Doomsday

In studying the political cartoons of the Vietnam War period, and in scouring them for apocalyptic influences, I have come to the conclusion that such references are either very apparent or non-existence. There are several reasons for this, some of which are innate to the medium. I choose this topic of wartime apocalypse with the hypothesis that the very nature of war, especially modern day warfare, tends to bring to mind the events of the apocalypse.

The vivid imagery of the Book of Revelation is extremely reminiscent of modern day warfare. The events of the apocalypse will always bring to mind the chaotic experiences of war. This is seen throughout history but is especially relevant in the present age of atomic warfare. Humanity has developed the power to kill every living organism on the planet, just as the bible claims Jesus does. Bombs and explosives create a blinding nightmare of light, fire and destruction, similar to the events unleashed by the trumpet-bearing angels from the eighth chapter of the Book of Revelation. It is natural to associated war with the apocalypse, and thus depictions of war should likewise have apocalyptic influences.

I found that some political cartoons are rich with apocalyptic influences while others are completely absent of them. I believe that this is due to the nature of political cartoons. They are meant to convey their message without much scrutiny. You should be able to understand the message within a second. Therefore, the artist must be very simplistic, drawing on easily recognized symbols and relying mental association. Thus, either the apocalyptic symbolism is very apparent or completely absent. The most common apocalyptic symbol would be Death, in the form of the Grim Reaper. There are multitudes of such cartoons and they form their own genre. Within the Vietnam War cartoons that I looked at, I found many cartoons with slight influences but few with explicit apocalyptic imagery other than the Grim Reaper.

This project was an interesting exploration into a period of history unfamiliar to myself, and ended up being an interdisciplinary project combining the fields of history, journalism, art and the apocalyptic paradigm.

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