CoP Seminar - Task: Image Analysis Exercise

The Uncle Sam Range, 1876, advertising image by Schumacher & Ettlinger, New York

Poster by Savile Lumley (1915)

Both of these pieces of design are from different eras that are definitely very different to the 21st century. With only 39 years separating them, they ultimately have similarities, however a lot can change in a short space of time. For starters, a new century started (20th century) and World War I came about before the poster by Savile Lumley was created.

Starting with similarities, the aim of both is to promote something. They are both trying to get bold messages across to the viewer, in the hopes that they will be persuaded to the creator's point of view whether that be so that they will buy a product or they will change the way they think. Both campaign's use a strong sense of patriotism to get their point across... The Uncle Sam Range is really in your face with the red white and blue colour scheme; it screams USA before you even know what exactly they are trying to sell to you. Lumley's poster doesn't give off patriotism with it's colour scheme but the caption "Daddy, what did YOU do in the Great War?" is clearly trying to tell the viewer to participate in the World War in some way, or at least rethink their patriotism.

Both designs were made to appeal to men with power and families, as The Uncle Sam Range has a very important looking man seated at the table in the middle of the illustration who is being waited on, while Lumley's poster has a husband and father of two smart children sitting in a dapper suit in an armchair. The man has a glum look on his face, which makes you think that he is feeling very cowardly inside, with guilt that his children won't think of him as heroic or brave. No man in this time would have wanted to seem weak or anything but powerful to anybody, so this is an effective way of affecting the viewer's thoughts. 

The Uncle Sam Range is trying to sell an oven to the viewer. In doing this, there is a large earth sitting at the table, which has a long list of what seems to be food that each country around the world is in need of. This gives off the idea that America is superior to all other countries, and can 'save' them easily with all it's power. It was created 100 years after the year of independence for the USA, so the patriotism is very strong, powerful and obvious. The black slave we can see on the far left shows powerfully what era the advert is from, and makes the idea of superiority even stronger.

The fonts used in both designs reflect the time frames very clearly. The Uncle Sam Range uses very bold and traditional lettering all over the advert to emphasise the westernization and patriotic values. Lumley's poster has handwritten text at the bottom, which has an old-fashioned feel to it. Its handwritten this way presumably because it is trying to make it seem personalised, as if the young girl has written it; you are supposed to read it in her voice for emphasis. The use of the word "Great" just reinforces the idea that Britain was triumphant and proud of their forces in the war.

Both adverts are aimed towards the same group of people of middle to upper class men in the western world, but for different purposes. However they both use a strong sense of patriotism which is what they have in common.