ART I DIG: JOIN, or die.

Join, or die. refers to a political cartoon that find it’s roots in the year 1754—Published in the pennsylvania gazette, benjamin franklin was making a commentary on the lack of unity from the thirteen colonies during the french and indian war. it’s now become more famously known for its use during the american revolution— an image to encourage the thirteen colonies to unite in the fight for INDEPENDENCE. The original print was made from a hand-carved woodcut. the snake is cut into eighths, and each segment is labeled with the initials of the original thirteen colonies— as pictured, the region of new england was grouped into one of the eight segments. the image was primarily focused on colonies that claimed shared identities as americans— along with the image, franklin had written an editorial about the “disunited state” of the colonies— it later became that iconic symbol of freedom as we know it.