Chicago Anarchists on Trial: Evidence from the Haymarket Affair, 1886-1887
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Historical Analysis and Interpretation
The collection includes several images portraying the events and issues that were central to the Haymarket affair. Search on Morand for a series of paintings commissioned by Congress depicting the demonstrations at the McCormick Reaper Works on May 3 and at Haymarket Square on May 4. Search on Nast for a series of political cartoons published in Harper's Weekly. Search on engravings for other similar illustrations. Analyze some of these images and consider the following interpretive questions.
- To what extent do the Morand paintings provide an accurate account of the conflicts on May 1 and 4?
- Do these paintings reveal a particular point of view about the conflicts?
- What point of view does Thomas Nast communicate in his cartoons?
- How does Nast portray the Chicago police? How does he portray anarchists?
- How did other popular illustrations portray the people, events, and issues of Haymarket?
- What techniques do Nast and the other cartoonists use to convey their opinions about the Haymarket affair?
- How do paintings and cartoons help shape public sentiment toward a historical event?
- How would you expect these illustrations to have influenced public opinion about the bombing at Haymarket and the trial that followed?