Thomas Nast: "The Father of the American Cartoon"

"Give me the pictures and I'll give you the war"
                               - William Randolph Hearst

Although Thomas Nast, an influential cartoonist for Harper's weekly was before the above quote, the quote illustrates the importance of dissemination of information specially during the times of war. Born in Germany in 1840, him and his family moved to the United States in 1846.  At an early age, he showed his talents in drawing which led him to work at Harper's Weekly, the most influential magazine during the Civil War, in 1862.

Called "our best recruiting sergeant" by Abraham Lincoln, his drawings depicted battlefields, which contained powerful imagery to bring much needed attention.  With media communication in its infancy, the importance of pictures in shaping minds and opinions rests mainly on publications such as Harper's Weekly.  Nast was a "kingpin,"  someone whose thoughts, works and opinions was greatly valued by the american public as it played a huge role in the election of Rutherford Hayes to the presidency in 1876.  Hayes once said that Nast was "the most powerful, single-handed aid [he] had".  Other presidents whose elections to office was aided by Nast were Ulysses S. Grant and Grover Cleveland and of course the re election of Abraham Lincoln.

Some of his works

 

His caricature of Boss Tweed, who took control of New York City through corruption was instrumental in bringing to light the atrocities him and his committed that eventually lead to his downfall.  At one point his attacks were so damaging to Boss Tweed that he tried to bribe Nast, which he eventually refused after exposing the ploy.

This image published in the New York Illustrated news shows Lincoln's compassion towards African-Americans and the emancipation act as an elixir, a medicine to whatever ills the Southern states.  He succeeded in portraying African-Americans at that time as people and not merely property. 

The importance of his work is deeply rooted into American culture.  Among his significant works that lives on until today was his illustration of the modern-day Santa Claus, one that is rotund and jolly, the Democrats donkey and the Republican elephant, Uncle Sam, Columbia and the Tammany tiger.

Napoleon Bonaparte once said that "A good sketch is better than a long speech" or its more popular translation "A picture is worth a thousand words." and sure enough Nast's pictures were.  The detail of his drawings were exquisite and full of life. His technique was intricate where the details successfully captures the drama of a particular subject which in turn gives a nice visual presentation of the topic in hand.  One could surmise that with illiteracy rates high during that time, seeing images gives the common folk an idea on what was going on.  Its realism was thought provoking, it need not a long analysis of what is being pictured.  It was right there in front of you, direct to the point, a sure attention grabber. 

With no other information dissemination available during that time, the impact of Nast's works were eaten up by the public. His works gave credence and credibility to the ideals he believed in which helped formed policies and public opinion.  From his support of Negro rights, to his opposition to segregation his illustrations were truly influential. Imagine Oprah without the billions of dollars.  His influence was immense that he embodies the adage "The Pen is mightier than the sword."

Works cited:


"Thomas Nast." Encyclopedia of World Biography. 1998 ed. Gale Biography in
     Context. Web. 11 May 2011. 


"C . A . R . I . C . A . T . U . R . E . S Thomas Nast's Rare Lincoln Political
     Caricatures." Illinois Periodicals Online. Illinois State Library, n.d.
     Web. 11 May 2011.