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‘El Roto: A Political Cartoonist in Late Capitalist Spain’

Lookup NU author(s): Dr Daniel Mourenza Urbina

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Abstract

Under the pseudonym of El Roto, Andrés Rábago draws editorial cartoons for El País newspaper on an almost daily basis. Unlike other cartoonists, his political satire rarely depicts real politicians or celebrities but instead focuses on social types. This technique helps him to distance himself from current events as presented by the media and signal the more general causes of political conflicts. This article explores cartoons from recent years in which El Roto represents and interprets manifestations of the economy in everyday life. I show that his editorial cartoons aim to unmask the ideological narratives that attempt to naturalize capitalism as the only possible economic system. His “ideology critique” can thus be described as a political intervention to interrupt the creation and shaping of systems of representation that legitimize this economic and cultural hegemony. This article offers a content analysis of some of El Roto's most relevant cartoons, identifying the most recurrent themes and techniques used in order to consider his position as a cartoonist in Spanish politics.

Publication metadata

Author(s): Mourenza D

Publication type: Article

Publication status: Published

Journal: Romance Quarterly

Year: 2016

Volume: 63

Issue: 2

Pages: 83-96

Online publication date: 16/03/2016

Acceptance date: 12/01/2016

ISSN (print): 0883-1157

ISSN (electronic): 1940-3216

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

URL: https://doi.org/10.1080/08831157.2016.1146019

DOI: 10.1080/08831157.2016.1146019

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