Seeing It Through (Bus driver)
A tribute poster issued under the London Transport roundel: a London bus driver in profile at the cab door, with a verse addressed to him. The tell for glittering generalities is the verse's praise terms ('bravely', 'master of a trying trade', 'you carry on'), which are virtue words with no figures or stated task, and the poster asks for no action beyond appreciation. It is a morale and gratitude piece for the home front, not a call to act.
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- 1944
- Period
- Second World War
- Made by
- London Transport (roundel), printed by The Baynard Press; artist Eric Kennington (signed EHK 44); verse by A. P. Herbert
- Region
- Western and Central Europe
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- Corporation
- Regime
- Churchill Government
- Leader
- Winston Churchill
- Audience
- Domestic public
- Purpose
- Reassure
- Themes
- Home front, Labor
- Event
- World War II
- Leader
- Winston Churchill
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 44, World War II Foreign Posters, retrieved October 3, 2026
- Rights
- Held by NARA, Unrestricted; UK wartime publication, hosted by owner decision
London Transport; artist Eric Kennington; verse A. P. Herbert; printed by The Baynard Press, National Archives and Records Administration, 44-PF-384d.
Text on the object
SEEING IT THROUGH Bus driver, bus driver, how bravely you steam, Like a very big ship in a very small stream- Every refuge a reef, every shadow a snare- But all are the same to a master of care. Bus driver, we board you, a shivering queue, We're safe and snug now and forget about you: But on through the darkness you rumble alone, With no mate at your side and no eyes but your own. Bus driver, bus driver, the sirens have gone: The bombs may come down, but the buses go on: Bus driver, I know you won't think me a snob If I whisper "Bus driver, I don't want your job." A. P. Herbert [imprint:] 144-115-1500. 42625-THE BAYNARD PRESS
