A pragma-sociolinguistic interpretation of cartoons as visio-verbal communication
Godwin I. N. Emezue1
Abstract  Cartoons are often viewed as caricatured
drawings published in newspapers and magazines merely to
create humour. But this is just the base intention. Cartons
are a means of communicating and commenting on sundry
serious (inter)national issues that make the news. Through
cartoons the ludicrous in the society is highlighted and the
ideal projected. Apart from the drawing, the message of a
cartoon is also communicated in the accompanying words,
phrases and/or sentences. It is in this sense that cartoons
constitute a form of visual-cum-verbal communication. In
this paper, I examined how cartoons communicate meaning
and intention, using insights from pragmatics and
sociolinguistics as a theoretical framework. My conclusion
is that cartoons communicate meaning only when the
cartoonist’s presuppositions and inferences are also shared
by the target audience.
Index Terms  cartoon, communication, discourse,
pragma-sociolinguistics.
INTRODUCTION
Cartoons are often seen as caricatured drawings published in
newspapers and magazines merely to create humour. But
this is just the base intention for publishing them as cartoons
are, indeed, a serious means of communicating and
commenting on sundry current (inter)national issues.
Through cartoons the ludicrous in the society is highlighted
and the ideal, as interpreted by the cartoonist, is projected.
Because of its use of drawings and sketches, I have
categorised cartoon as a type of visual communication. And
since the drawing is usually accompanied by some words,
phrases or sentences, the cartoon is also a form of verbal
communication. In other words, cartoons are visio-verbal
language in use, hence it is adjudged as discourse.
My main aim is to show that cartoons constitute an
analysable discourse because they have goal-directed
schematic structures by which news events, ideas, opinions,
etc. are communicated by first weeding them of their
bluntness and injecting in them some humour and comic
relief. So, if discourse is any structured stretch of language
that is communicative purposive and has intra- and extratextual elements that enable it to cohere and achieve
meaning, cartoons as visio-verbal language in use qualify as
discourse.
The cartoon as artistic mode of communication is any
caricature or drawing that communicates messages and
articulate views. Since it is created in consideration of the
experiences and assumptions of the target audience, its
communicative function is determined in consideration of
identifiable recent news headlines and other shared
knowledge.
CARTOONS AS COMMUNICATION
In consideration of the target audience and the expected
reaction, addressors adopt different means and strategies to
deliver their messages to the addressees. Basically,
communication can be actualised by means of visual images,
by means of actions and gestures (often referred to as
paralinguistic means) and by means of language (spoken or
written). The choice of a particular means of communication
is all right if mutual sharing of information, ideas, thoughts
and emotions between a source and a receiver is actualised
and there is mutual understanding, a reduction of
uncertainties and the engendering of appropriate actions
(Unoh, 1987, pp. 35-36). Any means of communication is
adjudged all right if it engenders in the receptor the sender’s
expected reaction.
Communication may be more inclusively seen as
any means (verbal and non-verbal) by which thought is
transferred from one person to another (Chappell & Reed,
1984). Any means of communication is adjudged all right if
it reduces uncertainties and engenders in the receptor the
sender’s expected reaction.
THEORETICAL CONSIDERATION
Since the main thrust of this paper is to explain how cartoons
communicate, I am faced with the task of explaining the
interrelationship between picture and language as a means of
communication. My theoretical considerations are in
pragmatics and sociolinguistics, hence the term pragmasociolinguistic.
Pragma-sociolinguistic is an umbrella term which
suggests an eclectic approach that includes pragmatics,
sociology and linguistics, each of which in some distinct but
mutually inclusive way addresses the way language means
and communicates. In other words, this paper is concerned
with explaining how the social environment of events, tasks,
etc. informs the production of cartoons and their
interpretations. Thus, a pragma-sociolinguistic approach
requires a thorough comprehension of “the historical,
personal, environmental, sociocultural, and linguistic aspects
1
Godwin I. N. Emezue, Ph.D, Department of English Language & Literature Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences, Abia State University, Uturu,
Nigeria. [email protected]
DOI 10.14684/WCCA.6.2013.17-22
© 2013 COPEC
April 04 - 07, 2012, Geelong, AUSTRALIA
VI World Congress on Communication and Arts
17
of context relating to the context in which the particular
discourse (e.g. cartoon) took place” (Adegbija, 1985, p.11).
A related term is socio-pragmatics, which Leech (1983) has
used to explain what he calls sociological interface in
pragmatics; insisting that it is concerned with studying how
social conditions and situations influence language use and
interpretation.
Sociolinguistic studies examine language as it
communicatively functions in society and as it is affected or
influenced by social and cultural factors. In other words, it is
the study of language in its social context. It is hinged on the
understanding that there are socio-political conditions that
give relevance to whatever is communicated by whatever
means. So interpretation of the selected cartoons is informed
by the knowledge of identifiable social conditions, shared
relevant knowledge and, of course, schemata knowledge
premised on the knowledge of how things ‘naturally’
associate or get done. Thus, in a sociolinguistic
investigation, language is seen as a social phenomenon,
which considers factors extraneous to language itself in
order to function as a vehicle for communication.
SHARED KNOWLEDGE
Knowledge is the condition of being familiarly aware of or
acquainted with something. And this familiarity is gained
through experience, association, or learning. Knowledge
should be seen “in a broad sense, to include ‘know-how’ and
‘know-that’” (Hudson, 1983, p.74). For instance, we ‘knowthat’ the cartoonists assume that they and their receptors
have mutual knowledge of the social, historical, political and
economic events that inform his cartoon. They also expect
the receptors to ‘know-that’ what they have drawn or
sketched do not mean in themselves; the drawings have been
used to mean. Where cartoonists exaggerate the knowledge
they share with their target audience, communication is
impaired.
SCHEMATA KNOWLEDGE
It is normal, at times, for addressors (e.g. the cartoonists) to
take it for granted that they share some common experiences
with the addressees. Following this assumption, they make
their communication intent ‘undetailed’ by leaving a lot of
things unsaid or unexplained. But for cartoons to
communicate, since the stories behind their production are
not usually captured in detail, the analyst finds himself
tapping resources from his memory pool. He takes recourse
to stored experience in order to fill in the ‘missing’
information. This shared experience is what is referred to as
schemata knowledge. As Yule (1985) succinctly puts it,
“schemata are considered to be conventional knowledge
structures which exist in memory and are activated, under
various circumstances, in the interpretation of what we
experience” (p.112). That is, one may have knowledge of
the language in use or may identify who or what a cartoon’s
virtual image represents in real life and yet fail to understand
it unless one is able to reactivate a priori knowledge or take
recourse to stored experience.
For effective communication to happen, both the sender
and receiver of message ought to be real people, living in a
real world of events and tasks. And because cartoonists and
their audience are real, they are realistically pictured as
living within the same communication circle and sharing the
same experience, language, knowledge and values. But this
sharing is not expected to be on an equal basis. This explains
why people do not react to the same message in the same
manner. The message (contained in a cartoon) may get some
people excited, others thoughtful and yet in another set of
people elicit no visible reaction at all, even when the
intended message has been understood.
DATA SOURCE
In Nigeria, there are a few dailies that may be considered
national newspapers in terms of their circulation, distribution
and readership. These are The Guardian, The Punch,
Vanguard, SUN, THISDAY, Daily Independence and The
Nation. All of them - except, perhaps, The Nation - claim to
be apolitical. But a critical examination of their editorial
opinions, news coverage, and columnists’ opinion indicate
that their claim to political neutrality is contestable.
Four of the cartoons chosen for analysis are from The
Nation and one from The Guardian. These cartoons are
those I have classified as ‘serious cartoons’ to distinguish
them from those ones that are basically produced for comic
relief. The cartoons comment on social, political and
economic news that have dominated discourse in Nigerian
from December 2011 to October 2012..
Even though there are thousands of cartoons to choose
from, I collected over two hundred, but carefully chose five
which I consider representative enough to lend credibility to
the generalisations I have made as regards how cartoons
communicate. Analysing more than this number would mean
unnecessary repetition of the same ideas. Also, there is the
question of space.
ANALYSIS OF SELECT CARTOONS
What cartoonists do with the type of cartoons I have selected
for analysis is to communicate experiences through visual
art and verbal language. And what I is expected of me as an
analyst is to recognise that what is sketched and written in a
cartoon discourse do not mean in themselves, rather they
‘stand for’ or ‘represent’ recognisable experiences. In other
words, I have preoccupied myself more with discovering and
discussing the communicative functions of cartoons than
with what they mean.
Let us consider cartoon (i):
© 2013 COPEC
April 04 - 07, 2012, Geelong, AUSTRALIA
VI World Congress on Communication and Arts
18
many Nigerians and lead to their socio-economic and even
physical death and therefore should be resisted.
In a New Year broadcast on 1st January, 2012, the
president of Nigeria, Jonathan Goodluck, eventually
announced the removal of oil subsidy. The pump price of
petrol jumped from N65 per litre to N141 per litre. Cartoon
(ii) captures the agonising suffering of Nigerians.
Cartoon (i) Source: THE NATION, Thursday, December 15, 2011
The cartoon (i) above by Mooyiwa Adetula which is
published on The Nation of Thursday, 15th December, 2011
imagines the consequent effect of the planned “fuel subsidy
removal” on ordinary Nigerians. Foregrounded in the
cartoon is a big cross on which a blindfolded man (The
Nigerian also known as ‘King of Poverty) is nailed and
crucified. He is emaciated, unkempt and an epitome of
poverty. At the place of crucifixion are a group of people,
who like the Jews who crucified Jesus the Christ1, are
grinning expansively in apparent happiness over the demise
of the already poverty stricken Nigerian. Their extra-long
hats and robust cheeks show that they are of the ruling class
(The Vice-president of Nigeria, Mr Sambo and State
Governors) from the Hausa-Fulani, Yoruba, Igbo, NigerDelta and other minority ethnic groups who feed fat on the
ordinary, deprived Nigerian. Also at the background are the
spears of their foot soldiers. At the top left is the ominous
cloud that is gathering. On the left corner is the informing
news item: “Sambo, Governors: FUEL SUBSIDY
REMOVAL CERTAIN”.
The cartoonist has used a widely recognised symbol of
suffering (the cross) to capture the excruciating pain that
would the lot of the ordinary Nigerian once fuel subsidy is
removed. But unlike Christ’s crucifixion which meant
redemption to humankind (as Christian religion teaches [cf:
Luke 23:34]), the Nigerian’s crucifixion means the
redemption of the ruling class only. Also, unlike Christ
whose death was largely voluntary, the crucifixion of The
Nigerian would be forced. Even his prayer on the cross “Father forgive them, even though they know what they do”
– is an irony. It actually should read, ‘Father punish them for
they know what they do.’
The raised spears indicate the presence of law
enforcement agents (the police and/or the army) who would
be used to ensure that “The Nigerian” remained hung on the
cross until certified dead. But that they carry spears instead
of guns indicate that the country is going back to
primitiveness as a result of the subsidy removal that would
further impoverish Nigerians. Modern army no longer fight
with spears. The cartoonist’s message is that the planned
removal of oil subsidy would worsen the poverty level of
Cartoon (II) Source: THE NATION Thursday January 5, 2012
Cartoon (ii), also by Mooyiwa Adetula is published in
The Nation of 5th January, 2012. In the cartoon, we see an
extremely emaciated man (“The Nigerian”) is bent over by
the combined weight of three large balloon-like sacks
labelled “FUEL SUBSIDY REMOVAL, HUNGER and
INSECURITY.” The cartoon is informed by the 1st January,
2012 removal of petrol subsidy in Nigeria as indicated by
the poster which reads, “SUBSIDY REMOVAL/ACTION
WILL/Says Lagos speaker.” Notice that the sacks are
severally patched indicating that they are old. A country like
Nigeria should have dumped such old sacks of maladies
(removal of oil subsidy, hunger and insecurity) that have
always dogged the progress of the ordinary Nigerian.
Instead, these debilitating sacks are patched for continued
use with the ordinary Nigerian bearing the brunt of the
disabling loads. Such is the suffering of The Nigerian that
there is no doubt that he may not live longer, hence his
anguished cry, “…IT IS FINISHED2.”
It should be noted that The Nigerian is representative of
every emasculated and deprived Nigerian. The Nigerian is
dying in pain and penury so that the rulers and their families
and friends may live in bliss. Unlike Christ who died and
ascended triumphantly and gloriously to heaven, The
Nigerian is dying hopelessly and descending into ABYSS
(See the ABYSS sign post on the cartoon).
The cartoonist simple agrees with the speaker of Lagos
State House of Assembly that the present removal of subsidy
would worsen poverty and consequently bring death to the
people. The cartoonist seems to be urging the target
2
“IT IS FINISHED” echoes the Christ’s saying on the cross before he died
(John 19:30). But whereas, Christ had proclaimed the end (finishing) of the
punishment of any person who believes in His redemptive death, as the
Christian religion teaches, the impending death of The Nigerian does not
mark the end of the suffering of the masses
© 2013 COPEC
April 04 - 07, 2012, Geelong, AUSTRALIA
VI World Congress on Communication and Arts
19
audience to resist the obnoxious policy or be ready for a
dismal abyss.
Related to cartoon (ii) topically is cartoon (iii).
Cartoon (iii) Source: THE GUARDIAN January 4, 2011
In cartoon (iii) by OBE ESS, a couple and their child are
riding on a motorcycle and discussing the recent removal of
fuel subsidy. The woman desires to know why “Government
suddenly [decides to] remove the so-called fuel subsidy” and
the man responds that it is removed to “quickly take care of
some very important need.” I have underscored “so-called”,
“quickly” and “very important need” in order to draw
attention to their communicative poignancy. The adjective,
“so-called”, is used to project the position held by some
informed Nigerians that there is no fuel subsidy before now
(4th January, 2012); that the touted subsidy is another ploy
to further short-change ordinary Nigerians. The adverb of
manner, “quickly “and the phrase, “very important needs”
depict the insensitive urgency and insincerity of purpose
with which government implements policies that would be
of benefit to the ruling class only. These “very important
needs” are subsumed in “FOOD for the State House” only.
Another feature that is what noticing in cartoon (III) is
the motorcycle that releases huge cloud of exhaust fumes
(carbon monoxide), which shows that it is poorly
maintained. Also informative is the number plate bearing the
registration number, “010”. As the couple progresses in their
journey [of life] and still wearing the same clothes [because
they can’t have new ones], the registration number on the
number plate disappears. The cartoonist use of “010”and the
message it bears are informed by assumed shared
knowledge3. It shows that initially, the couple could afford
to eat at least once [in the afternoon] a day. But now they are
not sure of when the next meal would come.
For the cartoonist, therefore, government policies are
not meant to better the condition of the masses. Policies are
made and enforced to ensure that government officials and
those who have access to the State House continue to enjoy
3
It should be explained, indicates the feeding schedule of most Nigerians,
indicating zero (“0”) feeding in the morning and night (“O”), with only the
afternoon meal (“1”) assured.
the good things of life as the poor masses continue to wallow
in penury.
Ten months later (as at 7th October, 2012), the succour
promised to alleviate the hardship imposed on the people
through oil subsidy removal is still a mirage. The much
promised dividend of democracy has not been provided. The
result is that the level of hunger and discontentment has not
abated. This is what carton (iv) below communicates.
Source: Cartoon (IV) THE NATION ON SUNDDAY OCTOBER 7, 2012
In cartoon (iv) by Azeez Ozi Sanni, published in The
Nation of 7th October, 2012, there is a large cooking pot
placed on a stone tripod and being heated with a candlestick
that is already half-burnt. Two men and the pot are
foregrounded. One of the men is well dressed (but not in a
chef’s apron) in good shoes and a ‘resource-control hat’4 and
sitting on a swivel chair. Taking recourse to shared
knowledge, the well-dressed, wine-drinking man is President
Jonathan – if his hat is anything to go by.
The sign post that reads ASO VILLA KITCHEN
suggests that the man wearing the resource-control hat is the
man rules Nigeria from Aso [Rock] Villa, Nigeria’s seat of
government. The other man is his SSA (Senior Special
Adviser/Assistant), who, instead of trying to assuage the
rising anger of the people insults them (“… Your nose is
faulty”). And as far as the people are concerned he is a
hireling, a shameless spokesperson of the president: “the
Villa’s ‘Basket Mouth.” The adjective “basket” is suggestive
of a person whose mouth, figuratively speaking, leaks and so
speaks first before thinking.
Generally, the cartoonist’s message is simple: the
President does not have the zest or zeal to provide the
promised dividend of democracy. He is interested only in his
personal comfort and aggrandisement as well as those of his
political allies. Otherwise, he would not have dressed in the
way he is. His dressing and the chair he sits on are not suited
for a kitchen, especially, the kitchen where the dividends of
democracy (metaphor for food, security, infrastructural
4
Resource-control hat is usually won by men Ijaw ethnic group. Of course,
we also know that Jonathan is Ijaw (a people of the Niger Delta area of
Nigeria noted for wearing such hats that are tagged ‘[petroleum] resource
control’. The term ‘resource control originated when the people of the
Niger Delta area started advocating they be given the right to control the
exploration of oil there.
© 2013 COPEC
April 04 - 07, 2012, Geelong, AUSTRALIA
VI World Congress on Communication and Arts
20
development, etc.) for the nation is supposedly being
prepared. Again, the man appears too relaxed and much
engrossed in his own enjoyment (cf: the choice wine being
sipped) to even contemplate getting firewood or coal to
generate the heat (energy) needed to cook the “Dividends of
Democracy.”
The candle as the source of energy is emblematic of the
lethargic disposition of the leader. What is communicated is
that just as a mere candlestick cannot provide the energy
needed to heat such a large pot containing the democratic
food being prepared, so does the cook himself lack the inner
energy, the administrative acumen and political sagacity
required to meet the democratic expectations of Nigerians.
Even though, the chief cook of the Aso Kitchen may not be
oblivious of the hunger that has colonised the land, he is
either not bothered or too inept and weak to do what is
required.
One of the greatest security challenges that Nigeria is
facing is the menace of the Islamic sect BOKO HARAM5
whose ‘headquarters’ is suspected to be in Bornu State (aka
Home of Peace). Bombing and burning of churches, police
stations, schools, etc. have taken place in parts of Northern
Nigeria with the sect claiming responsibility. The destructive
prowess of Boko Haram is depicted in carton (v).
Source: Cartoon (v) THE NATION Wednesday, 8th June, 2012
In cartoon (v), BOKO HARAM symbolised by a boa
(‘boko’) constrictor has characteristically wound its strong,
huge body around the palace of Shehu (the
traditional/Islamic ruler of Bornu) which is metonymic of
the entire Bornu State (and by implication, the Nigerian
States) crushing the whole country and wreaking havoc.
Already, the brother of Shehu has been killed by the sect
according to news report. One other person has also been
killed through a bomb blast and the situation is such that
peace has eluded the HOME OF PEACE. (Notice that only
the letter ‘P’ is still visible in ‘PEACE’.) The Shehu, his
5
Boko Haram (meaning Western education is evil) has consistently claimed
responsibility for the spate of bombings and killings in most part of
[especially, Northern] Nigeria
wife and son are shown escaping from the besieged and
collapsing palace.
The first impression we get of the cartoon is how
sinister-looking and extremely dangerous boa constrictor
(“BOKO HARAM”) is. This engenders a negative feeling in
us; the feeling that Boko Haram is essentially evil. With the
mouth of the boa constrictor wide open, the four sword-like
fangs exposed, the tongue darting and venoms apparently
spurting, a scary image of the sect as a gang of merciless
killers is vividly created. The receptor is convinced that the
boa constrictor portends great danger because of its size and
enormous strength. Thus, the cartoon conveys the following
messages:
i. The Boko Haram is a body of terrorists who have
no sense of decency or civilization.
ii. Boko Haram, like a boa constrictor, has wound its
body round hapless Nigerians and is crushing
and strangulating the entire country to death.
iii. Boko Haram has overwhelmed the security
apparatuses in Nigeria; the country is no longer
safe.
This cartoon, therefore, behaves like a metaphor in
communicating by analogy; demanding that the receptor
compares between two (most of the time unrelated) symbols
in order to understand the intended message (See Barnwell,
1980 and Ozo-Mekuri, 1999). In the Boko Haram cartoon,
there is the actual thing talked about (topic) and the thing to
which the topic is compared (illustration) and the features
which the topic and the illustration have in common when
compared:
- Topic:
Boko Haram
- Illustration:
Boa constrictor5
- Point of comparison: awesome in strength; a killer.
Thus, a cartoon achieves meaning when the cartoonist
and the receptor realistically operate within a common
communication circle, sharing the same experience,
knowledge, language and values.
The cartoonist assumes we should know the modus
operandi of the Boko Haram sect, the kind of snake (boa
constrictor) illustrates the sect and its method of suffocating
and killing its prey as well as who Shehu is as the
traditional/religious leader of the Bornu Caliphate. Without
this shared knowledge, we are most unlikely to retrieve the
intended message which the cartoon is meant to
communicate.
The cartoonist seems to be of the opinion the menace of
Boko Haram is extremely destructive. He is also of the
opinion that Government is losing the battle. Otherwise, the
huge boa constrictor would not have successfully wound
itself around Bornu and forced people to desert the state.
Notice once again that the mouth of the giant serpent is wide
open, the fangs threatening and its venom spurting
unrestrained with nobody challenging its destructive
onslaught. The cartoon therefore paints the picture of a
© 2013 COPEC
April 04 - 07, 2012, Geelong, AUSTRALIA
VI World Congress on Communication and Arts
21
hapless people in a helpless and hopeless situation. The
scream - “HELP, SEE WHO HAS TAKEN OVER THE
HOME OF PEACE” - is that of resignation in spite of the
word “HELP”.
CONCLUSION
Cartoons constitute a serious discourse in spite of the
cartoonist’s attempt at creating humour and comic relief.
What has actually been averred in this paper is that cartoons
are visio-verbal means of communication and their intended
message(s) can only understood by the receptor if the
cartoonist had read correctly the receptor’s level of
awareness situationally and linguistically.
The other conclusion drawn from the cartoons analysed
is that a cartoon reflects the cartoonist’s reaction or view
about the some prevalent socio-political and economic
condition in his/her society, in line, of course, with the
editorial position of the publishing newspaper. From this
perspective, therefore, cartoons constitute a potent discourse
can be used to express one’s socio-political and economic
views. From this standpoint, therefore, the cartoonist can be
portrayed as an entertainer, a communicator and a social
critic-cum-commentator.
REFERENCES
Adegbija, E E (1985).Semantics in English as a second Language. In
Afolayan, A (Ed) Defining English as a second language. Ife:
University of Ife, ELS Series
Atolagbe (2004).Addressing Societal Problems through Communication in
Social work. In Oyeleye. L (Ed). Language and discourse in society.
Ibadan: Hope Publications
Barnell, K. (1980). Introduction to Semantic and Trnaslaion.Summer
Institute of Lingusitics.
Chappell, L. & Read.E.S. (1978).Business communication. London:
McDonald and Evans.
Fasold, R. (1990). Sociolinguistics of language. Oxford: Blackwell.
Hudson, R.A. (1983). Sociolinguistics. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
Leech, G. 1983. Principles of pragmatics. London: Longman.
Ndimele, O (1989). Semantics of the frontiers of communication. University
of Port Harcourt.
Unoh, S.O. (1987). Topical issues in communication arts. Vol. 1. Uyo:
Modern Business Press Ltd.
Yule, G. (1985). The study of language: an introduction. Cambridge: CUP
© 2013 COPEC
April 04 - 07, 2012, Geelong, AUSTRALIA
VI World Congress on Communication and Arts
22