Image analysis exercise

'Daddy, what did YOU do in the Great War?' - Savile Lumley (1915) 

'The "Uncle Sam" Range' - Schuacher & Ettlinger (1876)

The two posters sell an aspirational lifestyle unlike one another (In culture and attitudes), yet both use and play on the methods of selling this lifestyle in ways which are very similar.

The lifestyle being sold by the ‘Uncle Sam’s Range’ is the ‘American dream’; prosperity and success.  Everything that the middle-class American aspires to is advertised here, apart from how the range functions. The connotations that come along with the range are of patriotism and wealth, this is indicated by over the top stars and stripes, representative of the American flag. This then ties in with the attitudes drawn upon in Lumley’s poster with small differences. Lumley draws more upon guilt to inspire patriotism and a better lifestyle. They’re both very stereotypical and play on that, they just utilise it in different ways: ‘Uncle Sam’s range’ is in your face, full force American. Whereas in Lumley’s poster, it’s a play on the subconscious, it’s subtle. Yet its effect is at core trying to influence you to be patriotic and play your part in the war. That’s incredibly British. It’s the combination of pressure and guilt that is within the poster that makes the audience want to aspire to have a better lifestyle.

The attitudes displayed in both posters towards the audience is very different too, In Lumley’s poster the audience is been judged, guilty of not participating in the ‘Great war’ it’s a flash-forward looking in the retrospect.  This, and the fact that the little girl is reading what looks like a history book of Britain's victory at war, along with the little boy reenact what his daddy did during the war, it’s a complacent assumption.  It’s this is significantly different to the ‘Uncle Sam’s Range’ poster which judges the world through stereotypes. America has only been independent for 100 years yet it is already superior to all other countries, seen from the racist options on the menu. It’s America and the world and this is more than evident within the imagery with the world the opposite side to America.

The wording as well suggests America’s power: “Feeding the world by the aid of…” It’s an arrogant self-imposition that they’re the ones feeding the world with this new range, or well ‘aiding’.  This self-importance is similar to the slogan in Lumley’s poster: “Daddy, what did YOU do in the Great War?” on that aspect it’s the self-importance of an object and person and who it’s aimed at. Although Lumley’s is a lot more personal and direct, the italic, capitalised and underline score this perfectly.  It’s a direct, whereas the range is simply stating how great it is. The heading comes off as over the top, the gold text relating to the wealth held by America is just another power and status symbol, along with the eagle and black slave. There’s a strong contrast between the two of them, Lumley’s being a lot more modest and realistic of a presumption of the lifestyle attainable and to aspire to. It’s a middle-class aspiration, whereas ‘Uncle Sam’s Range’ brings a superficial social status and power to the middle-class.