Life, 1918-08-15 · page 23 of 36
Life — August 15, 1918 — page 23: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This satirical page mocks German military practices during World War I. The cartoons present ostensibly instructional diagrams for army technique while exposing alleged German brutality: - **"Kamerad" scene**: German soldiers torturing prisoners for information - **Bayonet instruction**: Darkly jokes that bayonets shouldn't be used on high-ranking Prussian officers (implying they *are* used on lower ranks) - **Torture caption**: Straightforwardly states prisoners reveal information under torture - **Casualty handling**: Instructions to retrieve wounded soldiers - **Marching formations**: Standard military technique The page weaponizes wartime propaganda stereotypes of "Prussian militarism" and German atrocities. By framing brutality as official military doctrine rather than aberration, Life presents German military culture itself as inherently barbaric—a common Allied propaganda technique during WWI designed to justify American involvement and demonize the enemy.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
IN SNIPING, THE MAIN THING IS TO SECURE AN ADVANTAGEOUS POSITION KAMERAD! KAMERAD! \ AN ERROR — THE BAYONET SHOULD NOT BE USED ON PRUSSIAN OFFICERS AGOVE THE GRADE OF COLONEL PRISONERS WHEN SUBJECTED TO TORTURE WILL OFTEN REVEAL IMPORTANT INFORMATION CROSS-SECTION OF TEMPORARY BREASTWORK THROWN UP IN THE OPEN IF WOUNDED, TAKE FOUR PRISONERS AND RETURN TU REAR THE ROUTE -STEP FOR DIFFICULT MARCHING SOME FINE POINTS OF ARMY TECHNIQUE