Question

Why did cartoonist thomas nast portray boss william tweed is a vulture feeding on the city of new york?

Answer 1

Answer:

Cartoonist Thomas Nast portrayed Boss William Tweed as a vulture feeding on the City Of New York because of the amount of corruption perpetrated by Tweed and his administration at Tammany Hall.  

Explanation:

From 1866 to 1871, shortly after the American Civil War, New York City was taken control of by the corrupt Tammany  Hall.

Tammany Hall was headed by Boss William Tweed, who was in charge of a seemingly unstoppable well-oiled political machine.  

He awarded numerous contracts and received kickbacks.  

During Tweeds five years in power Tammany Hall stole over 50 million dollars from the New York City Treasury nearly a billion dollars in today's equivalent putting New York City into immense debt .  

Boss Tweed’s unscrupulous administration was eventually taken down in large part due to the incredibly influential illustrations of political cartoonist Thomas Nast, who, when encountering the corruption of Tammany Hall, put his life and career on the line to explore the potential of cartooning as a medium of political activism. The influence of powerful cartoons, including one in which Tweed is depicted as a vulture feeding on the City Of New York, played an essential role in the eventual removal of the political machine from power.  

Answer 2

William Magear "boss" Tweed is a corrupt representative who defrauds millions of dollars from New Yorkers. He and his peers in the Democratic Party in New York exploit their power in the government for personal gain. As a civil reformer and a cartoonist, Thomas Nast portrays William Tweed as a vulture who preys on New Yorkers.