Satirical Images

This week we talked about satire and parody as examples of irony, and I realized how hard it can be to identify and analyze these forms of literature. While searching up satire, however, I also found that satire can often take forms of comic panels or strips, that often contain more meaning and depth beyond the simplicity of the image. Taking the form of comics, like we said while reading Maus, lets readers read between the lines, or panels in this case, to understand the author’s message. I personally like satirical comic strips, not only because of their entertainment values but also the quick, direct impact they have on viewers, even on topics that can be complicated when explained in words.

I found this image when searching for satire, and I thought it illustrated an interestingly ironic relationship between environmental movements and commercialism. While the “Pristine Springs” water seems to be sold to advertise Earth Day, its sales ultimately created an opposite effect, with mountains of plastic bottles piled up or littered everywhere. For businesses, promoting environmental causes can actually be motivated from trying to promote their own products by using ecological slogans.

The illustrator can also be mocking the hypocrisy or insincerity of some individuals in society regarding their support towards environmental causes. Many people, like the two girls in the picture, purchase seemingly environment-safe products, mostly to try to feel a sense of contribution towards improving the earth, when in real life they ignore pollution happening near them. The existence of this kind of crowd motivates companies to use green as a slogan even more, and I feel that the illustrator’s message is that ironically, even environmental claims can be a factor of commercialism.