In this brilliant adaptation of a 1754 political cartoon and woodcut by Ben Franklin, the University of Pennsylvania historian Benjamin Nathans reimagines the problem of collective action for our own time. You can find the original cartoon and its story here. Suffice to say that Franklin’s cartoon was conceived at the time of the Albany Congress, the precursor to the Continental Congress, to encourage the British American colonies to unite in opposition to French forces and their Native American allies on the eve of what would become the Seven Years War (1754-1763). The original depicts the four New England colonies as a single section of the snake; Georgia and Delaware are missing. The cartoon was subsequently used to mobilize colonial opposition to the British empire and is one of the most iconic images of the American revolutionary era. As we approach the 250th anniversary of American independence, the Nathans adaptation of Franklin is a reminder of the indispensable role that history and collective action can and must play in meeting the challenge of this moment.
