Life, 1919-06-05 · page 45 of 46
Life — June 5, 1919 — page 45: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is primarily a **Prudential Insurance advertisement**, not satire or political commentary. The page appears from a WWI-era *Life* magazine and uses patriotic messaging to sell insurance policies. The image shows a sailboat near Gibraltar with text overlay—likely emphasizing stability and strength ("Prudential has the strength of Gibraltar"). The ad makes dual pitches: **To soldiers/sailors**: Urges them to maintain their Government Life Insurance, framing it as a patriotic duty to their families back home who "have wept and prayed" for them. **To civilians**: Encourages life insurance as prudent preparation against future hardship—protecting widows and children from destitution. The appeal emphasizes foresight and moral responsibility. The rhetoric conflates insurance with patriotism and moral obligation rather than purely financial benefit. The "Monthly Income Policy" is presented as protection against life's uncertainties. This represents typical early-20th-century insurance marketing that wrapped commercial products in appeals to duty, family protection, and social stability.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
upon it y4 of practical c8s—upon t! ief and belp hours ate] reading dj raler can't not fy cut in A Prudential Policy is an Ally That Never Breaks Faith To All Soldiers and Sailors Whde you have been making sacrifices to protect the homes of our loved Ales actos the tess your Government has been making secribees to protect ebeccs al your I a here. It has farnuhed you life iauisance'on the mocthly income payment plan at a very low cost because it has be- bered you would understand your duty to be just as obvious to your home f your civilian (riends to thee... ‘The Government aow tells you, ice ih that this duty # jos ad much yours now aa when you active service. If you dcop this Government Life lasuranee you deprive those who have. wept and preyed for you of a need as great today a vshen you donned the Khaki of the blue. Don't do it. Hold fast to your Government Life Insurance. To All Civilians In today’s prosperity the wise man prepares for tomorrow's adversity. His is the wisdom of observatioa—his foresight anticipating the approach of age, the decline of his earning capacity, the curtailment of his resources. Beyond that, he pictures the possibility of his widow, his childien, his loved ones, struggling for very existence in a battle for which they are illy-fited, un- prepared. Strong today, he provides against the needy tomorow. He safeguards the future of those who may live after him. Not a big round sum in a single payment, but an assured amount on the first day of each and every month during the lifetime of those he protects with a MONTHLY INCOME, POLICY. For the provident there are no mischances. The Prudential Insurance Company of America Incorporated under the laws of the State of New Jersey FORREST F. DRYDEN, President HOME OFFICE, NEWARK, N. J. comicbooks.com