Business Advertisement Card: "Van Houten's Cocoa"

Children were terrific advertising tools in American trade cards, with producers often using
charming images of young people to increase consumer sentiments and facilitate a positive
reputation for their brands. Also, these children were often depicted as engaging in consumer
lifestyles, a trend that their peers found inspiring. Additionally, some advertisers used sympathy
for children–often depicting them as downtrodden or impoverished–to advertise the negative
issues of industrialized society. This card for Van Houten’s Cocoa demonstrates this trend by
presenting an image of two boys playing with the intent of gaining favorable attention from
consumers.

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