American values.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Christmas Life Dad's Holiday Mood RiAcixe car for Junior; + Furs for daughter Nan; Mamma hints at rubies Or a new Sedan; ‘ Half a ton of playthings; Tips, and calls for cash— T Bless me! This is pleasant, Riding to a smash! DECEMBER 7. 1916 “* While there is Life there's Hope" NOt 88 “TT no longer takes three generations lished by to make a gentleman.” LIFE PUBLISHING COMPANY “Think so?” JA Merenett, Pres’t A Minter, See’y and Treas. “Yes. We are moving so much fast- 17 West Thirty-first Street. New York er. And it takes only one genera- English Offices, Rolls House, Breams Bldgs., London, E. C tion to produce a parasite.” | i ! PREPAREDNESS “NOW, HECTOR, REMEMBER SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO-NIGHT, SO DON’T YOU BARK AND SCARE HIM AWAY comicbooks.com