Several years ago, historian and author John Dower wrote a superb text
entitled War Without Mercy, in which he examined, among other ideas, the
similarities and differences between U.S. depictions of the Japanese and
Germans in political cartoons. What he found was that the Germans were often
depicted as dangerous spirits, evil gods, devils and demons, while the
Japanese were dehumanized as apes, monkeys, vermin, worms, bugs etc.
But so what, right? They’re only pictures…or are they? Propaganda can be a
powerful tool for a government in need of mobilizing its citizens' antagonism
for an enemy. In this webquest you will explore how the governments of three
world powers in WWII utilized propaganda in posters and political cartoons to
dehumanize their enemy, rally support for the war effort, and reveal to the
world their own military agendas.
