A Glance at Selected

Philippine Caricature in
Alfred McCoy’s
Philippine Cartoons:
Political Caricature of
the American Era (1900-
1941)
Historical Background

The Author
Contoso 2
S u i t e s
Alfred W. McCoy
• He was born on June 8, 1945 in Concord,
Massachusetts, U.S.A.
• He is an American historian and educator.
• Dr. Alfred W. McCoy is a professor of the South
East Asian History at the University of Wisconsin
at Madison where he also serves as director of the
Center for SE Asian Studies.
• He spent the past quarter-century writing about the
politics & history of the opium trade.
Contoso 3
S u i t e s
• McCoy has spent the past thirty
years writing about Southeast
Asian history and politics.
• His publications include
Philippine Cartoons (1985),
Anarchy of Families (1994),
Closer Than Brothers:
Manhood at the Philippine
Military Academy (2000) and
Lives at the Margin (2001).
Contoso 4
S u i t e s
Background of the
Document
• 1900-1941 Philippine political cartoons gained full
expression during the American era. Filipino artists
recorded national attitudes toward the coming of
the Americans as well as the changing mores and
times.
• While the 377 cartoons compiled in this book speak
for themselves, historian Alfred McCoy’s extensive
research in Philippine and American archives
provides a comprehensive background not only to
the cartoons but to the turbulent period as well.Contoso
S u i t e s
5
• PHILIPPINE CARTOONS
(1985)
• Philippine Catholic Mass
Media Award
• Best Book of the Year for 1985
• Philippine National Book
Award for History,1986
• Gintong Aklat Award (Manila)
• Special Citation for History,
1987.
Contoso 6
S u i t e s
Definition of Terms
Caricatures
• A picture, description, or
imitation of a person in
which certain striking
characteristics are
exaggerated in order to
create a comic or
grotesque effect. Contoso
S u i t e s
7
Contoso 8
S u i t e s
Analysis:
The Results of Co-Education
Vicente Sotto, publisher of the
Independent was also a conservative
moralist. He seemed to feel that the
Philippines could not win independence
until the Filipinos had shaped a national
character capable of bearing that burden.
Contoso
S u i t e s
9
Contoso 10
S u i t e s
Analysis:
Why the Aparcero Rebels
It shows the form of landlord usury used to strip
tenant farmers from their rightful share of harvest.
This shows city capitalists using the Torrens Title
process, which required relinquishment of
customary claims to issue titles, to grab lands in
Nueva Ecija and other Central Luzon Provinces.
Contoso 11
S u i t e s
Analysis:
A new Wrinkle in the Art of Thieving
A sudden and unexpected credit crisis threatens the
Negros Sugar crop and planters respond by
lobbying Governor-General Francis B. Harrison for
relief. Fueled by free access to the American sugar
market and liberal credit from the newly
established Philippine National Bank, the Negros
sugar industry grew rapidly during World War I.
Contoso 12
S u i t e s
Large Image Slide

Contoso 13
S u i t e s
Analysis:
Equal Work, Unequal Salary, Why?
American Worker- Filipino Worker
- refers not to a ten-fold difference in Filipino and
American manual wages within the colony, but to a
more fundamental inequality - the difference in wages
and working conditions between the two countries.
After only 15 years of party politics, the corruption of
the political process had become apparent by the early
1920's.
Contoso 14
S u i t e s
Large Image Slide

Contoso 15
S u i t e s
Analysis:
Political Parties
The last cartoon was published by Lipang Kalabaw on
24th August 1907. In the picture, we can see Uncle Sam
rationing porridge to the politicians and members of the
Progresista Party (Federalistas Party) while members of
the Nacionalista Party looked on and wait for their turn.
This cartoon depicts the patronage of the United States
being coveted by politicians from either of the party.
Contoso 16
S u i t e s
Relevance and Contribution
Nationalism
Patriotism
An Eye-Opener
Discover our Roots

Contoso 17
S u i t e s
• In the Philippines, the presence of political cartoons
has been seen as early as the publication of Kalayaan
and La Solidaridad.
• Nepomuceno (2012) claimed that commentaries in
newspapers are valid historical instruments, given that
these works are corroborated by official documents.

Contoso 18
S u i t e s
• Furthermore, commentaries, through the sections of the
editorial pages, are useful in seeking to see the
opinions and views of people on policies which are
also rooted in the opinions and views of officials in
government.

Contoso 19
S u i t e s
• The book of McCoy and Roces (1986) was the
first one to legitimize cartoons as sources of
Filipino thoughts and views.
• The book only covered the period of the early
American regime through the commonwealth, it
reflected on two cartoon themes: anti-American
sentiments and the condemnation of the ruling
class.
Contoso 20
S u i t e s
• Since people’s sensitivities are captured immediately
through images, the popularity of cartoons has risen
throughout the years.
• Political cartoons serve as primers for engaging in the
prevailing opinions of that time.

Contoso 21
S u i t e s
• One positive effect of a political cartoon is that it
becomes the representation of the current conditions of
our country- it lets us see the problem.

Contoso 22
S u i t e s
• It also serves as a study and reference tool for
further generations.
• Through the use of political cartoons, people get
to visualize politics and appreciate the
representations which are within their worldview.

Contoso 23
S u i t e s
References:
https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/caricature
https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/
sharecropping
https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/homesteader
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/homestead
www.dictionary.com/browse/imperialism
Contoso 24
S u i t e s