Life — February 14, 1924 — page 23: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page features "Skippy," a popular early 20th-century comic strip about a mischievous young boy. The humor centers on Skippy's attempts to avoid chores—specifically sweeping—by negotiating with an adult (Mrs. Bilkens, likely his mother or caretaker). The strip's joke sequence shows Skippy's escalating excuses and manipulation: he tries to redirect blame to Mrs. Sickens' path, proposes it as "good exercise," claims the vacuum cleaner would work better, negotiates payment, and ultimately refuses with "Then you'll get no work outa me." The satire reflects period attitudes about childhood labor expectations and the battle of wills between children and adults over household responsibilities. Skippy represents the clever, defiant child winning through negotiation rather than obedience.