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Questions

1. To what recent news item does this cartoon refer?

2. Tone is the attitude a cartoonist takes towards a subject. Which pair of words best describes the tone of this cartoon?
a) thoughtful/serious
b) sympathetic/compassionate
c) humorous/amused
d) exasperated/irritated
e) heartened/motivated

3. Which comic device does the cartoonist use to make his point? Explain your answer.
a) irony
b) exaggeration
c) parody
d) pun


Scroll down to the bottom of the page for the answers.

Cartoon by Steve Kelley

Answers

1. In November, Florida voters approved a state constitutional amendment that automatically gives people who have committed felony offenses, with exceptions including murder, the right to vote once they complete their prison sentence as well as parole or probation. Currently, the Republican controlled state legislature and governor are working on the details for how this will work.
Also, during a CNN townhall this week, 2020 Presidential candidate Democratic Socialist Bernie Sanders said that felons, even Boston Marathon bomber, should have right to vote in prison.

2. Tone is: c) humorous/amused

3. b) exaggeration: to think of or describe something as larger or greater than it really is; the cartoonist exaggerates the extent of allowing felons to vote: a pollster is visiting prisoners to take a survey on voters view on the election

The cartoonist did not use:
a) irony: when the opposite of what you expect to happen occurs
c) parody: a humorous or satirical imitation of a serious piece of literature or writing; a work in which the style of an author or work is closely imitated for comic effect or in ridicule
d) pun: a “play on words” – a type of humor using a word or phrase that has two meanings