Mother’s Day 

Jack Davis created this caricature, "Mother’s Day," to humorously depict motherhood. Davis was a prolific illustrator, whose career gained momentum in the post-World War II era, a period marked by shifting gender roles and the rise of consumer culture in America. The cartoon offers a sardonic view of the idealized image of motherhood. Davis exaggerates the mother’s frazzled appearance: her eyes are glazed over, tongue lolling out as she vacuums, while her son tugs at her hair. The sentimentality usually associated with Mother’s Day is replaced with an image of a woman pushed to her limits by the demands of domesticity. Davis subverts the cultural norms which expect women to find fulfillment in housework and childcare. The garish style and exaggerated features reflect the emotional and psychological toll that these expectations place on mothers. Davis challenges the viewer to consider the lived experience of women behind the sentimental facade of motherhood.