“Tilapia Da Conceptual Blender”: A Cognitive Linguistics Approach to Ghanaian Political Cartoons

Grace Nana Aba Dawson-Ahmoah; Lawrencia Agyepong; Eric Opoku Mensah

doi:10.63772/jocmas.v10n1.3

Authors

Grace Nana Aba Dawson-Ahmoah Department of English, Faculty of Applied Languages, Institute of Languages, University of Media, Arts, and Communication. Author https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5105-4920
Lawrencia Agyepong Centre for Global Education and Collaboration, University of Media, Arts, and Communication. Author https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0512-3427
Eric Opoku Mensah University of Media, Arts, and Communication, Accra, Ghana. Author https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4178-6615

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.63772/jocmas.v10n1.3

Keywords:

Cartoons, Politicians, Conceptual Blending, Ghanaian Media, Biblical Stories, Political Cartoons

Abstract

This study analyzes the comic alternative to formal news in Ghanaian political media. Political cartoonists provide relief from formal political discourses. Using political cartoons created under the pen name Tilapia, this study discusses the pictorial representation of political issues, how cartoons are employed in Ghanaian media to allude to biblical stories, and the impact of humor on public and political discourse. This impact can be realized when such cartoons go viral and spark widespread public debates or political discussions. Specifically, by applying the Conceptual Blending Theory of meaning-making and a content analytical approach, this study unpacks how cartoons used in Ghanaian political news highlight social identities and representations of political figures. This study shows how cartoons induce a whole background of meanings by using relevant biblical stories common to Ghanaians. The analysis demonstrates that, in addition to their amusement purposes, political cartoons offer alternative ways of criticizing politicians. We observed that the conceptual connection between the cartoons and the projected background stories was coherent with the stereotypes, beliefs, and opinions of the political leaders depicted.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Usage Statistics

Abstract Views: 57
PDF Downloads: 7

References

Al-Rawi, A., Siddiqi, M., Li, X., Vandan, N., & Grepin, K. (2021). A thematic analysis of Instagram’s gendered memes on COVID-19. Journal of Visual Communication in Medicine, 44(4), 137–150. doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/17453054.2021.1941808. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17453054.2021.1941808

Alsadi, W. & Howard, M. (2021). The Multimodal Rhetoric of Humour in Saudi Media Cartoons. Walter de Gruyter. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9781501509902

Ansah, G. N. (2017). Cultural conceptualisations of DEMOCRACY and political discourse practices in Ghana. In Advances in cultural linguistics (pp. 369-387). Singapore: Springer Singapore. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-4056-6_17

Attardo, S. (2024). Linguistic Theories of Humor. Walter de Gruyter. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783111280332

Börzsei, L.K. (2013). Makes a meme instead: A concise history of internet memes. New Media Studies Magazine, 7, 1–28. https://www.academia.edu/3649116/Makes_a_Meme_Instead_A_Concise_History_of_Internet_Memes

Brandt, P.A. (2004). Spaces, Domains, and Meanings. Peter Lang Pub Incorporated.

Chagas, V., Freire, F., Rios, D., & Magalhães, D. (2019). Political memes and the politics of memes: A methodological proposal for content analysis of online political memes. First Monday, 24(2). doi: https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v24i2.7264. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v24i2.7264

Cooper, C. (2008). Elucidating the bonds of workplace humor: A relational process model. Human Relations, 61(8), 1087–1115. doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726708094861. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726708094861

Coulson, S. & Oakley, T. (2001). Blending basics. Cognitive Linguistics, 11(3-4), 175–196. doi: https://doi.org/10.1515/cogl.2001.014. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/cogl.2001.014

de Deus, E. P., Campos, R. D., & Rocha, A. R. (2022). Memes as a shortcut to consumer culture: A methodological approach to covert collective ideologies. Revista de Administração Contemporânea, 26 (4), 1-15. doi: https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-7849rac2022210005.en. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-7849rac2022210005.en

de-Graft Aikins, A. & Akoi-Jackson, B. (2020). ‘Colonial Virus’: COVID-19, creative arts and public health communication in Ghana. Ghana Medical Journal, 54(4), pp.86–96. doi: https://doi.org/10.4314/gmj.v54i4s.13. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4314/gmj.v54i4s.13

Emmot, C. & Alexander, M. (2014). Schemata. In P. Huhn, et al, (Eds.), Handbook of Narratology (pp.756–764). Berlin: de Gruyter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110316469.756

Fauconnier, G. & Turner, M. (1998). Conceptual Integration Networks. Cognitive Science, 22(2), 133–187. doi: https://doi.org/10.1207/s15516709cog2202_1. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1207/s15516709cog2202_1

Fauconnier, G. & Turner, M. (2003). The way we think: Conceptual blending and the mind’s hidden complexities. New York, N.Y.: Basic Books.

Fiankor, D.K., Dzegblor, N.K., & Kwame, S. (2017). Illustrating and shaping public political memories through cartoons: The 2013 presidential election petition in Ghana. The Journal of Pan African Studies, 10(1), 240.

Forceville, C. (2022). Visual and multimodal communication across cultures. In: I. Kecskes, ed., The Cambridge Handbook of Intercultural Pragmatics/CHIP (527–551). Cambridge University Press, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108884303.022

GhanaWeb (2023). Why Mensah Otabil quit as Board Member of the Trustees of National Cathedral - Joyce Aryee reveals. [online] GhanaWeb. Retrieved February 25, 2025, from https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Why-Mensah-Otabil-quit-as-Board-Member-of-the-Trustees-of-National-Cathedral-Joyce-Aryee-reveals-1772483

Kövecses Z. (2015). Where do metaphors come from: Reconsidering context in metaphor. Oxford University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190224868.001.0001

Kubi, V. (2022, June 18). National Cathedral: Otabil Didn’t Resign– Secretariat Refutes NDC Claims - DailyGuide Network. [online] DailyGuide Network. Retrieved February 25, 2025, from https://dailyguidenetwork.com/national-cathedral-otabil-didnt-resign-secretariat-refutes-ndc-claims/

Laineste, L. & Voolaid, P. (2017). Laughing across borders: Intertextuality of internet memes. The European Journal of Humour Research, 4(4), 26. doi: https://doi.org/10.7592/ejhr2016.4.4.laineste. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7592/EJHR2016.4.4.laineste

Mina, A.X. (2019). Memes to movements: how the world’s most viral media is changing social protest and power. Beacon Press.

Müller, C. & Cienki, A. (2009). Words, gestures, and beyond: Forms of multimodal metaphor in the use of spoken language. In: E. Urios-Aparisi, (Ed.), Multimodal Metaphor (pp.297–328). Mouton de Gruyter. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110215366.5.297

MyJoyonline (2022, June 13). National Cathedral: ‘Otabil has left Board of Trustees due to illegalities happening’ - Ablakwa - MyJoyOnline. Retrieved February 25, 2025, from https://www.myjoyonline.com/national-cathedral-otabil-has-left-board-of-trustees-due-to-illegalities-happening-ablakwa/

Nartey, L. (2022, June 17). National Cathedral: Otabil did not resign but excused himself – Secretariat - 3News. Retrieved February 25, 2025, from https://3news.com/news/national-cathedral-otabil-did-not-resign-but-excused-himself-secretariat/

Nyabor, J. (2022, June 17). Mensa Otabil was never a member of National Cathedral board – Secretariat. Citinewsroom - Comprehensive News in Ghana. Retrieved February 25, 2025, from https://citinewsroom.com/2022/06/mensa-otabil-was-never-a-member-of-national-cathedral-board-secretariat/

Oduro-Frimpong, J. (2018). This cartoon is a satire: Cartoons as critical entertainment and resistance in Ghana’s fourth republic. In Taking African Cartoons Seriously: Politics, Satire, and Culture, (pp.133–158).

Oduro-Frimpong, J. (2022). ‘Dis No Be Art’: Reflections on Popular Media Art Exhibitions, Value, and Class in Contemporary Urban Accra, Ghana. Ghana Studies, 25, 184–193. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3368/gs.25.1.184

Ohemeng, A. (2020). A multimodal critical discourse analysis of political cartoons in Ghana: A focus on Ghana’s parliamentary and Presidential elections in 2016. [Unpublished MPhil Thesis]. University of Cape-Coast. https://ir.ucc.edu.gh/xmlui/handle/123456789/7346

Phillips-Kumaga, L., Hansen-Garshong, R., Ackom, C.K., Teku, C.A., & Osei-Tutu, A. (2022). ‘Kwatakwata by June diεε…’: internet humour used during the first phase of the COVID- 19 pandemic by social media users in Ghana. The European Journal of Humour Research, [online] 10(1), 134–146. doi: https://doi.org/10.7592/EJHR2022.10.1.600. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7592/EJHR2022.10.1.600

Pragglejaz Group (2007). MIP: A Method for Identifying Metaphorically Used Words in Discourse. Metaphor and Symbol, 22(1), 1–39. doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/10926480709336752. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10926480709336752

Radden G., Kopcke, K. M., Berg, T., & Siemund, P. (2007). Aspects of meaning construction. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1075/z.136

Reijnierse, W.G., Burgers, C.F., Krennmayr, T., & Steen, G.J. (2018). DMIP: A method for identifying potentially deliberate metaphors in language use. Corpus Pragmatics, 2, 129- 147. doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s41701-017-0026-7. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s41701-017-0026-7

Rockson, K. (2011). Akosua Cartoons in the Daily Guide: A Discourse Analysis. Media & Society, 2(1), 48–76. DOI: https://doi.org/10.63772/jocmas.v2n1.3

Sani, I., Abdullah, M. H., Ali, A. M. & Abdullah, F.S. (2012). The Role of Humor in the Construction of Satire in Nigerian Political Cartoons. Online Journal of Communication and Media Technologies, 2(3). doi: https://doi.org/10.29333/ojcmt/2394. DOI: https://doi.org/10.29333/ojcmt/2394

Scott, J. (2023). Notes. In: Slandering the Sacred: Blasphemy Law and Religious Affect in Colonial India (pp.235–286). University of Chicago Press. Retrieved March 18, 2025, from https://doi.org/10.7208/chicago/9780226824895-014 DOI: https://doi.org/10.7208/chicago/9780226824895.001.0001

Shifman, L. (2012). An anatomy of a YouTube meme. New Media & Society, [online] 14(2), 187– 203. doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444811412160. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444811412160

Shifman, L. (2014). The cultural logic of photo-based meme genres. Journal of Visual Culture, 13(3), 340–358. doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/1470412914546577. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1470412914546577

Steen, G.J., Dorst, A.G., Hermann J.B. J. Berenike Herrmann, Kaal, A., Krennmayr, T., & Pasma, T. (2010). A Method for Linguistic Metaphor Identification. John Benjamins Publishing. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1075/celcr.14

Stefanowitsch, A. (2006). Corpus-based approaches to metaphor and metonymy. In: A. Stefanowitsch & S. Th. Gries (Eds.), Corpus-based approaches to metaphor and metonymy. (pp.1–16). Mouton de Gruyter. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110199895.1

Wiggins, B.E. and Bowers, G.B. (2015). Memes as genre: a structural analysis of the memescape. New Media & Society, 17(8), 1886-1906 https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444814535194 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444814535194

Zhang, R. and Liu, N. (2014). Recognizing Humor on Twitter. Conference on Information and Knowledge Management, 2667-2670. doi: https://doi.org/10.1145/2661829.2661997. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1145/2661829.2661997

Kövecses Z. (2020). Extended conceptual metaphor theory. Cambridge University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108859127