Life — May 10, 1917 — page 2: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis This is primarily a **Fisk automobile advertisement** disguised as editorial content in *Life* magazine. The ad promotes "Fisk Red Tops" tires and Fisk's motor car service. The satire targets **women drivers** of the era. Two fashionably-dressed women are shown in early automobiles with prominent, eye-catching tires. The ad's text sarcastically suggests women drivers will naturally appreciate Fisk's service—implying women were unreliable drivers who would frequently need roadside assistance. The joke plays on 1910s-1920s gender anxieties: newly mobile women challenging traditional roles. By offering "free" service "no obligation," the ad patronizingly positions women drivers as incompetent, needing constant help. The stylish illustration masks the underlying sexism—the advertisement assumes female motorists couldn't manage their vehicles independently.