Life — October 2, 1919 — page 12: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "Bolshevism and the Laurel" - Life Magazine Satire This page satirizes the debate over whether Robert Bridges, Britain's Poet Laureate, should have been appointed. The article criticizes those disappointed by his selection, arguing that England "wants a peace ode" and that Bridges is suitable despite lacking newspaper training. The cartoon mocks the outcry by depicting poets casting love letters on water, hoping they return "after many months"—suggesting laureate aspirants' hopes are equally futile and sentimental. The larger cartoon shows figures indoors, apparently representing the complaint that Bridges hasn't produced patriotic verse during wartime. The satire defends his quiet dignity against demands for immediate propagandistic poetry, positioning literary merit against populist expectations for a poet laureate.