Political Cartoon Analysis
Catalina Uriarte & Tiana Tsang
"Room With a View"
Context: Housing Act of 1949 initiated the clearing of slums and the renewal of urban development after the Great Depression.
Identification and Explanation of Persuasive Techniques
Symbolism: The White House represents the negative power that impacts society
Labeling: The newspaper represents the current even taking place in the cartoon (Housing Act of 1949)
Purpose: To chastise the government for clearing away the houses of those already struggling and replacing slums with expensive housing, and to sympathize with those in the middle class living in slums.
"Sorry, but you have an incurable skin condition"
Context: Segregation caused African American doctors to be rejected by medical society, and as a result, colored patients were less likely to receive treatment.
Identification and Explanation of Persuasive Techniques
Labeling: Two white doctors are labeled as Lily White Hospital and Lily White Medical Society in order to represent the majority of hospitals and the unfairness of society's view towards African American doctors.
The degree of the African American man suggests that the doctors were well educated and the treatment of them was strictly based on skin color.
Purpose: To show the unfair treatment of well educated African American doctors in the medical society.
"...One Nation...Indivisible"
Context: President Jimmy Carter submitted an additional 350 million to aid poor schools and bridge the gap of educational inequality as well as create the Department of Public Education.
Identification and Explanation of Persuasive Techniques
Symbolism: Shows the inequality of races between the suburbs and the innercity by using the colors white and black.
Exaggeration: Not all innercity public schools were in bad condition and not all suburban public schools were well taken care of.
Labeling: Labeled schools with "Suburban Heights Public School" and "Innercity Public School" to show the class division.
Purpose: Reminder to show the division of class and society that previously occurred in public schools.