Life, 1925-01-29 · page 5 of 37
Life — January 29, 1925 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This satirical piece mocks ordinary men for their gullibility and poor judgment. The text lists ten types of foolish behavior: wasting money on entertainment, voting naively, following fashion trends uncritically, holding idealistic beliefs about war, purchasing dubious products, marrying for wrong reasons, forming opinions from newspapers rather than thinking independently, taking compliments too seriously, making poor investments ("Sure Thing"), and relying on blind faith instead of reason. The central irony: these ten men ridicule "the poor boob" counting on his fingers—yet each exemplifies some form of stupidity themselves. The satirical message criticizes mass gullibility across social classes, suggesting Americans routinely make foolish decisions while judging others. The whimsical border decorations emphasize the piece's satirical, sardonic tone toward common human folly.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The Poor Boob ‘EN men stood in the market-place and cried: “The poor boob!” at a simple soul who sat counting his fingers. Of these ten men— One had the night before paid eleven dollars for a seat at a musical revue. One had voted at the last election under the impression that he was participating in a repre- sentative government. One wore a terrible-looking derby because the man in the hat-store told him they were being worn this year. One believed that the last war was fought for Democracy and that the next will be fought for our national honor. One had in his pocket a quart of “genuine pre- war stuff” at twelve dollars a quart. One had married at the age of twenty, having heard that two can live as cheaply as one. One formed his opinions from the editorials in his newspaper. One was still aglow with pride at having been told by a woman that he had lovely eyes. One had recently invested his savings in a Sure Thing. And one was placid in the faith that everything will come out all right if you just trust in Providence. These ten men stood in the market-place and cried: “The poor boob!” at a simple soul who was only counting his fingers. comicbooks.com