A complete issue · 44 pages · 1913
Life — September 11, 1913
# "The Call of the Wild" - Life Magazine, September 11, 1913 This illustration depicts a humorous domestic scene. A man wearing outdoor/hunting attire and a hat stands outside a doorway, appearing to beckon or invite someone. Inside, a woman and what appear to be other family members look out at him with apparent skepticism or disapproval. The title "The Call of the Wild" is a literary reference (likely to Jack London's 1903 novel) used ironically here. The joke satirizes the conflict between a husband's desire to pursue outdoor adventures or hunting expeditions versus his family's domestic expectations and resistance to his departure. The woman's expression suggests she's unimpressed by his wilderness aspirations, making this social commentary on masculine leisure pursuits versus family obligations in early 20th-century American life.
# Stevens-Duryea Advertisement This is primarily a **car advertisement**, not political satire. The Stevens-Duryea Company of Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts advertised their enclosed automobile as representing "a new expression of distinctive and exclusive elegance." The ad emphasizes that their cars offer "appointments created to conform to the individuality of your equipage"—marketing luxury customization to wealthy buyers. The scenic landscape background and silhouetted passengers suggest comfort and leisure travel. The company's tagline, "Pioneer Builders of American Sixes," references their six-cylinder engine technology. This appears to be a prestige auto advertisement from the early 1920s era, targeting affluent consumers. The Life magazine placement suggests such ads were standard editorial content in this publication.
# Grace - White Company Advertisement This is primarily a **product advertisement** for the White Company's electric automobile, disguised as editorial content in Life magazine's satirical style. The classical allegorical figures—winged female forms (likely representing Grace, Favor, or similar virtues)—flank a White electric coupe to suggest the car embodies elegance and refinement. The caption credits "Diana, goddess of the moon" as endorsing the vehicle. The ad positions the electric car as ideal for women ("**her** car for all purposes") while claiming its power and convenience also suit men's "town and winter use." This reflects early 1900s marketing that marketed electric vehicles as particularly suitable for female drivers due to their ease of operation, before gasoline cars eventually dominated the market.
# Life Magazine Subscription Advertisement This page promotes subscriptions to *Life* magazine through satirical testimonials and upcoming issue previews. The classical figures (appearing to reference Shakespeare and Marcus Aurelius) endorse the publication—Shakespeare praising nearly sixty years of readership, Aurelius anticipating a "War Number." The page announces upcoming special issues: a "Heart-to-Heart Number," "War Number," and notably, a "Pro-Suffrage Number" (October 16), indicating this appeared during the women's suffrage movement campaign. The "Have a Care" section humorously warns subscribers about the "psychological moment to Obey" the impulse to subscribe, joking that the dollar coupon "has never been known to kill, but it is a great disturber." The satire targets subscription pressure tactics while suggesting *Life* is serious enough to warrant careful consideration.
# Analysis This is **not a political cartoon or satire**—it's a straightforward automobile advertisement for the 1914 Chalmers "Six" automobile, published in *Life* magazine. The page features a sketch of the car with multiple well-dressed passengers and emphasizes engineering features like the silent motor, electric starter, and durable Tungsten steel construction. The text celebrates the vehicle as "The Master Motor of Them All," highlighting practical innovations valuable to early 20th-century drivers: reliability, quietness, and electric starting (which eliminated dangerous hand-cranking). The "$2175" price and models listed (Roadster, Touring, Six Passenger, etc.) reflect the luxury automobile market of 1914. This represents mainstream automotive advertising, not editorial content or satire.
# Analysis This page is **primarily a product advertisement**, not political satire. It's a 1914 Oldsmobile automobile advertisement from *Life* magazine. The ad claims 1914 is "the Year of the Oldsmobile" and promotes their new Model 54 six-cylinder car as "the Greatest Six-Cylinder Car Ever Produced." The advertisement includes: - A decorative illustration of a European cathedral city (upper left) - Detailed technical specifications of the vehicle - A photograph of the actual Model 54 touring car (center-bottom) - Information that the Olds Motor Works was located in Lansing, Michigan There is **no political cartoon or satire** on this page. It's straightforward commercial advertising typical of early 20th-century automotive marketing.
# Analysis This page from *Life* magazine presents a "Poetical" section with verse definitions of literary themes—describing sonnets as "somniferous," love-laden lyrics as "ludicrous"—written by R.H. Dyer. The definitions are deliberately unflattering and cynical about poetic conventions. The illustration below, titled "The Freshman and the Graduates," depicts an indoor social gathering with formally dressed men and women in what appears to be an elegant venue with an organ visible. The scene suggests a college or university social event. The juxtaposition of the poetic definitions above—mocking literary pretense—with this image of social aspiration likely satirizes the artificiality and pretension of academic or collegiate social life, where formality masks genuine feeling.
# Analysis of Life Magazine Page (Sept. 11, 1913) This page contains two distinct sections: **"The School-Boy"** (left): A satirical article with accompanying illustration showing a boy and girl. The text humorously catalogs what school-boys actually learn—examining their crooked jaws and stooped shoulders, then ironically praising schools for equipping students "for all the problems of life." The satire mocks the gap between education's promises and its practical outcomes. **"The Ambassador"** (right): A brief article with an illustration labeled "IN LOCO PARENTIS" showing a figure gesturing dramatically. The piece satirizes ambassadors as men sent abroad to maintain national prestige while their families go into debt—suggesting ambassadorships are performative positions requiring appearance over substance. Both pieces exemplify *Life*'s characteristic early-20th-century satirical commentary on institutions and social pretense.
# Analysis of Life Magazine Page 421 The main cartoon, titled "The Three Wise Men of the East," depicts four men in formal attire at what appears to be a harbor or dock setting, examining what looks like maps or plans on tables. The accompanying text discusses an "Anesthetic" solution to social and political problems—specifically proposing a laughing gas to make difficult reforms (like constitutional amendments or tooth extractions) more palatable to the public. The satirical point appears to be critiquing how citizens resist necessary but painful social changes, and suggesting that if government could anesthetize the population to these difficulties, reform would proceed smoothly. The smaller dialogue exchanges are generic social humor unrelated to the main cartoon's political commentary.
# Political Context and Satire This Life magazine page satirizes a 1919 Congressional strike over working conditions. The headline reports that both Houses threatened a "national disturbance" when workers demanded eight-hour days and reasonable vacation time. The cartoon (captioned "Shure! Ivery toime of hear the foive o'clock whistle blow of wisht id had a job") depicts working-class figures, likely Irish immigrants (suggested by the dialect), envying those with employment. The satire is double-edged: it mocks Congressional workers' strike demands while sympathizing with the unemployed masses who would welcome any job. The three protest signs—demanding shorter hours, cooler temperatures, and guaranteed summer vacations—present the strike demands as comically excessive, suggesting the privileged nature of government employment compared to ordinary laborers struggling to find work.
# Analysis This page from *Life* magazine (page 423) features an illustration titled "THE HIRED HELP AT WORK." The image depicts a rural scene with a man and woman in a vegetable garden near a wooden gate. The woman wears a checkered dress and bonnet, while the man wears work clothes and suspenders. The illustration appears to be satirizing agricultural labor or farm work during the early 20th century. The caption "hired help" suggests commentary on domestic or farm servants. Without additional context about the specific date or accompanying article text, the exact satirical point is unclear—it may address labor conditions, rural life, class dynamics, or social attitudes toward hired workers. The naturalistic style is typical of *Life's* editorial illustrations from this era.
# Life Magazine Page 424: Social Commentary This page contains three satirical pieces on early 20th-century American society: **"The Bread Line"** mocks upper-class concerns, showing wealthy people observing a bread line (unemployed/poor seeking free food) as entertainment—captioning it as fathers and husbands "coming up from town to pay the bills." **"For Adults Only"** criticizes Alabama's child labor laws as inadequate, sarcastically suggesting children should read *Life* magazine and noting that removing child workers would be criminalized under state law (1927). The piece argues the laws protect exploitative labor practices. **Remaining sketches** depict working-class domestic scenes, including a father threatening to whip his son for fishing on Sunday, and Mrs. Murphy receiving a charity collector—illustrating poverty and moral discipline in poorer households. The overall tone critiques class disparities and inadequate labor protections.
