Seuss, as he is most commonly known, drew political cartoons in hopes of restoring the dignity of America.. Although he was already famous for his witty pesticides advertisements, a gian
Trang 1In 1941, war loomed around every corner of America It lurked like a plague, taking the lives of innocent people and instilling hatred and mistrust in the American society Homes were broken, careers were lost, and hope soon faded as tension grew overseas It was during this time when Theodore Seuss Geisel decided to battle evil the only way he could -through drawing Long before "The Cat in the Hat" and "Green Eggs and Ham", Dr Seuss, as he is most commonly known, drew political cartoons in hopes of restoring the dignity of America Although he was already famous for his witty pesticides advertisements, a giant leap occurred in Seuss's career when his anger towards Nazism caused him to send his first political cartoon to a liberal
newspaper called PM Through his cartoons, Dr Seuss tried to rid the world of wickedness by encouraging the American people to contribute to the war effort In Dr Seuss's portrayal of Adolf Hitler, his opposition towards the Nazi party is evident through his drawing style, the underlying messages behind the cartoons, and symbolism
Dr Seuss's unique drawing style illustrates his hatred towards Nazism Although he is known for his loveable, rounded and floppy-like cartoons, Dr Seuss depicts Hitler in a cruel manner Figures
4 and 5 exhibit Hitler as a chiseled chin, arrogant man His head is high and his eyes are closed, indicating his snobbish and conceited attitude The harsh crooked lines that detail his face mark his pompous expression It is as though he is showing the public that he is greater than the
foundations of America This shows the reader that Hitler is aware of his power, and in doing so, makes the reader loathe the image Through this depiction of Hitler, Dr Seuss encourages the American public not to let him feel that pride Dr Seuss also mocks Hitler's appearance by drawing his signature mustache and hairstyle As always, Hitler's hair is parted to the right side with a stand of hair coming down his left eye This makes Hitler appear boyish instead of powerful and ruthless Dr Seuss also draws his mustache in a way that makes Hitler resemble Charlie Chaplin These two characteristics of Hitler convey the image as comedic as well as powerful In figure 3, Hitler is depicted as a cross between an elephant and a snake Again, Dr Seuss is mocking his nature An elephant can be seen as a slow, dim-witted creature while as the snake has
a more sneaky and treacherous nature It is evident that these two animals alike are not the
brightest, or the most respected in the animal kingdom Dr Seuss might have used this image to ease the feelings of fright in society During this period of time, fear was a growing epidemic in America However, this image demonstrates that America shouldn't cower over a brainless dictator
The messages conveyed in Dr Seuss's cartoons exhibit his anti-Nazism views In Figure 1, he emphasizes America's negligence of countries overseas In this picture, a woman representing America is holding a book called Adolf the Wolf The caption in this cartoon states: "And the wolf chewed up the children and spit out their bones but those were foreign children and it really didn't matter" Dr Seuss is expressing his concerns about the innocent lives being slaughtered on behalf of Hitler He feels that America should put aside its self interests and instead take action against the ruthless dictator Through his drawings of the two small children beside this woman, Seuss is conveying a message for the future It as though he is urging his generation not to instill ignorance and hatred in the minds of children In order for history not to repeat itself, it is vital for younger generations to learn from past mistakes In Figure 2, the Nazi party is represented by a gigantic beast Hauling this beast in a cage is a bald eagle wearing its stars and stripes hat The catch line of this cartoon states: "Cages cost money! Buy more US Savings Bonds and Stamps!" In this cartoon, he is implying that there is still hope This image conveys that America will triumph against evil and put the Nazis in jail Justice, in Seuss's eyes, is not far from being served In Figure 6, Hitler tells a man dressed as a palm tree: "Shultz, you will be dropped from an air plane into the jungle of Brazil Using charm and ingenuity, you will immediately woo and marry some young Brazilian palm tree With advance ground-work such as this, my invasion of South America
is practically in the bag" This cartoon is telling the America public that Hitler's plans are unwise and far fetched This image also conveys that Hitler's tactics are not full proof, and that America will soon find victory in war
Inevitably, the Dr.'s prescription of hope was successful Professor Richard H Minear of the University of Massachusetts states: "Hitler is the prime subject of all of Dr Seuss's WWII
cartoons Without him, Dr Seuss might well have remained a successful commercial artist with a sideline in children's literature" (Political Dr.Seuss) This quote marks the success of Seuss's political cartoons It was his drawings of Hitler that made him a renowned political cartoonist
Trang 2These cartoons lifted the spirits of many people in the 1940s Many people found these cartoons to
be encouraging, and its comical elements served as relief during rough times
The symbols within Dr Seuss's political cartoons demonstrate his wrath towards Hitler and his party In figure 2, a gigantic creature bearing the Nazi sign represents Hitler's party The beast has
a foolish look about him, which makes the reader come to the conclusion that all Nazis are stupid and vulnerable Again, this comedic representation of Nazis is conveying that there is nothing to fear This beast in imprisoned, and is being dragged by the American bald eagle which represents American victory This image illustrates that America will not be defeated by evil forces The smile upon the bald eagle indicates that America's pride will not be shattered and that happiness will once again, be restored In figure 6, the man dressed as a palm tree represents Hitler's
downfall The plan of action described in this cartoon tells the reader that Hitler will no longer triumph in his plans of world domination It also conveys that Hitler is becoming vulnerable due
to the fact that he is running out of clever ideas
In conclusion, it is evident that Dr Seuss's political cartoons reflect his feelings towards Nazism Through his drawings he tried to relieve the world of the malice that Hitler created Through his various symbolisms, drawing techniques and underlying messages, his wrath towards Hitler and his party are expressed War has the power to change lives, to take lives, and in many cases to inspire lives just as it did for Dr Seuss In many cases, war isn't the end, it's the beginning of many things yet to come The opposite of war is not peace, its creation
Illustrations that I used:
Figure 1 http://www.tfaoi.com/am/8am/8am205.jpg
Figure 2 http://orpheus.ucsd.edu/speccoll/dspolitic/pm/11215cs.jpg
Figure 3 http://orpheus.ucsd.edu/speccoll/dspolitic/Frame.htm
Figure 4 http://www.tfaoi.com/am/8am/8am206.jpg
Figure 5 http://orpheus.ucsd.edu/speccoll/dspolitic/pm/11212cs.jpg
Figure 6 http://www.marxists.org/subject/art/visual_arts/satire/seuss/seuss5.htm