For this research task I have been asked to analyse and make notes about a chosen 2 panel story. I had to choose out of three stories. I chose one called ‘English School, Front Cover of ‘John Bull’ (1955) © The Advertising Archives’.

I chose the above images as I enjoyed the high energy levels throughout both images.

The questions I need to answer are:

What happened between the first and second pictures?

I think in between the two images the children have eaten too much sugar and the novelty of Christmas has worn off. The children have gone from all kind and sweet and accepting and giving gifts to each other to an ‘after-meal’ sugar rush!

Was it an event that took place over time, or are the two pictures ‘symbolic’ of something bigger?

The event that took place over time was a Christmas dinner.

What is the mood or atmosphere of the story? Is it meant to be serious, funny, scary, political or something else?

I think the atmosphere of the story is funny. It’s quite comical showing how quickly everything turns to s**t when Christmas is involved. The children have started off well behaved and have ended up having tantrums and the adult has started off in control of the situation and ended up giving up after many times trying to get the children to behave. The woman looks as though she is going to burst into tears. It’s a story that many people would identify with as probably about 90% of families end up have some sort of squabble during the holidays!