Quoth the raven: “Evermore!”

A raven labeled as “Commoner / W. J. Bryan” stands on top of a donkey head with the label of “democracy.”

comments and context

Comments and Context

Robert Carter was a talented political cartoonist who drew for papers in New York, Philadelphia, and Boston over the course of his career. The political perspectives he represented in his drawings varied. During President Roosevelt’s second term, Carter worked for William Randolph Hearst and often received up to half a page of newspaper to fill with his detailed cartoons. Hearst also featured Carter’s work in the opening pages of his “City Life” and “American Magazine” Sunday sections. Several years later, Winsor McCay’s art would fill these spots.

In this particular cartoon, Carter (and Hearst’s editorial writer, Arthur Brisbane) made the point that perennial presidential candidate William Jennings Bryan seemed unlikely to ever depart the national political scene. They borrow their imagery and wordplay from Edgar Allen Poe’s famous poem, “The Raven.” Bryan, who also published a weekly newspaper called The Commoner between campaigns, firmly squats in raven form on a bust of the Democratic donkey. Poe’s raven mournfully cries “Nevermore!” to the poem’s increasingly grief-stricken narrator. Bryan expresses his determination to keep trying for the presidency with his own version of that refrain: “Evermore!” However, the donkey clearly does not welcome his presence.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-07-11

Creator(s)

Carter, Robert, 1875-1918

Language

English

Period

U.S. President – 2nd Term (March 1905-February 1909)

Page Count

1

Production Method

Printed

Record Type

Image

Resource Type

Cartoon

Rights

These images are presented through a cooperative effort between the Library of Congress and Dickinson State University. No known restrictions on publication.

Citation