Life — March 8, 1917 — page 4: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis This page is primarily an editorial announcement rather than a cartoon. The illustration shows a well-dressed man in a top hat labeled "M.D." (Medical Doctor), tipping his hat in greeting. The text announces an upcoming "Family Physician's Number" of *Life* magazine, which the editors acknowledge will be "the dullest number ever issued." The satire targets doctors: the piece suggests that while doctors deserve criticism for greed and poor ethics, some physicians genuinely try to help patients efficiently. The editors paradoxically warn potential subscribers *not* to subscribe yet, promising to announce when future issues contain worthwhile content worth paying for. The joke is self-deprecating—*Life* admits it will publish something boring, but frames it as necessary social commentary on the medical profession's failings and occasional virtues.