Life — September 16, 1926 — page 2: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis This page is **primarily an advertisement**, not satire or political commentary. It's a vintage Sheaffer pen ad from the W.A. Sheaffer Pen Company (Fort Madison, Iowa). The ad uses a classical Greek vase as its central image—a deliberate comparison suggesting the Lifetime pen is as timeless and durable as ancient artifacts. Pens are arranged like flowers in the vase, emphasizing the product's aesthetic appeal. The headline "How long will a Lifetime pen last?" poses an unanswerable question, then answers it by claiming a lifetime guarantee. The ad emphasizes the pen's "iridium point" and "Radite" material as practically indestructible. Pricing and availability information appears at bottom. This represents typical early-to-mid 20th-century advertising rhetoric—comparing consumer goods to classical civilization to suggest permanence and quality.