In this political
cartoon, President Donald Trump is depicted at an Olympic swimming event
alongside strong, muscular athletes whereas he is drawn as very fat and is
wearing floating helpers to suggest that he cannot swim nor will he do well in
the race. A speech bubble drawn above Trump says, “Remember, if I lose, this
race is rigged.” (Luckovich). The sketch was produced by Mike Luckovich, a
prominent political cartoonist for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and was
awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning and the Rueben Award for
Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year. He makes many anti-Trump and pro-democratic
cartoons rich in rhetoric and string reasoning. The image makes a powerful
statement about Trump’s claims during the presidential election season about
how if he lost to Hillary Clinton, he would say that the election was rigged
and influenced by fake votes. In the picture, the Olympics are a symbol for the
presidential election and the well-trained swimmers portray the more qualified
politicians that were in the running alongside Trump. Luckovich uses the
symbolism in the cartoon to show the viewer how Trump is making outrageous
claims about the election process and that it should be expected that he loses
because he is nowhere near as trained and deserving of the high position. No
one would expect the fat, untrained Olympian to win just like people shouldn’t
expect the mean candidate with no political experience to win the highest
esteemed honor in America. Furthermore, the image suggests that Trump should
not make claims about voting interference for the aforementioned reason, and
that doing so makes him seem unappreciative and much like a sore loser. The
symbolism in the carton were very successful in achieving the purpose of the
cartoonists as the message was clearly stated and identifiable by any informed
reader.
Sunday, February 26, 2017
Monday, February 20, 2017
TOW #19
Malcolm
Gladwell, an acclaimed and renowned author, wrote a book which describes how
one can overcome their obstacles and become successful. David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants
is an uplifting book that employs statistical analysis and biblical allusions
to inform the reader about underdogs and their favorable odds despite their
countless setbacks. When discussing the probability of a weaker country
winning a war, Gladwell cites a political scientist, writing, “Ivan
Arrenguin-Toft did the calculations a few years ago, what he came up with was
71.5 percent. [… but] when the weak side does as David did and refuses to fight
the way the bigger side wants to fight […] the weaker party’s winning
percentage climbs from 28.5 percent to 63.6 percent.” (Gladwell 21-22). In
order to show the reader how likely it is for the weaker party to be victorious
through the use of alternative methods, Gladwell uses statistical analysis to
appeal to logos. He thereby proves to the reader that it is very much possible
that they can successfully use these tactics to their advantage, not just in
international war, but day-to-day life as well. Gladwell also conveys this
message to his readers by constantly alluding to the biblical story of David
and Goliath. In the aforementioned quote, Gladwell states ‘the weak side does
as David did’ as an example of how people can use different methods to win. As
the story goes, Goliath was a giant who was sent by his army to fight a man
from the opposing army, to which they sent David, an average Shepard’s boy. No
one on either side expected David to win in hand-to-hand combat, but he
surprised them by throwing a rock at Goliath instead, using the distance between
them to his advantage. This took Goliath by surprise and knocked him
unconscious and then David finished his job by cutting off Goliath’s head. By
referencing this story often and especially by naming the book after it,
Gladwell is able to remind the reader of how the underdog has been triumphant
throughout history and that anyone else can be too. Therefore, Malcolm Gladwell
successfully uses statistical analysis and biblical allusions to convince his
reader that although the weaker side may not be expected to win, they easily
can with an alternative method.
Sunday, February 12, 2017
TOW #18
One
February 1st, 2017, world-renowned pop/rock sensation Beyoncé posted
an image to the prominent social media site Instagram
to announce her second pregnancy to twins with her rapper husband, Jay-Z. The image shows Beyoncé kneeing on a bed of
grass, in front of a halo-shaped flower garland, masked in a mint green veil
and clutching her pregnant stomach. In the caption of the image, she surprised
the world with her message, writing, “We would like to share our love and
happiness. We have been blessed two times over. We are incredibly grateful that
our family will be growing by two, and we thank you for your well wishes. – The
Carters” (Beyoncé). The sky above her is blue with one or two small clouds to
symbolize how she hopes her pregnancy and the lives of her two unborn children
will be. Parents want the best for their children, so Beyoncé used the
background of her image to foreshadow the hopeful future of her children. Beyoncé
also uses visual rhetoric in the veil that covers her face. It is green, which
is a neutral color, to avoid ideas about the gender of the child. In addition
to the clear sky and the green veil, Beyoncé used rhetoric in her text as well.
Recent events and rumors would suggest that Beyoncé and her husband may not
have been on the best of terms for the past few months or even year, but her
anaphora in the caption of the word ‘we’ signifies a unity of the couple and is
used to show the reader and viewer that the couple is strong and united. This
reassured anyone who ever doubted their marriage that it is still okay, and
proves that thy will be civil parents of their children. Though very subtle,
these strategic details enhance the message Beyoncé is trying to convey through
her post about her developing pregnancy and successfully express certain ideas.
Sunday, February 5, 2017
TOW #17
On
January 20th, 2009, President Barack Obama was sworn into office as
the president of the United States. Following his inauguration, he addressed
the public with a moving speech about how the nation must work together in
order to solve the plethora of issues it faced at the time. Throughout his time
in office, Obama diligently worked to push past barriers and create the optimal
environment for a nation of diverse citizens to prosper in. He made strides in
lowering the price of health care, increasing minimum wage, legalizing gay
marriage, and decreasing the unemployment rate as well as many other important
actions. Some things he worked hard for yet did not change very much or still
require effort to improve for a multitude of reasons. In his speech, Obama
said, “Our health care is too
costly, our schools fail too many, and each day brings further evidence that
the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.”
(Obama). The president made a valid remark about the American School System
that continues to hold true today despite his valiant efforts to resolve its
problems. The schools in America continue to fail far too many of its students
because of the rigid nature of its schedule and curriculum. Children in school
are forced to make up their minds about the careers they wish to pursue past
graduation but are then denied the supplements that are vital to achieving
their goals. For example, say a student loves art and is very bad at their
other subjects. A gifted student will still be required to take their core
classes even if they are failing because they are trying to focus on the
classes that truly matter to them and will actually help them reach their full
potential as an artist. Such a situation would hold a student back from getting
into a good college as a result of their poor grades and thus inhibit that
student from receiving a good art education. This is just one hypothetical
example in the midst of millions of real stories of how the school system has
continually failed the students of America and led to an overall increase in
stress levels and anxiety amongst students. Obama uses this argument as an
example in a larger, inductive reasoning in which he uses examples like the
failing school system and the high prices of health insurance to conclude that
America was going through a troubling period in its history. Valid examples
such as this aided his argument immensely and proved how true his point really
was.
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