Life, 1917-10-11 · page 24 of 40
Life — October 11, 1917 — page 24: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains WWI-era commentary on German leadership. The main text, "Is This the Beginning?", responds to a Kaiser report claiming he has no quarrel with American citizens, only with President Wilson's "autocracy." The author argues sarcastically that if Germans develop a sense of humor—something previously absent from their national character—they might eventually laugh at themselves. This self-awareness could lead to shame about their wartime atrocities ("murderer of women and children, violator of treaties"), potentially hastening their defeat. The satirical point: German militarism relies on humorlessness and pride. Humor and self-reflection are weapons against such regimes. The domestic cartoon above depicts a couple (Archibald and Henrietta) visiting a dressmaker. Archibald suggests opening a similar establishment himself, promising to be an industrious worker—likely satirizing either male incompetence at "women's work" or wealthy leisure-class pretensions to labor.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
ARCHIBALD ACCOMPANIES HIS W1 “YOU TRU MEUM LAZY, HENRIETTA, NOW, WILY NOT OPEN AN FSTARLISHMENT LIKE THIS, AND. LET ME DO THE FITTING? AND ULL RET THERE WON'T BE A MORE INDUSTRIOUS REGGAR ALIVE E TO THE DRE Is This the Beginning? HE (perplexed, binding a small cut in his hand): 1 wonder what a regular nurse would do in this case. He: (eagerly); Marry the patient, of course. HE report from the Kaiser that in reality he has no quarrel with the American people, but that all he seeks is to rid them from the autocracy of President Wilson, scems to indicate that, after all, the Germans may have a sense of humor. And if so, does this mean the beginning of the end? There can be no doubt that, with this sense of humor sui- ficiently developed (or at least encouraged), the Germans would not have the heart to continue. To he feared is much easier than to be laughed at. Heretofore no German has even smiled at any other nation, All, all have been objects of hate. But if the German does hegin to laugh at others, then the time may not he long delayed when he will begin to laugh at himself. When he e “Hal Me, murderer of women and children, violator of trea and disregarder of honor—vat a joke I am! Ifa!” why, then he may begin to feel secretly humiliated enough to hide his gory locks in shame. : “LE WONDER IF 1 HAD A MOTHER LIKE THAT” ms ' comicbooks Ea