Thomas Nast Political Cartoon Analysis

482 Words1 Page

During the Reconstruction Era, the Union and the Confederate States were very much opposed to one another. Many efforts were put in place to advance the treatment of freedman, but many efforts were also put in place to oppress the freedman. Freedman of the United States in both Southern and Northern States was placed in a tug-a-war of whether or not they can finally have natural, constituted rights. Politics within itself is very complex, so political cartoons offered a more understandable way of getting points across. Thomas Nast, one of the most famous political cartoonists was usually an illustrator for the Republican standpoint; he worked for Harper’s Weekly in New York. Unfortunately, he became persuaded by the mentality of African-Americans from Democrats, and began to draw racist depictions of blacks. One controversial illustration by Nast was “ Colored rule in a Reconstructed State”, which he caricatured the features of blacks. Thomas Nast was very racist, and misrepresented the integrity of free people; siding with the ignorance of Democrats. This image was very critical of freed people, because they were put in a simile for mocking the act of low whites; low whites are ignorant and irrational. Also, the features of blacks were very exaggerated: making their lips, …show more content…

The use of cartoons in the political world began in the year of 1754; though cartoons are thought to be amusing, political cartoons make you think about current issues in society. When a particular cartoonist illustrates something he or she wants to persuade you to be on their side of the issue. Mostly, cartoons are more appealing than worded articles, so when looking at drawings the artist has to be sure that they are being expressive rather than being demeaning to the subjects

Open Document