(Fig 1: Jack Ohman’s, Climate change political Cartoon)
(Fig 2: David Horsey’s Climate Change Cartoon)
David Horsey, the Pulitzer Prize winning artist who drew the second image, is a well respected political cartoonist who currently draws for the LA Times. Horsey drew this cartoon for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, and drew the cartoon to criticize the world’s leaders on their handling of the issue of climate change. The cartoon was published just before the 2009 United Nations Climate Change conference in Copenhagen, and he was trying to say that the political leaders are not really solving the problem of climate change, and we keep inching closer and closer to total disaster. This cartoon argues that climate change is a monumental issue that the world is currently facing, and the world leaders who keep going to these climate change summits do not accomplish anything towards solving the issue, making the entire summit pointless.
I am drawn to this artifact because I think that climate change is one of the worlds biggest issues at this time. We keep denying its obvious effects on our environment, and keep pushing off doing anything about it. I am particular upset with the current way the American government is handling climate change. I believe this artifact is good for deep-analysis because it is a criticism of the way governments keep ignoring the issue of climate change, and it also compares to the artifact I chose for my speech because we still seem to be denying the issue. Both of the cartoons use kairos well, Ohman’s being published just after Hurricane Harvey, and Horsey’s being published just before the climate change conference. Both cartoons also use pathos, logos, and ethos to further their argument. They also both employ common places the shared ideology of climate change being a real issue that needs addressed immediately.
These political cartoons do well to address the negligence and poor follow through of American policy in regard to climate change. The place of political cartoons and their importance cannot be overlooked: they raise attention, call out injustices and faults, and often express the views commonly held by a population. This presentation of concern and outrage– through a medium that easily conveys it and in a lighter, but more direct, way– serves to bring the issue of climate change to the greater masses and the politicians who back reform.
It’s interesting that the color palette of both cartoons is so similar. I guess we tend to associate blue, black and gray with grimness and a lack of hope, which the artists are trying to convey, but one would think that, since the world is warming up, you would see more warm colors like reds and yellows and oranges. They must just prioritize one type of color symbolism over another, for whatever reason.
The beauty of political cartoons truly is in the cartoon’s timing, stylized visuals, and witty diction. For a cartoonist to turn out well thought out, pertinent cartoons in a short amount of time is truly impressive, and the cartoons surely provide plenty to analyze. Even the details as little as the iceberg and the boat in the second picture are little jabs at the world leaders. The “World Leaders” are presented as the Titanic because they consider themselves “unsinkable”, but the iceberg of “Climate Change” challenges that assumption. Overall, you have chosen two great cartoons that portray a great message!
I very much agree with what you have to say
I find it ironic, that he represented, climate change by the Iceberg, as they are melting as time passes and the issue gets bigger, I also feel like the iceberg is the Earth’s way of defending itself from the ship and world leaders, it will be able to defeat the Titanic (world leaders) but there are plenty of other ships in the ocean, and less icebergs.
As a volunteer climate activist, may I have your permission to use your climate cartoon in my presentations? I speak of individual actions but want to stress corporate and government must also be held accountable. Thank you.
These are great! But I’d love to see the mountain in the second cartoon labeled “Mount Everest” instead of “Climate Change.”