Crossroads: High School Curriculum
Unit X: The Age of Franklin D. Roosevelt: 1933-1945

Using Political Cartoons

Lesson 1

Using Political Cartoons

The following objectives presume that students are familiar with the political and philosophical characteristics of the New Deal.

General Objectives

  1. Identify factual elements in political cartoons.
  2. Explain the meaning of the elements of political cartoons and explain the overall meaning of the cartoon.
  3. Identify a cartoonists point of view, or bias, in a political cartoon.
  4. Develop the historical narrative based upon the analysis of several related political cartoons.
  5. Analyze numerous cartoons in order to compare interpretations of evidence.
  6. Analyze cause and effect suggested by political cartoons.
  7. Identify the uses of exaggeration in political cartoons.
  8. Analyze the place of humor in political cartoons.

Specific Objectives

After examining accompanying cartoons AA through BB students should

  1. Identify specific elements of opposition to the New Deal.
  2. Identify the political point of view of a major newspaper.
  3. Determine the causes for Roosevelts Court Reform proposal.
  4. Identify the causes for Roosevelts dissatisfaction with the Supreme Court.
  5. Identify the constituencies thought to be the principal recipients of the measures of the New Deal.
  6. Identify the class of Americans thought to be villains.
  7. Identify the reforms being stalled by the Supreme Court.
  8. Describe how a sports motif may be used to present a political point of view.
  9. Analyze Roosevelts Court Packing plan as a perceived attempt to alter Constitutional separation of powers.
  10. Compare and contrast two different points of view presented in a single historical issue.

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