Wow. I'm pretty offended by this cartoon. I saw nowhere in the article where immigration, legal or otherwise, was blamed, yet this cartoonist took his own meaning from the article. Also, it makes some pretty hefty assumptions about all Mexicans being in the U.S. illegally, which is of course not the case. Also, it assumes that Mexicans only spend their money on fatty foods and not more practical things like...oh, I don't know...clothing, shelter, etc.
I wonder why you chose to include this on your blog. Do you believe that the United States is to blame, directly or indirectly, for obesity in Mexico? My own personal opinion is that it is a cultural/dietary issue, much like obesity here in the U.S.
When you see a cartoon, it is setting the reader up for humor.
Humor is defined by dictionary.com as “comic, absurd, or incongruous quality causing amusement.” In other words, when you see a cartoon, it's safe to predict that the contents will be absurd or exaggerated.
When the author wrote “Mexico's Mexicans are spending all this extra, illegally gained money on unhealthy, fattening foods,” it is as an exaggeration and absurdity in attempt at humor because nobody reasonable would ever say that anyone spends all his extra money of unhealthy food. That is just silly. I do understand, however, that if you read this and took it literally, it probably wouldn't seem that humorous.
Additionally, the author never said that all Mexicans in the US are illegal immigrants. He wrote “All the illegal immigrants you negligently allowed in your country…” There was never a point where he tried to say that all Mexicans are illegal immigrants. I think you completely misunderstood that sentence.
I included this piece in the blog because I thought it was funny; and it’s my blog. In my opinion, if a message can come across with humor attached to it, then it's even more potent. I also appreciated the insinuation that people are always trying to find someone to blame in our lawsuit-happy society. Personally, I would blame the obesity issue on several factors; including the infiltration of fast food and soda combined with limited activity.
Thank you for your comments; I look forward to future interactions.
Thanks for your response. The implication I'm referring to with illegal immigration is that this cartoonist is drawing a line between illegal immigrants sending money back to Mexico and that person's family using it to get fat and that only those people are causing the problem.
I am aware of what "humor" is, and as a journalist, I also know what role politically-charged cartoons have. I would have to say that probably most people find this racist and not funny. And I'm also not sure what the point of this is that you are referring to that this cartoon makes "more potent" as you say?
You, of course, have the freedom to use your blog for whatever you wish. On the flip side, you also need to understand that each issue has multiple viewpoints from which to view it and you need to be aware of how people form those opinions/viewpoints. Hopefully, all of this causes you to look more critically at your own perspective of certain social movements as is the intention of this course.
Wow. I'm pretty offended by this cartoon. I saw nowhere in the article where immigration, legal or otherwise, was blamed, yet this cartoonist took his own meaning from the article. Also, it makes some pretty hefty assumptions about all Mexicans being in the U.S. illegally, which is of course not the case. Also, it assumes that Mexicans only spend their money on fatty foods and not more practical things like...oh, I don't know...clothing, shelter, etc.
ReplyDeleteI wonder why you chose to include this on your blog. Do you believe that the United States is to blame, directly or indirectly, for obesity in Mexico? My own personal opinion is that it is a cultural/dietary issue, much like obesity here in the U.S.
The concept of a cartoon is exaggeration.
ReplyDeleteWhen you see a cartoon, it is setting the reader up for humor.
Humor is defined by dictionary.com as “comic, absurd, or incongruous quality causing amusement.” In other words, when you see a cartoon, it's safe to predict that the contents will be absurd or exaggerated.
When the author wrote “Mexico's Mexicans are spending all this extra, illegally gained money on unhealthy, fattening foods,” it is as an exaggeration and absurdity in attempt at humor because nobody reasonable would ever say that anyone spends all his extra money of unhealthy food. That is just silly. I do understand, however, that if you read this and took it literally, it probably wouldn't seem that humorous.
Additionally, the author never said that all Mexicans in the US are illegal immigrants. He wrote “All the illegal immigrants you negligently allowed in your country…” There was never a point where he tried to say that all Mexicans are illegal immigrants. I think you completely misunderstood that sentence.
I included this piece in the blog because I thought it was funny; and it’s my blog. In my opinion, if a message can come across with humor attached to it, then it's even more potent. I also appreciated the insinuation that people are always trying to find someone to blame in our lawsuit-happy society. Personally, I would blame the obesity issue on several factors; including the infiltration of fast food and soda combined with limited activity.
Thank you for your comments; I look forward to future interactions.
Thanks for your response. The implication I'm referring to with illegal immigration is that this cartoonist is drawing a line between illegal immigrants sending money back to Mexico and that person's family using it to get fat and that only those people are causing the problem.
ReplyDeleteI am aware of what "humor" is, and as a journalist, I also know what role politically-charged cartoons have. I would have to say that probably most people find this racist and not funny. And I'm also not sure what the point of this is that you are referring to that this cartoon makes "more potent" as you say?
You, of course, have the freedom to use your blog for whatever you wish. On the flip side, you also need to understand that each issue has multiple viewpoints from which to view it and you need to be aware of how people form those opinions/viewpoints. Hopefully, all of this causes you to look more critically at your own perspective of certain social movements as is the intention of this course.