Life, 1921-10-06 · page 14 of 33
Life — October 6, 1921 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This cartoon illustrates the article's thesis about public courtship. The sketch shows a woman in a large hat surrounded by other women and men, with one man kneeling—a theatrical marriage proposal happening openly in public view, with an audience watching. The accompanying text argues that modern marriages lack privacy because society constantly monitors romantic relationships. The author suggests this public scrutiny—via telephone gossip, servants, decorators, and government inspectors—makes genuine courtship impossible. The satire critiques early 20th-century social conditions where no private space exists for couples. The article proposes that only open diplomacy (rather than secret negotiations) can remedy this surveillance culture, since "there are no more places for lovers to hide."
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Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“It’s going to be deadly here after Monday. All the men will have gone back to boarding school.” Marriages Openly Arrived At LL joking aside, can it be Trorrnon A possible that the reason why there are so many divorces and other matrimonial difficulties is that nobody has an opportunity ow ete any more to get acquainted with the person he marries? In all substantial affairs, there must be opportunity for some sort of understanding. Even if two people love each other so ardently that the probability is they will not get on together —for there is much to be said for this point of view—is it not true that a few hours together and alone beforehand may pave the way to a permanent affair? As the case stands at present, there is not the slightest chance of this sort of thing. We carry on our love-making, if not in the midst of crowds, at least with one hand on the telephone, or while some total stranger is going through our clothes. Nobody would ever fall in love with anybody now, if it were not for the language of the eyes; fortunately, that is something that cannot be broken up. There are no more places for lovers to hide; lovers’ lane is lined with flivvers; in back parlors government inspectors, creditors or interior decorators jostle one another. If you propose over the phone, a whole bevy of people are listening in. There is no privacy in taxicabs or runabouts, and if you put even one arm around the girl you are liable to arrest, such cases having recently been brought into court (in Connecticut). There is no chance for either of the interested parties to show how foolish he, or she, can be- come. Even at the movies they prohibit talking. On the other hand, it is a well-known fact that all of our international troubles have come from secret diplo- macy. Attempts have been made by tyros to cure this con- dition, but up to the present time none has succeeded. Diplomacy continues to work in secret; the closed commit- tee is the incubator of future warfare. In view of these two great facts, the remedy is easy. The world will come to its senses only when our halls of diplomacy are filled with lovers’ booths, and our diplomats are compelled to negotiate in the same public manner in which people are now forced to make love. Let the good work proceed ; there is no time to lose. comicbooks.com Dr