Political Imagery, Then and Now
Background:
Political illustrations and cartoons have been around for a long time. They are not always
funny, but they usually intend to make a statement about politics, society, or just life in general.
In this activity, you will work in a small group to look at two examples of political illustrations
from two different periods in history.
The first illustration is a banner celebrating Thomas Jefferson’s victory over John Adams
in the presidential election of 1800. The banner has an image of Jefferson below an eagle with a
streamer in its beak. The streamer proclaims, “T. Jefferson President of the Untied States of
America / John Adams is no more.”
The second illustration is a political cartoon about the presidential election of 2004
between George W. Bush, a Republican, and John Kerry, a Democrat. It uses caricatures of
animals to represent the two political parties.
Directions:
In your small groups, examine the two illustrations and discuss the following questions:
1. What does the eagle in the Jefferson victory banner represent?
2. What is the message behind the statement, “T. Jefferson President of the United States of
America / John Adams is no more.”?
3. What do you think was the artist’s message about the election of 1800?
4. What do the elephant and the donkey represent in the 2004 political cartoon?
5. What do the sun above the elephant and the raincloud above the donkey represent?
6. How do the facial expressions on the characters help to explain the artist’s message?
7. What are the similarities between the two illustrations’ messages?
Thomas Jefferson victory banner. Courtesy of the Smithsonian
Institution, Museum of American History.
“GOP Glee Democrat Doom” © Copyright 2004 Daryl Cagle - All Rights
Reserved.
© 2008 †he çolonial  ƒoundation