Great_Britian

Great Britain and the Colonies wade davis HIS/115 September 29, 2011 Jeff Hanford Great Britain and the Colonies Paying the Taxman (1775) is portraying the unwillingness of the colonist to continue tolerating Britain’s unreasonable taxes on both imported and exported goods. The image itself is also a representation of the colonists and there frustration level at being told they now must accept another additional tax known as the Stamp Act. In the image the taxman is portrayed as the, “victim” that is being tarred, feathered, and forced to drink a pot of tea. The colonists are portrayed as a merry bunch of men from different walks of colonial life. The significance of the tree is mainly found within the name and the noose hanging from the branch of the tree. Patrick Henry had by this point in history said, Give me liberty or give me death. The tree represents were the colonist stand and the noose represents the fact that they are willing to die to get liberty from Britain. The three ships in the background are a representation of the act that took place the night of the Boston Tea Party. The colonists are dumping the tea down into the water. This brings us back to the tree where there is a note nailed upside down that states, Stamp Tax. The image is an excellent representation of the rift that was growing between the colonies and Great Britain because it shows not only how they felt at that moment in time but it also shows events that led up to that point.