The cartoon: Teddy Roosevelt and Bears Political Cartoon
Question: What message is being sent about the bear marked 'good trust'?
Answer: The man in the middle with a rifle represents Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th president of the United States. The bears represent trust. The bear labeled "bad trust" represents the corrupt trusts and the bear labeled "good trusts" represents the trusts that are not corrupt. The bear that is not labeled on the right side is considered a hard-working, non-corrupt corporations. The cartoon shows that Teddy Roosevelt believed there were "good trusts" and "bad trusts" and that he was determined to control the "bad trusts" and that he had no intention in shutting down the "good trusts," but the trusts that were destroyed by Teddy Roosevelt became motivation for other trusts to reform themselves.
Question: Would you consider this cartoon to be supportive of Roosevelt efforts? why or why not?
Answer: Yes, this cartoon is very supportive to Theodore Roosevelt’s efforts. Why? Because he was the 26th president of the United States with objectives to confront the struggle between management and labor head-on and became known as the great “trust buster” for his great efforts to break up industrial combinations under the Sherman Antitrust Act. He also was known for his amazing act on setting aside 200 million acres for national forests, reserves and wildlife refuges during his presidency. He even won the Nobel Peace Prize for his negotiations to end the Russo-Japanese War. This only tells us that he was a determined man who wanted to control bad trusts. The bear labeled "good trusts" is not hunted, but rather in the corner. This shows that Roosevelt did not wish to shut down good trusts, but by killing the bad trusts, his intentions were to have the good trusts reform themselves as well. They were still under Roosevelt's control however, as the "good trusts" bear is on Teddy's leash.