Life — October 24, 1918 — page 11: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "A Place in the Shadow" — Political Satire on WWI Pacifism The cartoon depicts soldiers and flags along a trench line, with shadows below suggesting death or darkness. The accompanying article by Lowell attacks pacifism during World War I, using the term "Pacifage" (a neologism blending "peace" and "façade"). Lowell argues pacifism is false morality—a cloak for war profiteering. He mocks pacifists as naive, citing examples like Wilhelm II claiming innocence and Austria-Hungary seeking peace conferences while continuing aggression. The street newsboy anecdote at page's bottom reinforces this: a man tries avoiding war news by closing his ears, yet cannot escape reality. The satire targets American pacifists and neutrality advocates who, Lowell suggests, enable war through inaction and hypocrisy—a common pro-intervention argument during the WWI era.