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Thursday, April 29, 2010
Darth Vader Injured By Dick Cheney Accusation
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4 comments:
This political cartoon while effective, limits its effected viewingn population to those who are fans of Star Wars. This political cartoon bases its arguement off the negative connotations and associations involved with Darth Vader who throughout the Star Wars series is seen as the leader of the 'force' of evil. This causes an appeal to pathos because in many of the movies Darth Vader was seen doing evil deeds such as choking one of his clones for no due reason. By showing Darth Vader as one who paid little attention to 'human' rights, the cartoonist clearly draws a parallel to Dick Cheney and some atrocities he has been connected to. For example, his attack on Iraq on the basis of weapons of mass destruction have now been debased. Another example would be his lead in creating aggressive interrogation tactics to use on prisoners at Guantanamo Bay. However, this use of pathos and the comparison between Darth Vader's action and Dick Cheney's actions are not shown as equivalant by the cartoonist. By making the assertion that Cheney's actions were worse, the cartoonist relies on public sentiment about Cheney to prove his point. By relying on this ad populum, partially backed by Bush's horrid approval rating in the latter stages of his presidency, the cartoonist attempts to build rapport with the viewer. The viewer in all likelihood was opposed to at least one of Cheney's policy decisions. The cartoonist also creates rapport with viewer by using ethos. As the above listed examples state, Cheney's actions often violated the moral platform that many Americans place themselves on. For example, during the Cold War, Americans saw themselves as being on the side of good because they protected individual liberties and allowed for free enterprise. Since Cheney may have violated some of these beliefs in his actions, the cartoonist associates him with un-American values. The Darth Vader comparision only aids in this. This is clearly an ad hominem used to not only alienate Cheney from the general populace but to criticize the Bush administration as a whole for its actions. Through the use of pathos and ethos, it is clear that the cartoonist believes that Dick Cheney was involved in more evil than Darth Vader.
I think this cartoon is hilarious and disagree with Rahfin in that, even if you are not a Star Wars buff, unless you grew up in a hole in the middle of the ocean, you know that Darth Vader is basically the sign of all evil. Which leads me to the point that yes, I think the cartoonist is implying that Dick Cheney is incredibly evil. And also incredibly stupid. Because I don't think Darth Vader would get offended by someone comparing him to another evil person-Vader is quite aware that he is evil, hence, being called evil should not faze him. This cartoon uses comedy and common pop culture knowledge to make a political point.
i do have to agree with the morbid harbinger of death (whoever you might be) that first of all this cartoon does have a strong meaning and point whether or not you like star wars or have ever seen it. the point is as darth vader has been known as the archetypical evil villain he can still not compare to the evilness of Dick Chenney. so the author is trying to make a statement that Dick Chenney widely surpasses the evilness that is Darth Vader
The cartoon is effective and has a deeper meaning that Cheney could hurt Darth Vadar who is commenly seen as a strong evil force. This questions Cheney as a person almost and a politician.
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