INDUSTRIALISM POLITICAL CARTOON ACTIVITY Political cartoons serve to

INDUSTRIALISM POLITICAL CARTOON ACTIVITY

Political cartoons serve to make people think about political/social issues by: • By using background knowledge the reader has about the issues to spread the message • Providing readers with additional viewpoints of a topic • Emphasizing one side of an issue or concern • Utilizing humor • Relying on drawings and visuals to make a point

Cartoonists use the following persuasive techniques to create humor: • Symbolism – Using an object to stand for an idea • Labels – Words or abbreviations that tell what an item in a picture is supposed to represent • Captions – Words or phrases that appear above, below, or within the cartoon that provide information about it • Speech bubbles – Words or phrases in the cartoon that characters are supposed to be saying • Caricature – Exaggerating a physical feature or habit: big nose, bushy eyebrows, large ears, baldness • Analogy – A comparison between two unlike things that share some characteristics • Irony – The difference between the way things are and the way thing should be or the way things are expected to be • Juxtaposition – Positioning people or objects near each other, or side-byside that would not normally be associated together • Exaggeration – Overstating or magnifying a problem

Symbols used in political cartoons: • • • Peace – Dove, olive branch, victory sign United States – Uncle Sam, flag, stars and stripes, shield Democrats – Donkey Republicans – Elephant Death – Vulture, skeleton, grim reaper, skull and crossbones Love – Heart, cupid Money/wealth – Dollar bills, dollar sign Heroes or good guys – Handsome, kind, wear white Villains or bad guys – Ugly, grotesque, mean, wear black