interpretation of a cartoon

The cartoon was drawn by Kevin Dietsch and was published in 2008 on cagle cartoons.com. It shows a young black man, obviously the president Barack Obama, who stretches out his hand painfully to another, larger man standing on a pedestal which shows the letters “history”. This larger man is Martin Luther King. In his hand, he holds his famous speech “I have a dream” of 28^th August 1983. The key point the cartoon is trying to make is to expose the fact that Barack Obama has not reached the status of Martin Luther King, although it is often said of him.

Martin Luther King was an important civil rights activist. He wanted to achieve equality for the African American population in the United States. The pedestal in the drawing symbolizes that King has gone down in history. Barack Obama is trying to get on the pedestal. King invites him to his hand, but Obama cannot reach the hand yet. His view is hopeless. To get on the podium, he must take more difficulties, because only the fact that he is a president is not enough. But he is already on the right track.

The cartoon appeals to me. In my opinion it is well-made. I think that Obama cannot be compared to Martin Luther King, because King struggled all his life for the rights, while Obama has not achieved much yet.

racism in “Finding Forrester”

In the movie “Finding Forrester”, there are some racist implications.

First, there is an incident between Jamal and a BMW driver. As Jamal looks closer a BMW, the driver considered him skeptical. Jamal reassures him that he would not make his car broken. But the driver replied that Jamal knew nothing of the importance of the car. As Jamal can tell him the history of the car, the driver thanks for the history lesson and goes away. Here, racism is seen as the driver would not have expected such a knowledge from a black boy.

Next, the teacher Mr. Crawford is mentioned. The teacher has a very racist attitude. He thinks that black people from the Bronx cannot be intelligent. He does not believe in Jamal’s talent. He even accused that the stories are not written by Jamal himself.

The father of Claire is racist, too. It becomes clear at a party at Claire’s house. When he sees that his daughter is talking to Jamal, he comes to them and takes her away from Jamal.

All in all, Jamal has to contend with the prejudice against blacks.

Letter to Vivian

Write a letter that Grant writes to Vivian in which he lays open his deepest thoughts and feelings about the development / effect of his visits at Jefferson’s.

Oh Vivian, my love,

do you remember the first time when my aunt told me to teach Jefferson?
I did not want to visit him. I thought that it did not make sense!  Why should I make Jefferson into a man before he dies? But you, dear Vivian, you have changed my decision with your charming kind.

The first visits with Jefferson were strange.  I did not know what I should say. Jefferson was quiet, while I tried to talk with him.  But after the first meetings, I recognized a change.  He began to trust me, he even told me of one of his wishes: He wanted some ice-cream! Ice-cream, my dear!  I was so relieved that the ice between us was broken – and then I saw him smiling. I wished you would have been there at this wonderful moment. Finally, Jefferson’s positive development motivated me to teach him.

We became real friends. I think, he needed me.  However, at each visit I thought of the day on which he would die. And this day came too fast, Vivian. I know that Jefferson was innocent.  But I also know that he died as a man – not as a hog, as the lawyer said it once. But now, that chapter of my life is over. Sweetheart, you were always by my side, thank you. I am sorry if you felt neglected by me…

You are the love of my life,
Grant

A Lesson Before Dying

Read chapters 1-6. Take notes on the setting.

• courtroom scene, Jefferson: robbery and murder? -> no, innocent
• also there: Grant Wiggins (narrator), Miss Emma (J.‘ godmother), Tante Lou (Grant’s aunt)
• Friday morning, Alcee Gropé was killed
  – 1. version: Jefferson
  – 2. version: prosecuting attorney
  – 3. version: defense attorney -> Jeff: „it“, „thing“, like „a hog in the electric chair“ —> guilty!
• Monday morning: Emma+Lou+Rev. Mose back in courtroom, judge sentences Jeff. to death
• Monday afternoon: Grant Wiggins -> black teacher, visits Miss Emma + Tante Lou -> want to meet Henri Pichot -> should talk to sheriff, so that Grant can visit Jeff.
• At Pichot’s house -> greated by Inez Lane, Pichot in library
• Grant in kitchen -> helped Emma + Lou as they worked there for Pichots
• Pichot enters room with friend (Louis Rougon), agrees to talk with sheriff
• Monday evening: Grant to Rainbow Club (Bayonne), meets owners Joe + Thelma Claiborne, calls girlfriend Vivian Baptiste -> she comes, agrees that Grant should visit Jeff.
• Tuesday: Grant back at school, kids have no discipline, tells them about Jeff’s execution -> cruel
• Farell Jarreau (Pichot’s yardman), tell Grant that Pichot wants to meet him
• Pichot’s house: Sheriff Guidry, Henri Pichot, Louis Rougon, „fat man“ come, discuss Jeffersons situation
  —> Grant can visit Jeff. in „couple of weeks“

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

3) Describe Frederick’s mistress and the way she changes.

Before the change, Frederick’s mistress was a „tender-hearted woman“ (ll. 12). She treated him like a human (l.14) and was „pious, warm“ (l.19). She was against slavery (ll. 20-21). But after the change, her „tender heart became stone“ (l.23) and she had a „tiker-like fierceness“ (l.24). The mistress became brutal, violent and angry (ll. 26,29).

So all in all, Frederick’s mistress has completely changed.

Living and working conditions of slaves

Collect information from the text on the living and working conditions of slaves. Summarize your information in a short essay.

The owner of a farm owned several fields. Therefore he also had many slaves who divided the work on the field. They had to work in all weathers. There was a lot of violence and the slaves were often punished, especially with whips. The overseers had no mercy with the slaves, they had to obey them absolutely. Beside their hard work on the plantation, they still had to wash and to cook for themselves. All slaves had a common bed on the cold, damp floor. The slaves had no freedom and no privacy. Once a month the slaves got some food and yearly cheap clothes. If the children of the slaves lost their clothes, they had to work naked. The children got no education, they just had to work, too.

All in all, the life of a slave was very miserable. They had to work under bad living and working conditions.

The Slave Auction

The poem „The Slave Auction“ by Frances E.W. Harper deals with the cruel handling with slaves on a slave auction.

„The Slave Auction“ consists of twentyfour verses. It is not divided into stanzas, but it can be divided into two parts. The first part is from verse one to sixteen, the second one from verse seventeen to the end.
In both parts the rhyme scheme is regular and based on an alternate rhyme (abab). The subject of the first part is the slave auction, the second part deals with a demand from the narrator to the readers. The poet discribes that „tyrants“ (l. 8 ) buy slaves and are not interested in the fact that they destroy families and hopes. Harper uses several stylistic devices and figurative language. One stylistic device in this poem is the repetition of the word „anguish“. He repeats this word several times (ll. 4, 12, 19). It stresses the aspect that the slaves really had a bad life without any kind of happiness. Also the repetition of „rudely“ (ll. 20, 22) raises the tension.Another stylistic device is the anaphora „and“ (ll. 5, 9, 13). Mothers, women and men – all of them hit the fact that the slaves are sold. But the most important stylistic device in this poem is a hyperbole in line 13, „And men, whose sole crime was their hue“. The poet wants to underline that it should be not a crime to have another color of the skin. So this men and women are punished although they are not criminal.

All in all, the poet’s use of stylistic devices underlines the cruelness and unfairness of the trade with slaves.

Alien Contact

1) Describe the attitude of members of the US government towards the possibility of alien contact.
The members of the US government ask the psychologist  Norman Johnson to write a report  on how to react to a possible meeting with aliens. They think that aliens could really exist. Their questions and considerations are very specific; this means that the US members think for a long time about aliens and that they take the situation seriously. However, during the conversation with Johnson becomes clear that the government only wants to know about how the aliens can be destroyed.

„Your report must take that point clearly. About the nuclear vulnerability of these aliens.“ (ll. 30-31)

They want to play down the thought of aliens, so that no panic can originate in the population. So this report should serve to prevent a possible panic.

3) a) According to the text, what role would the media play in the event of alien contact?
The media would play a very big role. The story would spread very quickly, because the media would try to make a big story from the situation.  This would lead to a mass panic in the population, because many people trust in the media.

3) b) Explain the importance of „media moments“ (ll. 15-16) for politicians in democratic countries.
Media moments are important for the politicians, because the parties get the attention of the voters. By the interest of the media the politicians can spread their message better. They maybe can win electors, so that by the next choice the party can be successful.

The Yes Men

The Yes Men published on the 12th November 2008 a fake edition of the newspaper „The New York Times“. The motto „All the news we hope to print“ was on the first page, therefore the newspaper includes headlines like „IRAQ WAR ENDS“. There is also a fake website, the adress is http://www.nytimes-se.com/.

The „Yes Men“ is an activists group. They make a lot of political pranks, because they want to encourage others to do and to change something in the world. The Yes Men often step about borders and provoke with it consciously. Not everybody understands this. Many people think that their actions are exaggerates and that they behave improperly.
But in my opinion they are doing a good job. Their procedures are interesting and funny. They REALLY want to change something in the world. This is very good, because if nobody go up against the bad things in the world nothing will be changed. Furthermore there is a press freedom in the world. It is a human right to say the own opinion, so there shall be no censorship. I think that the Yes Men can go on as long as they do not hurt general laws or very personal honor.

So all in all I think that there must be groups like „The Yes Men“, because they really want to change something and there is something which really must be changed.

Freedom of Press?

This picture shows a cartoon. The abbreviation of the cartoonist is below on the right. However, it is not well readable. It was created in response to the World Press Freedom Day in 2008. The cartoon shows a prison cell with four occupants, one of them is a journalist. So the key point the cartoon is trying to make is to expose the fact that even today the press freedom is not kept and that journalists are responsible for their articles.

About every person is a speech bubble, because all four inhabitants tell their reason for the prison stay. The black man on the left side disturbed the peace. The man who sits beside him made an attack against the head of the state. The reason for the third one is that he violated the national security. This three persons are looking offended, stubborn and bored. Except the fourth man: He looks very sad. He is a stereotype of a journalist with his black-grey suit and this stylish hair. He has reported only about bad weather.
So the message of the cartoonist is clear: He criticises that journalists are in prison with “real” criminals, although they only reported about something bad. They are not the reason for the problems, but some governments hold the journalists for responsible. So journalists must pay attention what they write, they must be careful. But this is against the the press freedom: Every person can write what he wants without being punished.

This cartoon appeals me. In my opinion it is a good way to show the problems with the freedom of the press in an ironic and light way. Journalists should not be in prison, only because they reported about a bad thing (exaggerated here with „bad weather“). The press freedom is important for a society in which own opinions can exist.