Resistance Propaganda and the IRA

When I stumbled upon the Irish Republican Army propaganda poster seen below, it immediately caught my attention. While the poster’s design is nothing elaborate, its bright red background, sans-serif text, and striking image are bold in their simplicity. Published in the 1980s, this poster uses all of the aforementioned qualities, along with the content of the text, to assert that violence and sacrifice are necessary components of resistance. This is especially relevant considering the IRA’s history of extremist and violent resistance tactics.

(Republican Movement)

First, the placement and prominence of the figure holding the gun and the word “resistance” is significant because it suggests a strong connection between the two ideas they represent, violence and resistance. Particularly, the placement of the word “resistance” parallel to the gun barrel creates a visual flow in the poster, connoting that the two ideas are concurrent. Also, the figure with the gun and the word “resistance” are easily the most attention-grabbing components of the poster. Their large size and design simplicity draw the eye directly to the two images, once again visually creating an association between the ideas they represent.

            Keeping with the figure with the gun, the fact that the figure is faceless is significant because it allows the audience to place himself or herself as the rebel. This facelessness creates a relationship with the poster’s audience by allowing anyone to see his or herself as the figure holding the gun. This relationship and facelessness also thrust a sense of obligation on the poster’s audience: armed resistance is not only a task of a select few rebels, but it is the task of every Irish citizen.

            Also, the reference to Bobby Sands is an important persuasive element because of his significant credibility in 1980s Ireland. As a prominent figure of the Irish resistance against the British, Bobby Sands led a prison hunger strike that ultimately cost him his life. He is a figure of sacrifice and a figure of death, as his birth and death dates emphasize. His inclusion in the poster also sets a standard for what kind of resistance and sacrifice are expected. In effect, the poster uses Sands reputation, as well as the previously discussed elements, to assert that Irish freedom is worth fighting and dying for.

Republican Movement. Resistance. 1980s. 22 November 2010.

<http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/images/posters/ira/>.