Life — June 9, 1921 — page 19: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is a satirical cartoon from *Life* magazine depicting a formal dinner scene with three elegant figures seated at a table laden with flowers and glassware. The caption reads "Can Get Along Without" followed by "A Man Who Doesn't Know How to Stop" (XVI suggests this is part of a series). The satire appears to target excessive talkers or bores at social gatherings—specifically men who dominate conversation and don't recognize social cues to cease speaking. The woman on the left appears skeptical or weary, while the central man in formal attire gestures while speaking. The cartoon satirizes a common social problem: someone who monopolizes dinner conversation without awareness of others' discomfort. This reflects early 20th-century etiquette concerns about social grace and dinner party comportment.