Module 5 (3 hours)
Title: The Political Cartoons
Introduction:
This lesson is properly interpret the political cartoon which is a cartoon that makes a
point about a political issue or event and the caricatures that is a satirical, exaggerated
portrayal of person. That paves the way to understand the situation of politics and of the
society in American period.
Learning Outcomes:
At the end of the topic, you are expected to:
1. interpret properly the selected Political Cartoons: Political Caricature of the
American
Era 1900 – 1941 through examining the content and context of the documents, and
2. analyze the context behind each selected Political Cartoons and Caricature.
Learning Content:
Such accounts in Philippine History need to be understand the politics and society and
understood not only through text but also cartoons or caricatures. Political cartoons and
caricature are a rather recent art form, which veered away from the classical art by
exaggerating human features and poking funs at its subjects. This is a graphic with
caricatures of public figures, expressing opinions in every significant event in our history.
This is a combination of artistic skill, hyperbole and satire in order to question authority and
draw attention to corruption, political violence and other social ills that is worthy of historical
examination.
In his book Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricature of the American Era (1900-
1941). Alfred McCoy, together with Alfred Roces, compiled political cartoons published in
newspaper dailies and periodicals in the aforementioned time period. For this part, we are
going to look at selected cartoons and explain the context of each one.
Born June 8, 1945
Professor of History at the
University of Wisconsin who
specializes in S.E. Asia
Graduated from the Kent School in
1964; earned his B.A. from
Columbia College and his Ph.D. in
Southeast Asian history from Yale
University in 1977
In 2001, was awarded the Grant
Alfred McCoy Goodman Prize for his career
(Author/Creator) contributions to the study of the
Philippines by the Association for
Asian Studies
In October 2012, was awarded
the Wilbur Lucius Cross Medall by
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Yale University's Graduate School
Alumni Association.
Born on April 29, 1932 (Sta. Cruz,
Manila)
Married Irene Pineda on May 24,
1958 and has three daughters
A gifted artist-writer
Author of "Felix Resurreccion
Hidalgo and the Generation of
1972“, the National Book Award-
winning title
Lost his job in 1972 when Manila
Times closed down but begged off
jobs in Marcos’ papers
Alfred Roces Became editor-in-chief of the
(Contributor/Book Designer) Filipino Heritage, a ten-volume
study on Philippine History and
Culture until 1978
Currently a freelance artist and
writer, Alfredo or Ding, as he is
fondly called, has been living in
Australia since 1977.
The first example is the Manila: The Corruption of a City. If the nationalism was the
ideology of the Manila press, then the city was its reality. The editors, artists and writers all
lived and worked in Manila, and so expressed their frustrations with its discomforts and
decadence in some of the angriest cartoons of the American period (1899-1941). Costumes
and characters have changed in the half century since their publication, but Mania’s constant
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urban problems – poverty, corruption and prostitution --- give these cartoons an almost
timeless quality.
This second cartoons is situated at the Distant Provinces that the provinces began at
Manila door’s step, but for the city press they were a world apart.
The third example is the Colonial Condition: that for Sophisticated Filipino
nationalist, colonialism was not a simple matter of who occupied the executive offices in
Malacanang Palace. They saw colonialism as a pervasive condition that had penetrated the
whole of their social fabric – influencing their culture, politics, economy, and class relations.
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The fourth example is the situation of Uncle Sam and Little Juan: During the decades
of U.S. colonial rule. Uncle Sam underwent a striking transformation in the pages of the
Philippines press. In the early years when Filipino nationalism was at its height, Uncle Sam
often appeared crafty and predatory in his relationship with the virginal maiden. Filipinos,
During the Harisson administration, however, Uncle Sam metamorphized into a wise, kindly
looking man with a paternalistic concern for the boyish figure of Juan de la Cruz, who had
largely supplanted the maiden Filipinas as the nation’s symbol. These images are thus a
cameo of changing Filipino attitudes towards America and Americans.
The transition from the Spanish Colonial period to the American Occupation period
demonstrated different scenario of changes and shifts in culture, society, and politics. The
selected cartoons illustrate not only opinion of certain media outfits about the Philippine
society during the American period but also paint a broad image of society and politics under
the United States.
Process Questions:
Analysis of the given selected Political Caricatures during the American Period.
Identify the symbols in a cartoon; think about what the cartoonist intends each symbol to
stand for. Then, try to decide what point the cartoonist was trying to make through
exaggeration. Does the label make the meaning of the object more clear? After you’ve
studied a cartoon for a while, try to decide what the cartoon’s main analogy is. What two
situations does the cartoon compare? Once you understand the main analogy, decide if this
comparison makes the cartoonist’s point more clearly to you. If you can, think about what
point the irony might be intended to emphasize. Does the irony help the cartoonist express his
or her opinion more effectively?
Activity:
Essay. Answer the following questions:
1. What issue is this political cartoon about?
2. What is the cartoonist’s opinion on this issue?
3. What other opinion can you imagine another person having on this issue?
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4. Did you find this cartoon persuasive? Why or why not?
5. What other techniques could the cartoonist have used to make this cartoon more
persuasive?
(http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/activities/
political-cartoon/cag.html)
Further Readings and Resources
1. McCoy, A., & Roces, A. 1985. Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricature of the American
Era, 1900-1941. Quezon City: Vera – Reyes.
2. Philippines History, Government and Constitution book by Sonia Zaide.
Evaluation:
Name:__________________________________________Date:_______________________
Course&Year:___________________________________Score:_______________________
Caricature Objectives/People that Meaning of each Important Political or
Title you see symbol Clues Social Issues
(objects/people) presented
#1
#2
#3
#4
References:
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Candelaria, et.al. 2018. Readings in the Philippine History. Rex Printing Company, Inc.
Manila, Philippines.
Ligan, et.al., 2018. Readings in the Philippine History. Mutya Publishing House, Inc.
Malabon City.
Torres, J. V., 2018. BATIS. Sources in Philippine History. Rex Printing Company, Inc
