Life, 1920-01-01 · page 18 of 48
Life — January 1, 1920 — page 18: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This Life magazine page satirizes post-WWI anxieties about 1920's future. The top illustration shows baby 1920 surrounded by allegorical figures representing War, Peace, Greed, Demos (Democracy), and Hunger—debating who will "kidnap" the newborn year. The satire suggests uncertainty about whether 1920 will bring religious salvation (Moses), democratic progress (Demos), or militarism (Mars). The lower cartoon depicts a social gathering where someone asks "What is Miss Pringle like?"—receiving the arch response that if you saw her with another girl simultaneously, you'd recognize her as "the other one." This mocks superficial social judgments and conformity among socialites. Together, the page expresses 1920s anxieties: political instability and class-based social superficiality.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
1920: Moses, Demos or Mars? rs the baby 1920 lay urious and at them all quietly with the eyes of the Vhat’s the price of milk?” it asked suddenly as it started to play with its toes “WHAT IS MISS PRINGLE LIKE?” WELL, IF YOU SHOULD MEET ANY GIRL AND HER ON THE STREET TOGETHER SIE WOULD BY THE OTHER ONE.” comicbooks.com