Existing comment:
The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country.
-- Thomas Paine, 1776
Panel 7, 1954
Thomas Paine first published these lines in a pamphlet called The Crisis during the British siege of New York and incursions into New Jersey. In the wake of setbacks against the British forces, he sensed a wavering commitment in many Americans and urged them to commit to the freedom cause. This painting shows groups of revolutionary soldiers huddled together against the cold in contrast to the single figure at the far right. Seated alone and pensive, he is one of the 9,000 black soldiers who fought within the approximately 200,000 strong continental army and militia. Lawrence drew attention to the solitary struggle of this particular patriot by rendering him in sunshine yellow and positioning his musket firmly upright, signaling his steady devotion. |