The Nuanced Comic Perspectives of the Cartoons in Mr. Punch’s History of the Great War

Abstract

Created in 1841 as a radical, satirical magazine, Punch, or The London Charivari,¹ had become, by the beginning of the twentieth century, a well-established British publication aimed largely at the middle classes. The outbreak of the Great War reinforced the movement away from its subversive origins, as Punch, like the rest of the print media, had little choice other than to adopt the strongly patriotic stance that the exceptional circumstances required, using its pages to sustain civilian morale and humor for the cathartic effect of banishing, however temporarily, grief and fear. The constraints on editor (Sir) Owen Seaman were considerable: the need to reflect the public mood and avoid alienating readers, the obligation to respect the limits imposed by military censorship and the necessity of obeying the rigors of the all-encompassing Defence of the Realm Act.² All these factors help to explain the relatively conformist standpoint of the magazine and to justify the frequently not markedly comic content of many of its wartime numbers.