Q.Study the given cartoon carefully and answer the questions that follow : [Cartoon — two panels. Left panel caption: YESTERDAY. Mother to child: "FINISH YOUR DINNER — THERE ARE PEOPLE IN CHINA AND INDIA WHO ARE STARVING...". Right panel caption: TODAY. Mother to child: "FINISH YOUR HOMEWORK — THERE ARE PEOPLE IN CHINA AND INDIA WHO ARE STARVING FOR YOUR JOB...". Signed: RIGGS.]
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Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →The cartoon captures a dramatic shift in American perception of developing countries — from seeing them as victims of hunger to rivals for jobs — reflecting the anxieties and contradictions of globalization.
The cartoon by Riggs is a sharp, two-panel commentary on how globalization has reshaped not just economies but also the way ordinary people in wealthy countries view the developing world. In the left panel, labelled "Yesterday," a mother tells her child to finish dinner because people in China and India are starving. This image belongs to an older world — one where the West saw developing nations primarily as sites of poverty, famine, and helplessness. The moral lesson is about gratitude and charity: eat your food because others have none.
The right panel, labelled "Today," flips the script entirely. Now the mother says: finish your homework because people in China and India are starving for your job. The developing world is no longer a passive object of pity — it has become an active competitor. The hunger is no longer for food but for employment, opportunity, and economic position. This is the world of globalization, where capital, technology, and labour move across borders, and where a child in Ohio can feel the pressure of a child in Shanghai.
- Which change does the cartoon reflect?
The cartoon reflects the fundamental change in the global economic order brought about by globalization. In the earlier era, developing countries were largely agricultural, poor, and dependent on aid. The West dominated manufacturing and services. By the 1990s and 2000s, however, countries like China and India opened their economies, attracted foreign investment, and became major producers of goods and services. The cartoon captures this shift from a world of "charity" to a world of "competition." The same nations once seen as needing our leftovers are now seen as taking our jobs.
Note
This is not just about economics — it reflects a psychological shift. The "starving child" was a symbol of moral obligation; the "job-seeking child" is a symbol of threat. The mother's tone in the second panel carries anxiety, not sympathy.
- What kind of shift is shown in America's attitude towards developing countries? America's attitude shifts from paternalism to anxiety. In the first panel, the developing world is a distant object of pity — the American family is secure, and the lesson is about gratitude. In the second panel, the developing world is a direct threat to American prosperity. The attitude is no longer "we should help them" but "they are taking from us." This reflects the real-world rise of protectionist sentiment, job outsourcing fears, and the sense that globalization has created winners and losers even within wealthy countries. …
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