After world war ii, the united states and soviet union emerged as the only global superpowers. although both were allies in world war ii, both nations had fundamentally different governments and economic systems. in europe, the soviet union controlled eastern european countries, while western european countries remained democratic and capitalist.
in europe this communist/non-communist divide between the west and the east became very apparent, especially after a speech given by british prime minister winston churchill. on march 5, 1946, sir winston churchill gave a now infamous speech known as the “iron curtain speech." in this speech he describes this division in europe: "from stettin in the baltic to trieste in the adriatic an "iron curtain" has descended across the continent.

1. notice the “no admittance by order joe” sign on the iron curtain. who is “joe,” and what country does he represent?

2. why is winston churchill peeking underneath the 'iron curtain'? what does this suggest about the nature of the iron curtain? consider the connotation of the words.

3. compare the 2 sides that the iron curtain is dividing. using you knowledge from the lessons and/or class, what are the primary differences between the two sides?

4. identify one more detail/symbol from this political cartoon and describe what purpose the artist is trying to illustrate with it. remember, relate it to the cold war period and details we have been discussing in class and/or learning in lessons.