TOW #13- Visual: The Farce Awakens

This week I decided to analyze a political cartoon which honors two of the most interesting current events today, the infamous, Donald Trump and the even more infamous, Star Wars. Created by cartoonist, Dave Granlund, who has been featured in world renowned newspaper companies, the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek, this cartoon pokes fun at the recent campaign, highlighting the consistent false statements made by Donald Trump. The recent release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens has sparked quite an uproar as, contrary to the prequels, it was actually good. George Lucas disappointed mass amounts of Americans with the second trilogy of Star Wars which did not even remotely compare to his first. However, the newest in the series took people everywhere back to their childhood and transported them into a magical world of space, mystical planets and classic battles between good and evil. Granlund is attempting to convey a message to viewers showing the evil and often false nature of Donald Trump and his actions. This cartoon places Trump in the suit of Darth Vader, the leader of the "dark side" in the star wars series. Granlund does this in an effort to tag Trump as an evil being, although very powerful, ultimately wicked at heart. On top of that, Granlund clearly puts a belt around the Vader costume to even further identify this being as Trump as it is labeled "GOP" signifying that he is a republican. This cartoon even holds a satirical flare as Granlund changes the title from "The Force Awakens" to "The Farce Awakens", reminding viewers of the untrue, mockery of Trump and what he says. In adding these details to his cartoon, Dave Granlund creates a funny and powerful cartoon, using the recent release of a popular movie to poke fun at Donald Trump and his illegitimate means of campaigning for presidency.

TOW #12: IRB "The Seven Good Years"

When reading a book which features the tragedies of terrorism in Israel, one can anticipate a dreadful theme, stocked with loss, fear and overall woe. In a country where terrorist attacks become as frequent and expected as Sunday night football games, it's hard to imagine any "good " to write about. However, Etgar Keret manages to craft a masterpiece of humorous, uplifting and mostly undeniably interesting memoirs which bring light to those catastrophic events. In his critically acclaimed book, "The Seven Good Years", he focuses around the time between the birth of his child and the death of his father, the part of his life that was happiest, but this is far from a memoir about Keret. This book strings together numerous unforgettable stories which allow the reader to see the root of violence, pain and love which continue to last even in the eye of a savage war in the Middle East.

What makes Keret such a sophisticated and enjoyable author is his ability to tell stories which truly captivate the reader. Any man trying to survive and raise a family in the middle of a war, inevitably faces disturbing loss and invariable sadness, but Etgar Keret transforms that pain into some of the most insightful and satisfying stories ever told. One way he achieves his purpose is through his ability to focus on what seems like miniscule details and transform them into mind altering entities for the reader. Of course one can expect that Keret would, for a book bonded by terrorism, emphasize on just that, but instead he focuses very little on attacks and violence, pulling the reader closer to the things that people often overlook. At one point in the text, Keret does focus on an experience with a bombing in Tel Aviv, where he, his wife, and his son, Lev, where forced to dive onto the pavement, and take cover anticipating the backlash. He only spent about two pages describing this seemingly horrific experience, going on to describe something as supposedly insignificant as Angry Birds explaining, "Under the adorable surface of the funny animals and their sweet voices, Angry Birds is actually a game in which you are prepared to sacrifice your life just so you can destroy the houses of unarmed enemies and vaporize their wives and children inside" for about five pages. This ability to point out deeper concepts and speculation to the reader creates several full and generous tales. Keret's use of satire also creates a more colorful and passionate piece. In this half of the book Keret at one point describes the birth of his son, Lev, particularly the wait for assistance in the hospital after a recent terrorist attack which highly occupied the aids. With gurneys flying by carrying individuals missing limbs and nurses rushing to their side, Keret and his wife simply wait, almost feeling outshined by this attack, claiming "even the baby feels this whole getting-born this isn't that urgent anymore." When describing something like the birth of someones first child, this is usually supposed to be a moment of great excitement and importance, but the way Keret describes it makes the reader enjoy and empathise for his recurring, coincidental, misfortunes. His description of the baby's emotions also have the same effect. The humor used in a calamity like this makes the topic of terrorism a little less heavy and further establishes the existing light in an environment of great darkness. Etgar Keret is a master storyteller with an unbelievable collection of experiences to share. He speaks to anyone interested in captivating tales of sadness and joy, bravery and fear, gain and loss, successfully producing an inspiring memoir of hope at the center of disaster.

TOW #11- Nonfiction: Bill Clinton's August 17 speech to the American public: Monica Lewinsky

         In 1998 a sex scandal known as the Lewinsky scandal emerged when a sexual relationship was revealed between the president of the United States, Bill Clinton, and a white house employee, Monica Lewinsky. This world wide controversy led to a chain of perjury and eventually an impeachment of the president during his second term. Bill Clinton gave a public speech admitting to his affair to the nation on August 6, 1998. Throughout this speech, Clinton's use of personal anaphora and apologetic diction all contribute toward creating the sincere and humble speech he aimed to deliver as a president who has recently lost the trust of his followers and in grave danger of being impeached.

          Clinton wants to regain the trust of Americans and help them understand that he acknowledges the fault in what he has done. Upon acknowledging the events that took place and what he would like moving forward, Clinton speaks in first person beginning almost every sentence with "I did", "I know", "I can" and so on. By starting with "I", he makes his speech seem more personal when speaking to citizens everywhere. He is also trying to get off of the pedestal he is put on as a president and transform himself into a simple person who has made a mistake. He wants to make the public feel closer to him and feel like they can relate and sympathize for him. This is further achieved through an anaphoric use of the term "you". These terms are extremely effective when Clinton initiates, "I am speaking to you", making the viewer feel a connection to him as a person and not as a president. The president also used a massive amount of apologetic diction in order to show his audience the remorse he feels for his "scandalous" behavior and perjury. Clinton explains to the nation that his affair, "...constituted a critical lapse in judgment and a personal failure on..." his "...part for which..." he is "...solely and completely responsible." Not only does he admit to what he has done, but he takes complete responsibility for it and damages it caused. In a nation where most people most likely see his as a selfish and greedy man at the moment, he is taking the first step toward attempting to receive their empathy, admission. He refrains from explaining his personal feelings toward Lewinsky or his personal life being exposed, he simply takes responsibility which has a much more positive effect.
          Bill Clinton successfully delivers a speech to the public admitting his faults in having a sexual affair with Monica Lewinsky. Although the nation viewed him as an untrustworthy president, he manages to humble himself and appear apologetic for the what he has done through his use of remorseful diction and personal anaphora.