The Annexation of Hawaii

Olson-Raymer, Gayle. "Quest for Empire." Quest for Empire. Gayle Olson-Raymer, n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2016. <http://users.humboldt.edu/ogayle/hist111/empire.html>.

This political cartoon focuses on the annexation of Hawaii, and uses symbolism, analogies, and labeling. The symbolism is present in Uncle Sam, who represents America. One analogy is comparing William McKinley to a waiter for Uncle Sam, bringing him more land. Another analogy is comparing Hawaii to Sandwiches. Several other analogies occur in the painting, such as Cuba Steak, Puerto Rico Pig, and Philippine Floating Islands. The cartoonist is comparing all of these countries to foo. The waiter’s cloth has labeling, and reads McKinley, implying he is the president. The cartoonist’s mess ager is that Uncle Sam was taking land like he was ordering at a restaurant, and took very little effort. Other people believed he was being a tyrant. I agree with the cartoonist’s position that we were powerful enough to take anything we wanted with minimal effort.