This Is A Short Presentation To Explain The Character of Uncle Sam, Made by Ivo Bogoevski

This document summarizes the character of Uncle Sam, the national personification of the United States. Uncle Sam is typically depicted as an elderly white man with white hair, goatee, and striped clothing resembling the American flag. The term originated during the War of 1812 and first appeared in literature in 1816. By the Civil War, Uncle Sam had overtaken earlier personifications like "Brother Jonathan." The iconic image of Uncle Sam pointing and declaring "I want you" was created by James Montgomery Flag for World War I recruitment in 1917. The character became a popular icon in political cartoons representing the United States.

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This Is A Short Presentation To Explain The Character of Uncle Sam, Made by Ivo Bogoevski

Uploaded by

Ivo Bogoevski

Available Formats

Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

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This is a short presentation to

explain the character of Uncle

Sam, made by Ivo Bogoevski.
Uncle Sam
Uncle Sam is a national personification of the
United States and sometimes more specifically of
the American government, with the first usage of
the term dating from the War of 1812. He is
depicted as a stern elderly white man with white
hair and a goatee beard, and dressed in clothing
that recalls the design elements of flag of the
United States—for example, typically a top hat
with red and white stripes and white stars on a
blue band, and red and white striped trousers.
The first use of the term in literature is seen in
an 1816 allegorical book, The Adventures of
Uncle Sam in Search After His Lost Honour by
Frederick Augustus Fidfaddy, Esq.
Earlier representative figures of the United
States included such beings as "Brother
Jonathan," used by Punch magazine. These
were overtaken by Uncle Sam somewhere
around the time of the Civil War. The female
personification "Columbia" has seldom been
seen since the 1920s. The well-known
"recruitment" image of Uncle Sam was created
by James Montgomery Flag, an illustrator and
portrait artist best known for commercial art.
The image of Uncle Sam was shown publicly for the first time,
according to some, in a picture by Flag on the cover of the
magazine Leslie's Weekly, on July 6, 1916, with the caption
"What Are You Doing for Preparedness?“ More than four million
copies of this image were printed between 1917 and 1918. The
image also was used extensively during World War II.
In the year 1812, a large quantity of
provisions for the army was purchased at
Troy, N.Y., by Elbert Anderson, a government
contractor. The goods were inspected by two
brothers, Ebenezer and Samuel Wilson. The
last named was invariably known among the
workmen as "Uncle Sam." The packages were
marked E.A.-U.S. On being asked the meaning
of these initials, a workman jokingly replied
that he didn't know unless they meant Elbert
and Uncle Sam. So, the title became current
among the workmen, soldiers, and people,
and the United States Government is now
known affectionately as "Uncle Sam"
Uncle Sam became a useful, popular icon in cartoons, much
like the John Bull character who represented the United
Kingdom, or the Uncle Lewis character who represented
France. John Bull and Uncle Sam have squared off in hundreds
of political cartoons throughout the years.
The most famous image of the Uncle Sam persona was a
World War I recruiting image that depicted a stern Sam
pointing his finger at the viewer and declaring, "I want you."
This was painted by artist James Montgomery Flag in the year
of 1917, just prior to US involvement in World War I.