Author's Note
The central theme surrounding my comic, as mentioned in the statement of purpose, is that politicians live in a different world than the average American. As demonstrated through their financial status, fame and fortune, as well as political agendas, the lifestyle of a politician often juxtaposes that of the public, and prompts the questioning of their true representation of the people. Communicating this message to my audience via a comic was no easy task, and it involved an ongoing editing process, working with aesthetic and structural elements.
When I originally decided to focus on the differences between politicians and citizens, I foresaw the use of an amusement park with a “political entry booth” as an icon to emphasize the money needed to back a campaign. However, this did not depict some of the other points I wanted to make, and so I decided to use a balance to compare the two groups. Furthermore, in choosing specific iconic people to represent Americans and politicians, I was forced to make decisions regarding who to draw. As pertaining to the citizens, I chose to incorporate many recognizable “blue collar” jobs such as a construction worker, janitor, farmer, etc, while I selected several well-known political candidates for the politicians (from both parties).
In addition, I wanted to add some humor to the message, which is why I included the satirical phrases spoken by the politicians. Although made popular by shows such as SNL, these phrases address some of the same disparity between politicians and the public that I wanted to tackle. Lastly, I had to make aesthetic decisions regarding the typography of the comic. Initially, I hand-wrote the dialect, but eventually decided to use word-processed type for consistency and a professional look. In this way, I was also able to change the fonts between panels: using a lower-case, handwritten font for the everyday workers, versus an uppercase, “professional” font for the politicians.
Also key to this process were the use of rhetorical concepts with which to base aesthetic choices off of. One example of this is that it is especially important within a comic genre to establish a particular pathos and ethos with the audience so that they are able to personally identify with the message. Unlike essays and other such medium, icons in comics can be drawn with varying levels of abstraction. In this way, as stated by McCloud, there exists “amplification through simplification.” Thus, because I wanted the reader to be able to identify with the Americans in the composition, I abstracted these people so that their faces contained few details. In this way, the reader is still able to classify their occupations and what they represent, but also identify with them. The politicians, however, are abstracted much less, so that they are more objective and recognizable.
Another rhetorical concept that is important within the framework of a comic is using icons and symbols to represent various ideas. The main icon I chose to use was the scale, which essentially compares two different groups of people: U.S. citizens versus U.S. politicians. In this manner, I was able to depict using the symbols how the politicians are generally different from everyday citizens. In addition, I juxtaposed the symbolic falling dollar bills with the spilled mop water to further compare these two groups of people. On a larger scale, I chose to incorporate the Washington Monument and Capital building to address through logos what is affected by this conflict.
Lastly, in order to make the comic unique, I tried to break away from some of the norms associated with that medium. One such decision, which engages the audience, is to sever the frame of the various panels with the subject matter. By intersecting the frames with the mop bucket and scale, the audience’s attention is called to this subject matter, making them think about what the objects represent and how they fit into the comic. In addition, because the comic is published on a blog, I thought about how I could utilize that context to further break some of the other norms. Thus, creating an “alternate ending,” was a structural choice that allowed me to add another dimension to the comic.
Statement of Purpose
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