Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Why did the cartoonist use marriage in the cartoon "Interrupting the Ceremony?

The cartoonist was commenting on the debate over ratifying the Treaty of Versailles, which would have meant membership in the League of Nations. President Woodrow Wilson supported the League (indeed, it was partially his idea) but many of his political opponents opposed it. Political cartoons, of course, use symbolism to make a larger point. Marriage would have been imagined as a permanent and binding institution in the early twentieth century. By showing Uncle Sam marrying a bride with "foreign entanglements" emblazoned on her dress, the artist was saying that the United States was about to permanently involve itself in the affairs of other nations. According to Wilson's critics in the Senate, this was something to be avoided. By using the device of a marriage ceremony, a familiar ritual to all of his readers, the artist is making a critical comment on the debate. He seems to agree with the Senate that involvement in the League of Nations is a bad idea.

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