'Jalo puolustustaistelu inhaa itää vastaan' - mutta erilaisin painotuksin. Talvisota Suomen ja läntisten maiden pilapiirroksissa

摘要

The purpose of the article is to create a general idea of what kind of caricatures relating to the Winter War were published in the Finnish press and the press of the western countries during the war, and why those drawings were of a certain nature. By western countries, I especially refer to the United States, the United Kingdom and France. When observing how the Winter War came across in the caricatures published in the press, a distinction should be made between the Finnish press and foreign press, or in this case, the press of the western countries. As the other fronts of the Second World War were very quiet during the Winter War, the Winter War became very prominent in foreign media. It could be said that Finland was at the centre of the world's attention more during the Winter War than any other time before or since. That is why caricatures were also published in abundance and as a constant flow. When analysing the drawings published in foreign newspapers, the key themes and perspectives can be divided into three main groups. In foreign caricatures, the key theme was to present the Winter War as a battle between David and Goliath. Another theme, which was very popular during the whole duration of the Winter War, was the view of Finns as masters of arctic warfare, and the third element was to present Finland as a vanguard of the West. Three significant themes also appeared in Finnish caricatures during the war, but they differed from those favoured by the foreign press. One of the key subject matters was the enemy's cruelty. Another widely presented theme was the enemy's barbarity, and the third theme was that the enemy could be beaten, despite being dangerous. It is very difficult to accurately measure the effects of the caricatures. However, it can be demonstrated that, based on all the theoretical and experimentally confirmed research knowledge, visual communication has a good chance of affecting its subjects. The messages embedded in the drawings were clear in either case, and consistent in their own group. Therefore, it is probable that, as an important element of psychological warfare, the caricatures bolstered the Finns' will to fight and did their part in creating the famous spirit of the Winter War. Foreign caricatures may have had a significant role in turning the opinion of the public at large in Finland's favour.%Tämän artikkelin tarkoituksena on hahmotella yleiskuva siitä, millaisia talvisotaan liittyneitä pilapiirroksia ilmestyi suomalaisessa ja läntisten maiden lehdistössä sodan aikana ja miksi piirrokset olivat juuri tietynlaisia. Läntisillä mailla tarkoitan tässä yhteydessä ennen muuta Yhdysvaltoja, Isoa-Britanniaa ja Ranskaa. Artikkeli ei pyri olemaan puhdasverinen tieteellinen artikkeli, vaan se on tyypiltään lähinnä katsaus -toki tutkimustyöhön pohjautuva. Ulkomaiden osalta on käyty läpi kunkin maan johtava, sitoutumaton yleissanomalehti: The New York Times (USA), The Times (Iso-Britannia) ja Le Temps (Ranska) sekä kursorisemmin muita sitoutumattomia lehtiä ja puolueiden äänenkannattajia, joita on ollut saatavana digitalisoidussa muodossa.