Cartoons and cartoon strips as instruments of influence

Abstract

In this study I intend to focus on the cartoon and the cartoon strip and the part these play in the three fields of education, advertising and political propaganda. The area under investigation is vast and this short work does not pretend to do it Justice. My hope is that once an overhead view of the subject has been established, different disciplines may take up fuller studies along particular lines. Before going into the subject it should be useful to arrive at some definitions. What is a cartoon? Funk & Wagnall's Standard Dictionary defines the cartoon as follows: "Cartoon (noun) 1. A drawing or caricature in a newspaper or periodical; especially, one intended to affect public opinion as to some matter or person. 2. A sketch for a fresco or mosaic. 3. A comic strip. 4. A motion picture film, called an animated cartoon, made by photographing a series of carefully prepared black-and-white or coloured drawings, each representing a further stage in the action of the film, which is usually synchronised for sound effects and music." [...]