Life — April 14, 1927 — page 8: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "Take That!" — Social Commentary on Class and Appearance The top cartoon depicts a woman in a revealing dress confronting a formal gentleman. Her caption reads: "She: SIR, I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT I'M A LADY! / He: MY WORD! I NEVER WOULD HAVE GUESSED IT FROM THE HABIT OF JUDGING BY APPEARANCES." **The satire:** This joke mocks both parties—the woman's provocative clothing contradicts her claim to respectability, while the man's assumption that appearance determines status reflects period class anxieties. It satirizes how both men and women judged each other by superficial presentation rather than actual character, a common theme in 1920s Life magazine humor about modern social pretensions and the changing roles of women in post-WWI America.