Life — May 3, 1923 — page 10: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "Times Change" - Life Magazine Satire This two-act comic drama contrasts Egyptian and American domestic life across millennia. In **Act 1** (set in ancient Egypt), a husband complains about repair delays—the water wheel broke and the feed pipe clogged. His wife sarcastically suggests buying a new boiler. **Act 2** (modern American suburb) mirrors this: the wife now complains about similar household mechanical failures, and the husband suggests purchasing new equipment. The satire's point: despite thousands of years of civilization and technological progress, married couples still have identical domestic arguments about household maintenance and expenses. The "times change" but human nature—and marital friction—remain constant. This reflects Life's characteristic social humor about middle-class domesticity.