World War II Cartoons
Starting in 1939, the world of political cartoons exploded. Daily you would see a dozens of new cartoons about what was going on around the world. These cartoons, similar to the ones drawn during World War I, wanted to bring out the emotions of citizens. Propaganda took on a new form when the United States began to product war bonds in order to fund the war.
On December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked the American Naval base in Hawaii. Pearl Harbor was attacked without warning costing thousands of American lives. This vicious strike caused President Franklin D. Roosevelt to declare war on December 8. "December 7, 1941 - a date which will live in infamy - the United States of American was suddenly and deliberately attacked by the naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan," is one of the most famous speeches ever given. Cartoons like the one to the right began to show up everyone around the world to honor the lives lost. |
Prior to the United States joining the war, American cartoonists simply created cartoons supporting Hitler's demise as his rise to power should not have happened. The Versailles Treaty of 1918 stated that Germany should never again have a standing army, an arsenal of weapons, or try to take power again. In 1939 it was clear that dictator Adolf Hitler had different plans.
Propaganda posters such as the one above and to the left, began being printed all over the country to gain support of going to war. You couldn't go anywhere in American without seeing Rosie the Riveter or Uncle Sam. |