Reminiscing over the history of cartoons
Cartooning isfarfrom a new art form. Cartoons go back a lot earlierthan Charlie Brown, or even the earliest cartoon newspaper strips.
The word cartoon comes from the Italian word cartone, which means "large paper." The earliest cartoons can be traced back to some very large canvases — prehistoric cave drawings discovered in the late 19th century. These images were painted on the side of a cave and reflected the daily life of early humans. Centuries after people drew all over their cave walls to tell a story, cartoon-style drawing continued to evolve, and by the early 1300s, Egyptians were creating large murals with a series of images thattold a story.
These images were simple and easy for the observer to comprehend. This form of communication proved to be very popular and has continued in one form or another up to the present day.
However, it was the 20th century and the invention of the modern newspaperthat brought most forms of modern cartooning into existence.
Although newspapers today are struggling,
the art of cartooning isn't about to die with the death of newsprint; like the news media, cartoonists have found a new outlet for their work on the Internet.