Widely recognized symbols are the backbone of political cartoons. These symbols allow illustrators to communicate their ideas with few words. Larry Bush, author of “More Than Words: Rhetorical Constructs in American Political Cartoons”, separates these symbols into two groups; natural metaphors and ad hoc symbols. Natural symbols are considered “symbols that humans automatically understand” (Bush 68). For example, lightness and darkness would symbolize good versus evil, respectively. Ad hoc symbols, on the other hand, are improvised yet largely accepted symbols, such as the use of the donkey and the elephant for the Democrat and Republican political parties (Bush 70). Natural metaphors are usually very common in political cartoons, since they are easy for the average reader to understand. Specifically, the natural metaphor ‘big versus
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Among those was a cartoon titled “Whose Turn Next”. It was illustrated by E. H. Shepard and published on May 18th 1938. This cartoon depicts a stern old woman hovering over four small boys sitting on a bench in a classroom. She is scolding the boys as the caption reads “The Goblins will get you if you don’t watch out!”. In the old woman’s hands is a book that reads “Treaties Without Tears. Versailles”. All four boys bear the name of a different European nation on their clothes; Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Roumania, and Poland. They slouch fearfully in their seats, none of them meeting the scouring eyes of the old woman. Each child holds a writing slate, also bearing their respective country’s name. One writing slate lays discarded on the bench, labeled “Austria”. On the wall behind them is a map of Europe, specifically the countries depicted by the young boys as well as Germany. By examining the background history around the time of this cartoon’s publishing, the cartoon becomes easy to
Among those was a cartoon titled “Whose Turn Next”. It was illustrated by E. H. Shepard and published on May 18th 1938. This cartoon depicts a stern old woman hovering over four small boys sitting on a bench in a classroom. She is scolding the boys as the caption reads “The Goblins will get you if you don’t watch out!”. In the old woman’s hands is a book that reads “Treaties Without Tears. Versailles”. All four boys bear the name of a different European nation on their clothes; Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Roumania, and Poland. They slouch fearfully in their seats, none of them meeting the scouring eyes of the old woman. Each child holds a writing slate, also bearing their respective country’s name. One writing slate lays discarded on the bench, labeled “Austria”. On the wall behind them is a map of Europe, specifically the countries depicted by the young boys as well as Germany. By examining the background history around the time of this cartoon’s publishing, the cartoon becomes easy to