Political caricatures in colonial Egypt: Visual representations of the people and the nation

This paper looks at images of political caricatures published between the years of 1926 and 1931 in two Egyptian newspapers: al-Kashkūl and al-Siyāsa al-Usbu‘iyya. This marks a unique time in Egyptian national discourse when it was seeking to secure complete political independence from British occupation. This period falls in the interwar period between WWI and WWII. Before it was the 1919 revolution against British occupation, which led to Egypt nominal independence 1922, and the implementation of a new constitution. And following this period was the 1952 revolution, which led to the overthrow of the Egyptian monarchy and complete independence from the British occupation.

The visual analysis of the 322 caricatures aims to interpret the meanings embodied in those images in relation to the nation. The lens of social and cultural psychology is used to understand the politics of these images in visually constructing national identity, positioning different social actors in the social and political context, and feeding into an enduring national discourse about the agency of the people and the nation. Themes of the analysis reflect on concepts of visibility, national identity, agency, and the representation of the nation as a woman.