Bell appears to be so far up his own arris that only 3 other folks in the UK got it, none of whom actually read the Guardian, and they are all cartoonists themselves.
Oh, I didn't even see that it's meant to be a body. (This is why I am useless in art.) But is that meant to be his own body? The orientation of the head makes it hard to tell. He's carving out a pound of flesh from his own body?
I think it is tryong to say that surgical precision wielding a scalpel (air strikes) is impossible if you are operating on yourself and also up for a proper fight (wearing boxing gloves). An element of massive self harm too.
Bell says it is simply a map, but it's clearly meant to be a (cancerous) growth on his belly.
But the Jewish pound of flesh trope is writ large here.
I think it is tryong to say that surgical precision wielding a scalpel (air strikes) is impossible if you are operating on yourself and also up for a proper fight (wearing boxing gloves).
That is actually very perceptive, although I have a feeling that maybe you are giving the creator too much credit ...
Although given that the whole trial at the end was basically rigged against the foreigner thanks to an advocate who had no rights of audience, wasn't Shylock more sinned against than sinning?
I definitely remember finding Shylock much more sympathetic a character than Bassanio, who has a sense of entitlement to his profligate lifestyle and expects it to be funded come what may with no regard to others. Antonio would have deserved to lose his pound of flesh for enabling him.
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I think you need an advanced degree in weirdness to even begin to understand the ‘cartoon’.
I’ve seen various folks say it is something to do with Shakespeare, or with the Vietnam war and also the BMA strike…🤪
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It's a pastiche of the LBJ cartoon apparently.
Presumably someone will find an anti Semitic angle.
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Dux, TBH I’ve never seen that LBJ cartoon before, and I’m a bit of a history badger.
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Same, but presumably some folk got it.
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Bell appears to be so far up his own arris that only 3 other folks in the UK got it, none of whom actually read the Guardian, and they are all cartoonists themselves.
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I'm not sure I get it. I don't find it particularly witty or insightful but nor do I see what's offensive about it.
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he's carving out a pound of flesh
clearly
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"oh no nothing to do with that!"
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Oh, I didn't even see that it's meant to be a body. (This is why I am useless in art.) But is that meant to be his own body? The orientation of the head makes it hard to tell. He's carving out a pound of flesh from his own body?
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Needs more labels…
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If you want to go with the carving metaphor, then for goodness sake don't overload the visual with boxing gloves as well ...
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I thought the scalpel meant it was a surgical strike.
And it being on Bibi's body meant that Bell thinks Gaza is a part of Israel.
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yes famously Steve Bell thinks that...
I don't understand the boxing gloves at all (ham fisted?)
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Taking a scalpel to yourself sounds like one of those traps in the Saw movies.
"Let's play a game ..."
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I think it is tryong to say that surgical precision wielding a scalpel (air strikes) is impossible if you are operating on yourself and also up for a proper fight (wearing boxing gloves). An element of massive self harm too.
Bell says it is simply a map, but it's clearly meant to be a (cancerous) growth on his belly.
But the Jewish pound of flesh trope is writ large here.
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That is actually very perceptive, although I have a feeling that maybe you are giving the creator too much credit ...
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That’s one reason why I was bemused. Must be how people see my jokes about the Duke of Brunswick case.
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Pound of flesh was my first thought to be honest
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Although given that the whole trial at the end was basically rigged against the foreigner thanks to an advocate who had no rights of audience, wasn't Shylock more sinned against than sinning?
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I definitely remember finding Shylock much more sympathetic a character than Bassanio, who has a sense of entitlement to his profligate lifestyle and expects it to be funded come what may with no regard to others. Antonio would have deserved to lose his pound of flesh for enabling him.
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Looks like he's been sacked
Again
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What a brilliant cartoon. Full of images and visual metaphors. Powerful. Pulling no punches, oh the irony. No wonder he’s been sacked.
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