Image Analysis Assignment

This image was somewhat difficult to decipher initially. After a lot of index-less searching through a large leather-bound anthology of issues of Punch, I found it. The image, titled "Rhodes Colossus Striding from Capetown to Cairo," depicts a massive man standing with one foot on either side (north and south) of the African continent, looking quite noble, wearing clothes typical of what would find on an explorer of the era, with a rifle strapped across his chest. Without knowing specifically who the Rhodes in question is, it can be inferred by reading the adjacent poem that he is either a successful British explorer helping colonize Africa, or is a representation of the colonization of Africa by Britain as a whole. The poem glorifies the imperialist efforts of the British government. It makes a point of describing Rhodes as "Brobdingnagian Bagman, big Dreamer of Dreams, A titan of tact and shrewd trader--shrewd trader! A diplomat full of finesse and sharp schemes, With a touch of the pious Crusader--Crusader! A 'Dealer' with despots, a 'Squarer' of Kings, A jumper of mountain, lake, wilderness, wady, and manager 'cute of such troublesome things as Lobengula or the Mahdi--the Mahdi." The indigenous people are referred to as "wild would-be Scuttlers" in one line, "sullen Boers," in the next, and "plack potentates." The sing-song, jovial tone in which the poem is written depicts the casualness with which imperialism and exploitation of an entire continent of people was approached by the bulk of the British people. Rhodes is depicted as civilizing the black people, doing it with ease, bringing them culture and religion and work to do, showing how "easy" it is to colonize a place and marginalize all its peoples. The last stanza emphasizes the fortitude of the British people taking on their "noble" cause of civilizing the "dark continent" despite the lowered price of South African shares, referring to themselves as "trade martyrs." The patriotism in the last 4 lines makes it clear that the Colossus in question is more a metaphor for Britain than an actual person, explaining that "Scuttlers will have their work cut out to shunt this stalwart, far-striding Colossus--Colossus." Upon first reading of the poem, I interpreted it as a baseline applause for British imperialism in Africa, but when delving into it further, it appears that it could potentially be a satirical poke at the people who work for these "bosses" (or "diplomats" or "Titans," as the poem describes them) that represent Britain's best interest when actually on the ground. The lines "We brave Britons are still to the front--Provided we've someone to boss us--to boss us" present a bit of irony--these people who Britain marginalizes, oppresses, and enslaves are being bossed around by people who are being bossed around themselves. This dichotomy between poorly-treated British workers and actual enslaved people is made fun of by the poem which seems to emphasize how absurd it is to complain about it at all when you in fact are not the one who is being enslaved. The introduction of almost Swift-ian language like "brobdingnagian" supports the ironic nature of the poem. Punch is full of political cartoons and satiric commentary, perhaps being one of the first publications that did for the public what The Onion now does for us. It is interesting to contemplate whether or not one would make the satire about such an empire that the colonization business was in the British economy at this time.