How to interpret the meaning of political cartoons

Interpreting a visual source, like a political cartoon, is very different to interpreting words on a page, which is the case with written sources.

Therefore, you need to develop a different set of skills.

Political cartoons are ink drawings created to provide a humorous or critical opinion about political events at the time of its creation.

They were particularly popular in newspapers and magazines during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. However, they are still used by many newspapers, magazines and websites today.

While political cartoons can be funny, that is usually not their main purpose. They were primarily created to persuade their audience to take a particular view on a historical event.

A successful political cartoon can change someone’s mind so that they ultimately agree with the cartoonist’s point of view.

Further information:

Learn more about the history of the political cartoon with this short YouTube clip:

If you've never seen a political cartoon before, you can see a contemporary one being made below:

Understanding what a historical political cartoon means can be difficult for us because we did not live through the political events the cartoons talk about.

However, all political cartoons rely heavily upon a very simple visual ‘code’ rather than relying solely on words to convey their message.

Once we learn how this visual code works, we can use it to ‘decode’ the specific message of a cartoon.

Cartoonists intentionally draw people or characters with physical features that are larger than they naturally are. They do this in order to make a point.

Usually, the point is to highlight something about the character of a person. For example, if a person is drawn with a large, toothy grin, it can be a sign that they have evil intentions and are untrustworthy.

Therefore, when interpreting a cartoon, look for any physical features that seem obviously exaggerated. Then, try to decide what point the creator was trying to make about the person.

If you want to see how a cartoonist uses caricatures, watch the short clip below:  

To help their audience understand what each person represents in their drawings, cartoonists often write a name on the major figures. Common names include famous politicians or countries.

So, when you’re interpreting a cartoon, look for the labels. You might need to do some background research to find out who the people are before you continue with your interpretation.

3. Symbolism

Cartoonists use simple objects, or symbols, that the general public would be familiar with. These symbols are used to represent important concepts or ideas.

For example, using a ‘skull and crossbones’ could represent ‘death’ or ‘danger’. While you’re interpreting a cartoon, identify any symbols and try to work out what concept the image is meant to represent.

Here are some common symbols used in political cartoons, along with their common meanings: 

4. Captions

Another handy way that cartoonists convey important information to their audience is by providing a written explanation through a speech bubble in the cartoon itself or a caption at the bottom of the image.

These words should help you understand the main historical event or issue that the image is based upon.

5. Analogies

An analogy is a comparison between two different things to highlight a particular similarity in ideas. Through the comparison of a complex political issue with more simplistic, 'everyday' scenarios with which the audience would be more familiar, a cartoonist can more easily convey their message.

Here are some common analogies and what they could mean in political cartoons:

6. Stereotypes

It was very common for cartoonists to represent a particular group of people (usually in a very racist way) using stereotypes.

A stereotype is an over-simplification of what a particular racial group looks like. For example, Chinese people in the 19th century were drawn with a long pony-tail in their hair.

Cartoonists use this so that audiences can readily identify which people group is the target of the cartoon. Getting to know common stereotypes can be quite confronting for us, since they can be very derogatory in nature.

However, once you become familiar with common forms of stereotyping, you can identify the appropriate people group being targeted in a particular cartoon.

Common Stereotypes: