Visual Analysis of the Wish
Lorenzo Luevano
The University of Texas at El Paso
While many people are waiting for an immigration reform, the government has not come to final solution to this problem. The purpose of the following assignment, the visual analysis, is not only to study the arguments behind the visual but also to determine how the artist presents us the arguments. To determine how the arguments are being used, rhetorical strategies will help analyze those arguments. By using rhetorical strategies the viewer will find the purposes and motivations of the image. This analysis will talk about ethos, pathos, logos that are seen and or implied by the image. Also the visual analysis will analyze the intended audience set forth by the image. The image being analyzed, references to the immigration problem being face by the U.S government and its people.
Purpose and Message of Image
With this image, the artist explains that “an undocumented worker crosses his fingers and waits for Uncle Sam’s decision, whether he may come into the United States or not” (Immigrants, 2010).The purpose of the image is to explain that undocumented people are not waiting for a reform, and they decide to cross the border as said by the author “most immigrants don’t wait for the U.S. to decide whether they can come here illegal or not” (Immigrants, 2010). The message that the creator wants to express has to do with the government decision to debate the reform for many years without a solution. After reviewing the message and purpose, the next step in analyzing the image is to examine the rhetorical strategies.
Ethos
The title of the website in which the Wish is found is called The Immigrants Editorial Cartoons: Editorial Cartoons on Race & Ethnicity, Immigration and Undocumented Workers. This title gives credibility to the image itself, because the website has just images related to immigration. Another ethos found has to do with the group that uploads all the images including the wish, they are called the Immigrants. The group implies and or suggests that they can relate to the immigration problem or that they know about the problem many people face. Many cartoons that have to do with the government issues have the colors white blue, red and stars. This is important because it shows credibility by telling us that is a U.S problem. The colors are ethos because it symbolizes the U.S and its entire people. Another ethos is Uncle Sam because he is an important figure of the American government. Uncle Sam signifies freedom, equality, and justice, which the immigrants want to see in an immigration reform. There are two aspects that can take away from the credibility of the image that is the way the immigrant is being presented and the flower because it show that the government is not trying.
Pathos
This image with its title appeals to the emotions of the immigrants because all they wish for is an immigration reform. A viewer can feel that the immigrants are seen as less because of the proportion to Uncle Sam. The immigrant in this picture might feel frustrated because of how Uncle Sam is deciding about an immigration reform, concerning the luck he has with the flower. Not only the immigrants but also the supporters of an immigration reform may feel mad at this image because it show the government is not really trying to solve the problem. Another example of pathos shows the emotion of failure because the flower only has three more petals before all hopes are lost. The green wall represents a barrier to the immigrants and their success. The immigrant face is saddened and tried but with hopes for a reform. Also there is a feeling of superiority between the government and the immigrants.
Logos
The way Uncle Sam is deciding whether there should be an immigration reform or not is not really considered logic because there is nothing to support his actions. The artist puts Uncle Sam in the picture to depict logic because he represents the U.S government. In the image it is very logical the way in which the immigrants feel, because of the way the government is dealing with the problem. A logo presented in this image the government being at the top, while its people are at the bottom waiting for actions.
Audience
For this image the intended audiences can the immigrants themselves, because they are the ones that want an immigration reform. The next group of audience is the government because this image is saying that immigrants are wishing for a reform but they have not come out with nothing to help them. People who support the idea of an immigration reform also are the audience here because they to want to see something done. As represented by the American colors the audience is also the American people because this is a problem that the U.S is facing. The undocumented workers are considered the audience also because they are the ones suffering and wishing for a reform just like the immigrants.
Conclusion
The Wish is an image that represents the immigration problem in the United States. The artist main motivation for creating this image can be said to be inform and tell the viewers that immigrants and undocumented workers still have hopes for an immigration reform to be passed. Also the image implies awareness towards action because immigrants are waiting. Even though if an immigration reform is passed there will still be illegal immigrants trying to cross. The artist strategy was to create a sense of action towards the government. With this image the artist wanted to express the emotions of the immigrants that are waiting for a change, while the government takes it as a joke playing with the flower. The rhetorical strategies helped the view analysis and determine the purpose of what the artist tried to express.
References
Immigrants. (Artist). (2010). The wish. [Web Graphic]. Retrieved from http://theimmigrants2010.wordpress.com/2010/03/24/the-wish/
