This cartoon “Entre dos luces” by Tovar appeared in La Voz, a Madrid newspaper published between 1920 and the Spanish Civil War.
In the dialogue, the Electric Light affirms that it is better and represents progress. The oil lamp replies that with its little lights, she is the one who represents it … but that of spending to light up! It thus makes itself ridiculous in the eyes of the reader.
The representation of the technologies have a strong symbolic dimension that should not be overlooked. The fact that they are anthropomorphic prompts the reader to identify with technologies. The light bulb is distinctly associated with an urban man, while the kerosene lamp with a peasant woman, recognizable by her hooves. The efficiency of electric lighting, at the expense of the oil lamp, is represented by a play of shadows and lines. The greatest safety of light bulbs, by the leaking drops of the fuel bottle and the lamp beak. Finally the odor nuisance of the petroleum system is visible thanks to the smoke trail.
This illustration is a double testimony: that of a technology overshadowing another, thanks to its better socio-economic competitiveness; that of the socio-cultural dimension of energy choices.
