Life — January 25, 1923 — page 25: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This two-panel cartoon satirizes French automotive traffic and manners. The caption reads "La politesse! Toujours la politesse!" ("Politeness! Always politeness!"), suggesting irony about French civility. Both panels depict busy urban streets crowded with early automobiles and pedestrians. The top panel shows a formal gentleman in a long coat and hat encountering traffic. The bottom panel depicts a more chaotic scene with multiple cars and pedestrians interacting. The joke appears to mock the contradiction between the French reputation for politeness and the actual aggressive behavior displayed in crowded urban traffic situations—drivers and pedestrians jostling despite social pretenses of civility. The detailed crosshatching style is typical of Life magazine's satirical illustrations from the early 20th century.