Cartoons by the Master

        At first glance, anyone who has been around American pop culture most likely recognizes the style of this illustration as the work of Dr. Seuss. Therefore, without reading the caption, you would assume that the subject is one that is light-hearted and silly, given his previous work. You  quickly find out otherwise by only the forth word of the caption.
        The title of the book and the insignia on the spine key the reader in on the fact that the "Foreign Children" being discussed are the Jewish and other minority people being slaughtered in Europe. He even brings the viewers attention to these words by underlining and capitalizing them.The opinion of the woman is show by the words she says, the words on her t-shirt, and the snooty, I'm-the-only-one-that-matters look on her face. She thinks that since the problems in Europe during World War II don't directly affect her and her country, she doesn't need to worry. By the nonchalant tone of her words and the very disagreeable look on her face, we can see that the point that Dr. Seuss is trying to make is that it doesn't matter if those effected aren't our people; people are dying and something needs to be done about it.
        I think that there is also an underlying theme of this cartoon. You may have noticed the look of utter shock on the faces of the children on either side of the woman. The cat also looks shocked, but I'm going to focus on the children. Something in the life of the woman has brought her to choose her self-centered wardrobe and opinions. The children on the other hand have not been around for long enough to have been engraved by the chisel of life as deeply as the as the woman has. I believe that what Dr. Seuss is trying to say here is that, if we truly want to make this world a better place, we need to be like a child in our thinking, letting go of past prejudices and caring for all others. we need to turn life's chisel back on the world and turn it into something beautiful, leaving it better than we found it.