Battle lines: political cartoonists take on Iraq

0 Comments | Current Events, Sept 30, 2005 | by Laura McClure

These days, it seems everyone has an opinion about the war in Iraq--especially political cartoonists. Since the United States invaded Iraq in March 2003, political cartoonists have been drawing provocative commentary on every aspect of the conflict. From fiery attacks on insurgent uprisings to somber reflections on lives lost, the images have sparked discussion nationwide.

Current Events talked to five of the country's top political cartoonists about cartoons they drew in response to the war in Iraq. As you read and look at the cartoons, ask yourself: What point is this cartoonist making? Do I agree? Why or why not?

Nick Anderson

The Courier-Journal

Louisville, Ky.

Nick Anderson has been putting pen to paper for a long time--"for as long as I can remember," he says. Anderson started drawing a comic strip his freshman year of high school, but political cartooning quickly became his passion. He's been using cartoons to comment on everything in the news--particularly politics--ever since. This year, Anderson was awarded cartooning's top honor, a Pulitzer Prize, for his work. His favorite part of the job? "Causing trouble and getting paid for it," Anderson says.

CE: What was going on in the news when you drew this cartoon?

Anderson: There wasn't a specific news story that prompted it. I was just following the news over time, which led me to the conclusion that there was no good way out of Iraq.

CE: What inspired you to draw the cartoon this way?

Anderson: There were often hopeful moments in Iraq that seemed like they might lead to progress, but they always ended up being false hopes. I'm trying to capture what I feel our situation is. Every time we think we might get out, we open a door and it's not a way out.

CE: What techniques did you use?

Anderson: Symbolism, metaphor. Uncle Sam is a symbol for America. And the entire cartoon, of course, is a metaphor for Iraq.... When you're communicating with pictures ... it's best to use a metaphor because it ... surprises the reader. And if you can surprise the reader, [you] can help [him or her] see things in a different way.

CE: Why does this cartoon work?

Anderson: I like to think because it was unusual and original. ... It can be immediately understood by the average reader.

Doug Marlette

Tallahassee Democrat

Tallahassee, Fla.

Doug Marlette's childhood drawings were so good that his friends used to give him desserts and marbles in exchange for his sketches of Mickey Mouse and Popeye. Today, his Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoons serve a bigger purpose--protecting the Constitution's First Amendment. Political cartoons help ensure free speech because they push the envelope, Marlette explains. "When [political cartoons] are good, they kind of upset people. It's important that we have these kinds of vigorous full-throated voices making trouble. Democracy depends on it," he says.

CE: What inspired you to draw this cartoon?

Marlette: It was ... the debate about finding weapons of mass destruction and whether or not the invasion of Iraq was justified because [inspectors] were not finding them. The cartoon makes the point that [Saddam] Hussein himself was a weapon of mass destruction. Tens of thousands of people died under his brutal regime.

CE: Why did you choose to draw Saddam in a straightforward way rather than making him look like a devil to emphasize your point?

Marlette: It shows the banality of evil. In exaggerating a devil, it ... devalues the currency. [This cartoon shows] the humanness behind [evil].

Ann Telnaes

New York Times Syndicate

National

One major thing distinguishes Ann Telnaes from her colleagues: She's a woman. Of the dozens of political cartoonists in the United States, only a few are female. "Editorial cartooning is a very forceful medium; it's very black or white," Telnaes says. "I don't think women are encouraged as young girls to be forceful." That hasn't held Telnaes back. She won a Pulitzer Prize in 2001 for her work, which often focuses on women's issues.

CE: When did you draw this cartoon?

Telnaes: I actually drew that [cartoon] in 2003 ... right after we had invaded Iraq. [Iraq] had a great deal of problems then with electricity. Sometimes in political cartoons, you take two different ideas and put them together to make one point. [Before the war, Iraqi women had more rights than women in many other Middle Eastern countries. Iraqi women] were now in the position of losing those rights. So I just thought of ... combining that [idea] with the image of power failure.

CE: What techniques did you use?

Telnaes: Symbolism of the eyes, the part of the burqa image ... and then the whole thing about it being a blackout. It just seemed like a perfect combination.

CE: Why is this cartoon effective?

Telnaes: I think it's effective because it combines two different things that people recognize--[being in darkness because of a] power outage ... and losing your power as a woman.

CE: Do you think Iraqi women's situation will improve?

Telnaes: I'm obviously a cynic, so I don't have a lot of hope. The reason I do these cartoons is to get people to notice. I can't change things, but I can make people aware.