Table of Contents
Visual characteristics
Text and Language Features
In summary,
American cartoonist Adam Zyglis designed the political cartoon titled ‘The Trumps Tapes …’. The cartoon became famous after Zyglis posted the cartoon on his Twitter account, October 12, 2016.
The cartoon was drawn in reference the 2016 Trump Tapes Scandal. The cartoon requires prior knowledge to understand. An audiotape was released four years back that apparently contained recordings of Donald Trump making offensive comments about women in 2005 while he was on Access Hollywood. Trump claimed that ‘he was a superstar and could do whatever he likes, and get away without any consequences’. Millions of women shared their stories of sexual abuse, and there were over 10 million replies to them. Zyglis is communicating the message that they shouldn’t be trying to find the alleged tapes holding evidence against Donald Trump but should instead just use tape to shut Trump down as a country. This cartoon implicitly suggests that Donald Trump should not be elected president. Caricature, which is an image or imitation of a person’s certain characteristics, is used a lot by cartoonists. Zyglis did a caricature of Donald Trump, where Trump’s face is proportionally larger than his upper body. Donald Trump’s yellow, over-manicured hair is the first thing that draws attention. To ridicule Trump, Zyglis deliberately grew Trump’s hair beyond his face. Trump is wearing his typical suit, which is a white shirt with a black jacket and ties. His round, broad face shows his tan and is visible with little neck. Also, the cheeks of Trump are slightly reddened, which could indicate anger. Trump may be angry because of his small eyes, arched eyebrows and furrowed eyebrows.
The political cartoon implicitly implies that the United States of America is the second-represented participant. The U.S flag is emblazoned on the sleeves, which have the colours red and white. It is clear that Trump needs to stop rambling about incomprehensible topics. Instead, he should act responsibly and rationally to win back the trust of the Government and the majority of the nation. Another thing that stands out is the silver tape in the left hand. This tape matches Donald Trump’s mouth.
Visual FeaturesThe cartoonist made a visual and literary allusion to Donald Trump’s 2005 video tapes scandal and the feelings of the public towards him.
Donald Trump is looking at the United States of America’s hand. His eyes are narrowed and his pupils are pressed together, possibly to indicate that he is furious about the decision to tap his lips. To encourage the viewer’s attention to the other object or figures within the cartoon, the cartoonist cleverly chose an intradiegetic gaze. Because the figures interact with one another, an intra-diegetic gaze can be used to create communication within an image.
Because they are the central viewpoint for the viewer, the tape around Trump’s face and tape roll, as well as the message being conveyed by the cartoonist, are important in this cartoon. The background colour is mainly white except for Donald Trump. It is visible that Donald Trump’s background has a greyish tint, which becomes darker as it nears him. There are also very few black specks scattered around Donald Trump. This implicitly speaks to good or evil, with good being represented by white and black or grey being evil. Adam Zyglis subtly informs viewers that Donald Trump will continue bringing “evilness” to the presidency.
Language Features, Text
ConclusionThis cartoon clearly displays the cartoonist’s strong feelings towards Donald Trump as a president and shows how the majority in the country feel about Trump.
