Activity Description
1. Introduce the lesson by asking students to describe or display an example of how
a powerful visual image conveys a complicated message. Rather than refer to
television or film, encourage students to examine print media, book covers, cd
covers, or posters.
2. Following an initial discussion of the examples they have presented, introduce
the idea that the visual arts play a crucial role in motivating civilian populations
during times of war and crisis. It's essential to remind students that visual
propaganda is a powerful tool, and has played a fundamental role in creating and
controlling popular opinions in both authoritarian and democratic societies.
3. Establish an historical context for the use of posters in Republican Spain having
students review two key sites:
Read
Jewish Volunteers in the Spanish Civil War: Why Spain?
and click on
the link for the exhibit
Shouts from the Wall
From the Visual Front, advanced students can read the
Introduction to the
Exhibit
4. Following this introduction, have students brainstorm what functions might
posters have played during wartime in general, and in Republican Spain in
particular? Have students list what key messages would posters need to convey.
5. Divide students into pairs or small groups. Either in a computer lab in school or
as homework, students will examine several online archives of posters from
Republican Spain. Their primary task is to locate and interpret at least three key
examples of how posters communicated key information, principles, or ideas.
Ideally, students should know how to copy and paste images from these
websites, and use them in a presentation for the class.
6. Before beginning, introduce students to the following technique for interpreting
posters:
O
bserve: Without assigning meaning, simply study the poster for several
minutes, listing all images, text, dates, references to locations, etc.
A
nalyze: Using existing background knowledge about this period, discuss
what might have been the goal of this poster. Develop and evaluate several
alternative ideas about the poster.
I
nterpret: Combine your observations, analyses, and any additional
information about this period into a succinct interpretation of the poster.
Consider the intended audience and what impact this poster would have had
upon people who saw it.
7. Students can use the sites below, rather than pursue any Internet search engines.
