Life — September 6, 1917 — page 21: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This satirical page mocks how wealthy Americans lived during wartime (likely WWI era). The vignettes show: 1. **"Miss Dolly Devoid is driving her own car"** — A woman driving herself, implying wealthy people had to adapt to labor shortages by doing their own work. 2. **"Mrs. Truxt Paige was seen washing her own windows"** — Another wealthy woman performing domestic labor herself. 3. Additional scenes showing affluent individuals in unusual domestic situations. The satire's point: During wartime, servants and household staff were unavailable (enlisted or working in war industries), forcing the wealthy to perform menial tasks they'd previously avoided. The cartoon ridicules this as a humorous reversal of class privilege—wealthy people experiencing ordinary life for perhaps the first time.