Suffrage and Political Cartoon Lesson

High School, 9th or 10th Grade

                              Standard No.               Indicator                     

                                  6.4                          F: 4, I: 2

^{New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards Website}

1. Students will be able to understand the techniques used by political cartoonists to cover news stories.

2. Students will be able to determine assumptions and prejudices about suffragists in the late 19^th and early 20^th century.

3. Students will be able to analyze political cartoons on suffrage to gain greater understanding of turn of the century American society.

Political cartoons (Library of Congress resources: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ndlpedu/collections/miller/langarts.html

Document analysis handouts

1.      Students need an understanding of how to analyze political cartoons before they can truly interpret them as resources.  As a class, examine a political cartoon (use one on suffrage that will not be included in the class activity). The Library of Congress’ Cartoon Analysis Guide is a great tool http://memory.loc.gov/learn/features/political_cartoon/cag.html The tool will emphasize identifying symbolism, exaggeration, labeling, analogy, and irony as well as the purpose of the cartoonist.

2.      Once the students have an understanding of how to critically look at political cartoons, divide them into small groups (3 or 4 students per group) to complete the jigsaw activity. Students will spend 8 – 10 minutes looking at each cartoon to identify as many strategies as they can. Each group should fill out a document analysis worksheet for each cartoon. Depending on the size of the class, five or six cartoons should be enough to have students see themes and similarities among the cartoons.

3.      Collectively, the class should discuss what they noticed in the cartoons. Have them identify the strategies they identified. Lead them in a discussion of the assumptions and prejudices against suffragists, if they do not identify them on their own.

Collect and grade the worksheets that each group filled out on the cartoons. Also a quiz on the strategies used by political cartoonists in their depiction of suffragists can also be utilized to assess understanding.

Library of Congress Resources:           http://memory.loc.gov/learn/features/political_cartoon/cag.html

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ndlpedu/collections/miller/langarts.html