Do you know what a cartoon is? If you are a good-humored person, you will certainly like to know a little more about this interesting textual genre that matches verbal language and non-verbal language. Come on?
The word charge is of French origin and means “charge”. This name was not chosen by chance, since one of the main characteristics of the cartoon is to exaggerate, whether about a fact or about a person, in order to make them a caricature. The cartoon, which is a style of illustration, aims to satirize someone, some situation or event current, so it is always related to a certain social, historical, cultural or political.
In Brazil, cartoons are commonly found in magazines and newspapers, whether printed or virtual. They should not be confused with the cartoon (from English cartoon), whose main characteristic is playing with common situations in society. The cartoon is much more than a drawing, it is an expression of art loaded with criticality, a way fun and unconventional that the artist finds to express his opinions on events of his time.
Because of this cartoon, a criticism of the King of France, the cartoonist Honoré Daumier was imprisoned for six months in the year 1832!
The history of the cartoon began in Europe at the beginning of the 19th century, when people who were opposed to the government dared to create a new form of expression to criticize the tyranny and the excesses of their representatives. This new form combined image and text, in addition to, through an irreverent language, conquering the sympathy of the population and making this genre one of the most appreciated to this day. In Brazil, we have great cartoonists, including, many were targets of censorship at the time of military dictatorship, when making a social criticism through any artistic expression could be very dangerous!
Jaguar cartoonist satirizing the song “Pra Frente Brasil” during the military dictatorship
The cartoon is much more than a simple textual genre, it is, above all, a transforming agent of reality, because it exposes, through good humor, great social problems, always with the intention of provoking reflection and debate. In Brazil, the main representatives of the genus are Henfil, Laerte Coutinho, Millôr Fernandes, Angeli, Jaguar, Carlos Latuff, Ziraldo, among others, who competently and sympathetically defend humor political and social. About his work as a cartoonist, Henfil once spoke:
Henfil, Laerte Coutinho, Millôr Fernandes and Ziraldo are among the main Brazilian cartoonists
“I think my work has an end. The time of humor for humor is over. Today the humor is journalistic, it has to be engaged, to be warm. The phase of pure and simple communication is over. The mood is now one of identification. My goal is identification. I try to give a message through humor. Humor by humor is sophistication, it's freshness. And in this one I'm not: my business is down to earth.”
henfil
By Luana Castro
Graduated in Letters
