New York Post Cartoon

Cross out the above thought for a moment. I feel that the cartoon is offensive and is conveying the president in a negative manner. I also am aware of the fact of people not accepting the fact of having a non-white president. Pictures hold intangible concepts. Racism is an intangible concept. However, pictures also hold intangible concepts brought forth by metaphors, leading me to my next point.

To say the cartoon is racist is too easy. Perhaps it is not racist at all. It can be looked at as terrorists plotting against Obama. Maybe the cops represent terrorists and the monkey represents Obama. Although the monkey represents Obama, Obama represents America in the cartoon. So the terrorists are plotting against America. The cartoon can be understood in two or more ways. The cops and monkey are metaphors. And Obama is symbolizing not the black race, but America and democracy.

In the Webster’s Dictionary, a definition of monkey is as follows: a ludicrous figure. Here, there is no reference to an animal. To be a ludicrous figure is to be inconsistent and not conform. Perhaps the artist pictured the American people as seeing Obama’s plan as inconsistent with what he preached before becoming elected. So, the artist believes people to be unhappy with him and paints this message in a cartoon.

The fact that civil rights leaders and elected officials said it echoed racist stereotypes of blacks as monkey’s shows two things: a country who has been through tough prejudice and discrimination times, and that racism is still present in America today. I feel that if racism wasn't present today, such a cartoon wouldn’t automatically be described of as being racist or showing racism.

Misrepresentation means that facts are subject to numerous interpretations. The multiplicity of interpretations means multiple means of representation, which is the complex process of using data to represent a testable truth. With that said, let’s say that the civil rights leaders and elected officials are narrow minded for seeing this cartoon as racist.

Here’s an interesting thought: Evolution states we evolved from monkeys, apparently. Since this belief is widespread and enforced in schools, why the up-roar? Perhaps the monkey conveys Obama's immaturity and inexperience about the presidency. Therefore, a monkey was chosen to show immaturity because Obama has not evolved into an experienced president yet. Besides, Monkey’s are regarded as the closest animal to a human, and Evolution tells me that all humans are basically glorified monkeys.

Chapter 2

Modelism was discussed in chapter two and includes modernization, modernism and post modernism.

First of all Modernization will be explained. Modernization is a historical process. It’s all the historical events that radically changed the world since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, capitalism and the colonialism in Europe and America. New technologies and scientific developments that contributed to social migration are also included in the definition of modernization. Since political and cultural events are also included I would argue that modernization is happening in the 21 century. The inauguration that occurred January 20 is a political event that fits under the definition.

Secondly there is modernism. Modernism refers to the cultural practices where as modernization refers to historical processes; refers to escaping from new worlds of modernization. It sounds to me as if modernism is a way of starting a new form of modernization or starting over if one can escape from new worlds of modernization. Furthermore, modernism is expressed with the help of pressures and consequences of modernization; in this way modernization shapes modernism. Modernism is carrying out what modernization created or planned out. Modernism is shaped by new forms of leisure and communication technology put in place by processes of modernization.

Finally there is postmodernism. Postmodernism is what the world reflects today, and started after WWII. Capitalism has changed since there is now a global market not only for goods and services, but also, for global networks. Computer technologies have been applied to every economic stage. Automation is one such form of computer technologies. I am wondering if Automated is a correct example of automation; if it is, then yes computer technologies are applied to every economic stage. To me postmodernism is losing that personable contact each day since it is all automated answering services.
Postmodernism is more materialistic than the past as well. Society has changed and is all about materialism. By materialistic I mean it’s all about what a person has from the outside, a mink coat, an HDTV, and the latest cell phone are just some examples. It's shallow and about the surface. It's no longer about what a person believes or stands for that makes them a person to society but how much stuff a person has. I believe this is what Frederic Jameson was referring too when he talked about how postmodernism refer to the disappearance of depth or the irrelevance of anything outside of text. He also went on to say that in postmodern texts only surfaces matter, only images are real. So only your neighbor’s car is real. That is an image but what makes him a person, an individual, his beliefs, no longer are relevant. In other words Reality is measured materialistic wise.
Another aspect of postmodernism is nostalgia. Nostalgia refers to romanticizing for the past. When people refer to the 90s as being a highlight in the economy they would be practicing postmodernism in reference to nostalgia.