TOW 11- Political Cartoon

We live in a world where the death of traditions and rise of technology are inversely related. In other words, as technology increases and our reliance on it increases, our traditions are practiced less and less. Mike Smith, an award-winning editorial cartoonist featured daily in the Las Vegas Sun, sends a powerful message about the effect of technology on modern society in this political cartoon. Smith’s use of contrasting colors and a satirical assertion effectively communicates that technology has a negative effect on society.

The first thing the reader sees is the speech bubble from the father, which says, “Billy! Did you do your homework?” This question is emphasized through the contrast in color—this speech bubble is the brightest thing in the picture, immediately grabbing the reader’s attention and forcing them to delve deeper into the other, more subtle aspects of the cartoon. The newspaper in the dad’s hands says that students in China have the highest test scores, which is obviously the driving reason for the father asking his son if he did his homework. By identifying that China is the country with the highest test scores, Smith presents a convincing argument that a change needs to be made because as Americans, we naturally want to be the best in the world—especially when it comes to competing with China. Next, the reader will see the other colored speech bubble, a light and faded blue that seems subdued when contrasted with the yellow speech bubble. The mother is saying that if the dad really wants an answer from his son, he should “try texting him.” This assertion is so ridiculous that it is humorous, because Billy, the son, is sitting in a chair right next to his parents, happily tapping on his phone and tuning out the voices of his elders. This satirical depiction of the interfamilial American relationship should incite readers to make a change in their values—if not for the sake of beating China in testing, then to save the valued tradition of family time.

 Smith’s use of contrasting colors and a satirical assertion effectively communicates that technology has a negative effect on society. Smith’s message is one that needs to be heard by everyone who owns any sort of iPad, tablet or smart phone—will America’s reliance on technology turn into an addiction that leads to our eventual demise?