Cartoon Anaylsis-death Penalty x602f

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David Fitzsimmons May 1st, 2014 This cartoon is pertaining to the recent news of a man on death row in Oklahoma being killed painfully with an experimental mix of drugs. The bartender is a skeleton, which represents death. He is giving the “cocktail” of “drugs” to capital punishment itself, who will experience the contents. Death, or the skeleton in this case, says that there is “unequal justice”, “blood vengeance”, “incompetence,” and “hypocrisy” in the drink. The cartoonist is trying to make the point that those values are what capital punishment encomes, especially when the death penalty is given to people in such horrendous ways as was done in the recent case. David Fitzsimmons’ most provocative point however, is made in the name of the drink. The skeleton says that he calls it “the cruel and usual”. The artist uses this as a play on the phrase “cruel and unusual punishment”, which is prohibited by law. The cartoonist is trying to say that this type of capital punishment, and probably capital punishment in generally, is cruel and unusual and should therefore not be legal. However, he is also saying that it is becoming more and more usual and accepted. Fitzsimmons uses sharp and ragged lines to give a feeling of anxiety and urgency to the reader. Red and black are the primary colors used in the cartoon, which represent death and blood. The person who represents capital punishment is dressed in all black, which signifies the darkness that the death penalty holds.

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Mike Luckovich May 11th, 2014 This cartoon depicts a man who is an old-fashioned executioner and who represents the United States death penalty, as specified in the labeling that the cartoonist used. The character looks menacing and frightening. There is a skull on his belt, which signifies death, often from sinister circumstances. He is carrying a massive axe, which used to be used in executions, but is today viewed as horrific and cruel. The cartoonist uses this weapon to argue that the United States death penalty is taking extreme and all-too violent and outdated measures. The most significant part of the cartoon, however, is in the speech bubble coming from the character. The U.S. death penalty character is saying “I may do a blooper reel…” Blooper reels are humorous segments of mistakes that actors make in movies. In this case, the cartoonist is referencing the mistakes made by the U.S. when istering the death penalty, and how it hasn’t been taken seriously enough. The artist uses sharp lines and dark colors to add to the frightening effect.

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Dave Granlund May 1st, 2014 This cartoon by Dave Granlund depicts a caricatured executioner with a massive axe and frightening axe. He is standing on a wooden platform that is surrounded by many typical-looking Americans who have arrived at this event labeled as “U.S. Executions.” The other label the cartoonist uses is a small sign on the platform that reads “Plan B.” Since the old-fashioned axewielding man’s speech bubble says, “Time to explore methods more humane than lethal injection!”, the readers can assume that Plan A was using lethal injection, alluding to the injection used in Oklahoma which failed. This is a critique of the United States capital punishment system in general. The cartoonist wants to make the point that no execution is humane, and that the country can’t continue to try out new methods. Since the cartoon shows a type of execution which was used hundreds of years ago and is now viewed as inhumane and horrific, it argues that the U.S. is stuck in the past and needs to move forward with its punishments.

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Steve Sack April 30th, 2014 This cartoon is dry, simple, and witty. The cartoonist gets right to his point: that executions in the U.S. are faulty, should be illegal, and prevalent. His style is dark, with thick lines and neutral colors. This adds to the general mood of the article, which is depressing and exhausted. The two people he depicts are a typical American couple who are drinking coffee and reading the paper. By putting the scene in such a relatable setting for many Americans, the prevalence of botched executions hits even closer to home. The dialogue between the two characters that the cartoonist includes is used to make a political argument. In the U.S., “cruel and unusual punishment” is prohibited by law, but the artist is trying to say that it still occurs, and often. The man reading the paper that has the headline “Another Horrifically Botched Execution”, alluding to the recent horrifically faulty execution that occurred in Oklahoma, is remarking upon this event and saying that it is “cruel.” His wife responds drily, “But less and less unusual,” which indicates that the cruelty of the death penalty is becoming worse and more frequent.

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Mike Keefe May 1st, 2014 The cartoon touches primarily on the capital punishment incident in Oklahoma, but has other underlying themes. The illustration depicts a woman who is dressed like a businessperson and is labeled as being “Oklahoma.” There is also a man who is dressed in a uniform that looks militaristic, but that aspect is not made completely clear in the cartoon. He is fumbling with an assortment of tubes that are attached to an execution table that looks almost torturous. At his feet there is a box that is labeled “semi-lethal injection kit”, which various bottles of multicolored liquids have come out of. The cartoonist uses this label to refer to the injection that was experimentally attempted in Oklahoma, but ended up not being immediately lethal as it should have. The dialogue between the two is what brings forth the other point that the cartoonist is trying to make. The woman labeled as Oklahoma is suggesting to the man that after botching that first execution, they should get insight from another country who uses capital punishment before trying again. The man responds with a list of countries that they should mimic—all of who are enemies of the United States. Mike Keefe, the cartoonist, is trying to show that the U.S. is sinking to the levels of that of countries whose practices we generally condemn and critique our system and procedures regarding the death penalty.

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John Cole May 1st, 2014 This cartoon is complex and has many labels and points being made. It focuses primarily on the botched execution in Oklahoma which is made clear as the three characters are singing the words “Oklahoma OK!”. There is a character who resembles the Grim Reaper and who is labeled to be the death penalty. He is skipping arm-in-arm with an elephant who is labeled as being Oklahoma legislation and a woman who is labeled as being the current governor of Oklahoma, Governor Fallin and is carrying three sacks of “secret drug controls.” Both the elephant and the Governor have blood stains on their hands and sleeves, which signifies that they are guilty of the botched execution. The cartoonist, John Cole, is arguing that the Republican Party of Oklahoma is behind the botched execution—and happy about it. Cole makes it appear that they are in cahoots with the death penalty, and the illusion that they are skipping with huge smiles on their faces make it seem like they are completely pleased with that. The cartoonist uses a realistic background and bright and vibrant colors to evoke setting and ironic joy.

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Each of the cartoons in this collection about the death penalty are in response to the same event, the botched execution in Oklahoma, and contain similar viewpoints and images, but all present them in a different way. The six cartoonists share the opinion that the way the death penalty has been handled recently is inhumane and cruel. They all are arguing against what happened in Oklahoma, and each take a liberal leaning on the issue. Although all of the cartoons are in response to the execution in Oklahoma, many of the cartoonists use them as an opportunity to touch upon other related themes which include classifying the death penalty as “cruel and unusual punishment”, the Republican Party’s involvement, and the relationship between the United States and other countries. One common image in many of the cartoons is a skull or skeleton. This is a universal symbol for death, but has a menacing and sinister connotation. This enhances the point of the cartoons—that the death penalty, and particularly the way it is being handled recently, is something real and frightening. In two of the cartoons there is the same figure, an old-fashioned executioner with a large axe. These two cartoonists are both making the point that the United States death penalty is becoming outdated and is operated with methods that should have been made illegal years and years ago. All of the six cartoonists use a similar dry and ironic humor to get their opinions across. Although these cartoons didn’t change any opinions I had about the death penalty and the botched execution in Oklahoma, they did give me more perspective into the issue. I already agreed with the general liberal view of the cartoonists; that what happened in Oklahoma was inhumane and that the death penalty in general should be considered to be cruel and unusual punishment and should therefore be outlawed. I hadn’t considered the points that the cartoons

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made that included the punishment systems of the United States’ enemies or the party politics that were involved in the Oklahoma execution. Since each of the six cartoonists share the same opinion about the death penalty, I think this shows that the United States as a whole may be starting to reconsider capital punishment after the Oklahoma incident.