Editorial Cartoon – I have Total Authority
The American political cartoonist Sheneman captured this cartoon as an illustration of how President Trump has been using excessive power to silence other leaders. According to the cartoon, it is clear that Trump has been using power to silent governs and other leaders who have an opposing opinion. Sheneman captured this cartoon as a reminder of how the American country has been poorly managed. The cartoonist is not happy with the President, advisers, and his followers. The cartoon shows that the issue of power in the country has not been well-addressed, and that’s the President is using excessive powers to silence every citizen who opposes his idea. The cartoon further shows how a state of anarchy could be created if the right measures are not initiated to tame the President’s arrogance.
There are numerous ways to analyze a political cartoon, and I am going to use the simplest one to make sure everybody heeds to the message. My analysis will consist of text, context, and subtext. This approach will make the cartoon look clearer, and everybody will be in a better position to fathom the information. The first step will be the examination of the ‘text’ present in the cartoon. Text in cartoon incorporates all captions and words present in the framing of the cartoon. The assumption made is that the artist uses each word with a reason, and we should dig deep to comprehend the intended information. Regularly, cartoons have deeper meanings that rely on people’s understanding based on how close and familiar they have been with graphic designs.
The second step is to explore the context of the cartoon. Context is what is outside the cartoon. The context captures the background and the idea behind the publishing of the cartoon. Therefore, it is imperative to consider all the events that triggered the framing of the work. For instance, there are several editorial cartoons regarding the bombing of churches in different parts of the world. Cartoonist applies context in their work to create an argument. In this case, the reader or the viewer of the cartoon is required to look deeper into the context of the story. The reader is required to understand the intention of the cartoonist by reading in between the lines.
The third step is the cartoonist’s subtext. In this case, I am going to explain the deeper meaning of the cartoon in light of context and text. This aspect helps people to understand the ultimate purpose of the cartoon as well as the targeted people. This particular stage also offers the readers of the viewers an opportunity to decide where they stand. They can choose to support the information provided by the cartoon or disagree. At this point, people can jump into conclusions and make their own opinions. In precise, the idea behind these three steps is to offer an insight into the deep meaning of cartoons. Cartoons have so much information veiled in them. Therefore, readers should find better ways of analyzing the context to understand the purpose and the targeted individuals.
If you look close to the editorial cartoon by Sheneman, at first sight, you will see words on President Donald Trump disrespecting and undermining other leaders. In America, the constitution is very clear, and every leader has stipulated guidelines under the law on how to execute his or her duties. It was uncalled for President Donald Trump to tell his fellow leaders that he has the total authority. This is to means that he can do anything he wishes without consulting and without referring to the constitution. As a leader, and especially the President, it is imperative to honor the constitution and lead as per law. As the President he should respect other leaders, citizens, and, more importantly, the constitution.
Analysis
Text; ‘I have the total authority/ governor,’ Trump is telling the governors that he has total authority and power that he can lead as he wishes. The people being targeted in the cartoon are the governors. Donald Trump wants to make it clear to the governors that he is the President, and has the capacity to control activities of the country without being questioned. He wants to exert fear to other leaders so that he can lead in his own desires. I think Trump needs to wake up from the sleeping slumber and understand the leadership of intimidation is a thing of the past.
Context; Trump is using intimidation to threaten other leaders from questioning him about his poor tactics of leadership. The country’s economy is dropping, and malicious cases of immigration are rising, but he has not hatched any vital strategy to counter the problem. The cartoon wanted to show how authoritative President Trump is and how desperate he is to use everything within his powers to coerce other leaders. Furthermore, the cartoon shows how the President is not open to critics, and therefore wants to use power to silence everybody.
Subtext; Sheneman argues that Trump is a dictator who is not open to critics. He is so determined to silence everybody who opposes his idea. His theatrics and intimidation ways leadership has proven that Trump is not competent enough to lead a country like America. Every leader should humble himself and be ready to be corrected whenever he makes mistakes. Additionally, as a leader, Trump should know that critics help people grow. Critic acts as a reminder to people when they go out of their ways. So, instead of getting infuriated, he should embrace critics and change his habits to serve American people. Trump should also learn how to respect other leaders and get to understand that they are elected to serve the interest of Americans but not his ego. He should also learn to work according to the limits of the constitution.
I am forced to believe that the work of Sheneman is in the realm of possibility. He framed the cartoon based on the events taking place in White House currently. The theme of the cartoon was to capture the arrogance of the President and how he wants to use power to evade questions related to his performance and decision-making processes. The cartoon further shows how other leaders are ready to confront him about the matters related to the interest of Americans. They are prepared to remind him that the powers of President and executive, in general, are limited. He has no rights whatsoever to lead as he wishes or desires, but as per the law. All other leaders should stand firm to discourage atrocity and misuse of powers.