REHUGO Cartoon

Lindsey Schrock

English 3 AP

Mr. Soeth, per. 2

February 22, 2011

REHUGO: Visual-Political Cartoon

A. Cartoon attached— artist: Mike Luckovich

B. In this cartoon, the artist provides commentary on the alarming number of teachers in our communities who are being laid off.  Through his illustration, he directly acknowledges the cumulative amount of layoffs due to massive budget deficits, therefore initiating readers to deliberate the issue and to contemplate whether or not teachers, who play such a large role in our community, should continue to be laid off in such great masses, as they have been in the past.

C. Due to the fact that a large percentage of readers are students, teachers, or parents, this cartoon targets a large audience. It serves as an effective means of communication due to the fact that the students and parents are aware of the amount of work teachers exert towards their students; members of a community are also able to recognize that a teacher’s primary goal is to help students achieve success. By having the scene in the illustration take place at a graduation ceremony, the author also shows that teachers are the ones chiefly responsible for the students’ ability to graduate and move forth in life. He directly juxtaposes this sense of gratitude that should be expressed towards the teachers by depicting a box of pink slips, and contrasts them to the diplomas the high school students are about to receive. This juxtaposition highlights the fact that although teachers educate and guide youth in the community, they are not recognized as important figures, and the state and nation feel that they can be let go in massive amounts. By creating an illustration that a majority of the community can relate to, and by juxtaposing success with disappointment, the cartoon becomes incredibly effective, therefore emphasizing the significance of the issue.

D. This cartoon implies multiple aspects about educational staff and the level of appreciation associated with their work. The large basket containing pink slips illustrates the excessive amounts of layoffs teachers have recently experienced. The artist effectively shows that while students are being rewarded with diplomas for achievements they could not have accomplished without the aid of teachers, these educators are handed pink slips in return for their hard work and endless efforts. This cartoon was published in 2010, at a time where many cut backs were taken in school systems. However, similar circumstances are still present today. Currently, numerous school districts, as well as the district governing our community, are laying off staff at an alarming rate. It is disturbing for students and teachers alike to see the hard work and numerous hours of laboring teachers put into their job, and yet their low wages and number of annual layoffs suggest a lack of appreciation towards them. Communities are constantly growing, and as each generation passes, youth will grow up and become future leaders. Teachers provide the foundation for these children’s education; they often help to mold and shape students into the dedicated, hard workers they become. In the cartoon, seniors are graduating off into the real world and are preparing to do great things for the nation, while the people chiefly responsible for their education are being handed a paper that declares them ‘unemployed.’ Without teachers, our communities nationwide would suffer. Just as the cartoon suggests, it is time to begin reconsidering how our community views (and often belittles) the significant role teachers play in our society, as well as the impact they have on our youth.

Citation:

Luckovich, Mike. "Teacher Layoffs." Cartoon. Cartoonist Group. Creator's Syndicate, 9 May 2010. Web. 22 Feb. 2011.

<http://www.cartoonistgroup.com/bysubject/subjectbyartist.php?id=84&sid=5693>.