Life — December 7, 1922 — page 39: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is a political cartoon depicting the fate of a religious or social reformer who opposed the "Wassail Bowl" tradition. The image shows a medieval or ancient setting with a figure drowning in a large bowl while crowds gather on surrounding structures above, apparently celebrating or witnessing the event. The satire appears to target resistance to established customs. The caption suggests that opposing traditional practices—in this case, wassailing (a festive drinking tradition)—results in severe consequences, even death. The cartoon likely mocks either rigid traditionalists who punish reformers, or alternatively, critiques reformers as naive for challenging deeply-rooted social customs. Without additional context about the magazine's date and stance, the exact target of satire remains somewhat unclear, but the fundamental joke concerns the danger of opposing entrenched traditions.