'Student handout': Source analysis Rocking the Boat
Analysis: L'enfant Terrible Tenniel, Punch May 10 1980.
Author: British artist Tenniel published in Punch magazine. A famous British weekly magazine of humour and satire that published famous political cartoons about issues of the time.
Origin: Britain, 1890
Content: A cartoon entitled L’enfant Terrible (it is a French term for a child who is terrifyingly outspoken by saying embarrassing things to adults, especially parents). It shows Kaiser Wilhelm II “rocking the boat” It shows other European leaders cowering in the stern of the boat and is captioned “Don’t go on like that – or you’ll upset us all!!” Kaiser Wilhelm II is portrayed as a naughty child who will upset the balance of power in Europe and create problems for the other powers. The cartoonist is suggesting that his actions and ambitions for Germany were a threat to the peace in Europe. In the rowing-boat which Wilhelm is threatening to overturn, are seated figures representative of the Kaiser Franz-Josef of Austria-Hungary, King Umberto of Italy, and Queen-Regent Maria Christina of Spain (with the infant King Alfonso XIII on her shoulder); but in the listing stern of the boat is the figure of ‘Marianne’, representative not of a real ruler but of the French Republic.
Audience: Primarily an English speaking, British, audience however, the cartoons would also have been accessible in other areas of Europe. Readers of the magazine had access to these cartoons but British newspapers also published them such as The Times and the Sunday paper News of the World.
Motive: The ‘L’Enfant Terrible!’ cartoon is very interesting not simply for the way in which Wilhelm II is depicted personally, but also because Tenniel (the artist) intended for the young Kaiser to be representative of his entire nation. – Tenniel was therefore commenting as much on the instability of ‘young’ Germany as on its ruler. The reference in the cartoon is to Wilhelm’s early enthusiasm for a form of socialism. The inference here is that Wilhelm (and by extension Germany), by his reckless courting of the Socialists, is needlessly endangering European stability at a moment when the seas are otherwise as calm as a millpond.
Bias: Punch was a British Magazine and therefore the cartoon is from a British viewpoint. The British would have wanted to make Wilhelm II look bad and skew people’s perception of him towards the negative. They wanted the European population to blame Wilhelm II, and therefore Germany, for all of the problems that were plaguing Europe at the time. Punch had a history of making fun of Kaiser Wilhelm because they saw many of his actions as sheer silliness.
Usefulness: Very useful as a source to show what other European powers thought of Kaiser Wilhelm II and his actions and desires in Europe. It is also an interesting example of the ways in which British tabloids were willing to portray other leaders of Europe.
Reliability: Reliable source of public/media opinion but not necessarily the opinions of the rulers of Britain.
Timing: LA 14 = 1 lesson
Resources
Source Analysis - 'Kaiser Wilhelm II "Rocking the Boat", L'enfant Terrible, May 1890'.
