EIU Teaching with Primary Sources

Cartoon One

At the bottom of this page you will find an interactive cartoon. The activity looks at the five techniques use in political and editorial cartoons. These techniques are still used today. In the activity you will click and drag the label to the area within the cartoon in which you feel the artist incorporated the particular technique to illustrate a point. As you drag the label a red outline will appear to help you locate an area that demonstrates the technique and a short explanation. An artist may use the same technique several times within a cartoon or may not use a particular technique at all.

Techniques to Look For:

Exaggeration

Cartoonists will overdo physical characteristics of people or things in order to make a point.

Labeling

Objects or people are often labeled by cartoonists to make it clear exactly what they stand for.

Symbolism

Objects are used to stand for larger concepts or ideas.

Analogy

Cartoonists will 'draw' a comparison between two unlike things.

Irony

The difference between the way things are and the way things should be.

Bibliographic Page for this Cartoon

Cartoon Home - Cartoon One - Cartoon Two - Cartoon Three - Cartoon Four