I have chosen to explore the recent political event of the
Brett Kavanaugh hearing. Kavanaugh is a judge that is currently being nominated
to join the Supreme Court. In the last few weeks, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford has
come forward with allegations that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her at a party in the
summer of 1982. On Thursday, September 27, 2018, Dr. Ford and Kavanaugh
testified before the Senate to address the allegations. Between the emotional testimonies and the upcoming midterm elections in
November, this is an important and critical political event that is unfolding. The use of memes and social media has allowed for people to voice their opinions on this event in a way that is "a performative display of opinions that is meant to
be heard far and wide" (Shifman, 2014, p. 149).
This meme compares the calm deposition of Hillary Clinton
during her testimony on Benghazi to Kavanaugh’s explosive demeanor during his
testimony. Kavanaugh has been criticized in the media for crying, shouting, and
losing his temper multiple times during his testimony. This meme illustrates
that throughout her eleven-hour testimony, Clinton remained “cool as a cucumber”
while Kavanaugh was screaming within the first few minutes of his testimony. It
further communicates that due to this type of behavior, among other things,
Kavanaugh is not fit for the Supreme Court seat. This meme absolutely connects
to gender because it illustrates the drastic difference of demeanor between a
woman and man who are both experiencing difficult testimonies, and despite the
fact that society believes women are more emotional, it is the man that is letting
his emotions take over.
I believe this meme connects to Shifman’s (2014) response of
facilitating public discussion. By using an image of an angry Kavanaugh and a
calm Clinton, the comparison in this meme “serves as a powerful public display
of criticism and distrust” in Kavanaugh (Shifman, 2014, p. 149). This meme, however, can be
interpreted in multiple ways. People could say that Clinton was not passionate enough
about her testimony or that Kavanaugh was too worked up. These perspectives further
encourage discussions among the meme viewers.
2) Movie Plot
In this meme, Dr. Ford, Hillary Clinton, and Anita Hill
are captured during their individual, and monumental, testimonies, including
Dr. Ford’s recent testimony against Brett Kavanaugh. All three women are calm
and collected in the meme images as they attempt to take down a man in
politics. These “people”, as they are referred to in the meme, are Brett
Kavanaugh, Donald Trump, and Clarence Thomas. This meme sarcastically refers to
these images as a movie plot, thus communicating the message that these
scenarios happen so frequently, and yet society doesn’t take them seriously and
unqualified candidates are still being elected into major political roles. It
includes the idea of gender because it discusses the idea that although women
are using their voices for justice, men are still being seen as more powerful despite their lack of qualifications.
This meme can be seen as one that is persuasive. The meme text
encourages the idea that those elected to government positions are not qualified
for their jobs, and also the idea that the women in all three cases have valid
points. Women who see this meme could automatically understand the point of
view of this meme and support its message, as “personal influence is a pivotal
aspect of persuasion” (Shifman, 2014, p. 122). I think too, positioning the
other side as a “plainly unqualified person” would resonate with people who
also see them this way, and further persuade them to support the message of
this meme.
3) Nah I'm Good
This meme shows an image of Kavanaugh getting frustrated at
Dr. Ford’s allegations during his testimony. A quote from his testimony is used
as text in this meme, as he states that the “false” allegations are ruining his
life. It then shows members of the Senate asking Kavanaugh if he would support
an investigation into his past to clear his name. During the testimony,
Kavanaugh did not support this idea. People found this to be surprising given
that he vehemently insists he is not guilty and therefore should not have
anything to hide. The meme depicts his response through the humorous “Nah, I’m
good” text in the last image. Again, this meme includes the theme of gender
given the circumstances of this testimony and Kavanaugh’s angry demeanor during
the entire thing.
This meme includes the response of facilitating public
discussion. It highlights the fact that Kavanaugh does not want an investigation
into his past, despite his insistence that he has nothing to hide. By pointing
this out, the meme creates what Shifman (2014) refers to as “meme-based
discourse, through which diverse opinions and identities are expressed and
negotiated” (p. 132). Some people may not see Kavanaugh’s resistance to an
investigation as questionable or suspicious, and may feel an investigation is not necessary. Therefore,
seeing the “Nah, I’m good” part of this meme could influence someone to share
their opinion on the investigation and further create discussion around the topic.
Fandos, N. & Stolberg Gay, S. (2018). Brett Kavanaugh and Christine
Blasey Ford
duel with tears and fury. The
New York Times. Retrieved
from: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/27/us/politics/brett-kavanaugh
confirmation-hearings.html
Shifman, L. (2014). Memes in digital culture. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
Well done. great analysis!
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