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THE POLITICAL REALITY OF MODERN CARTOONS: REGIME TRANSFORMATIONS AND SOCIAL CONTRADICTIONS // ΠΡΑΞΗMΑ. Journal of Visual Semiotics. 2021. Issue 2 (28). P. 81-95

Popular culture reflects not only events, but also the nature of the modern era and problematic aspects that require the attention of the state and society. The article examines new vectors of socio-political transformation of modern society and their reflection in animation. The study of modern cartoons shows that they have replaced traditional myths and began to broadcast social norms and their transformation. Special attention is paid to the growing role of horizontal ties and the increase in the value of the family and the institution of reputation, caused by the highest degree of transparency of the modern information society. This is clearly emphasized in the plots of such cartoons as Frozen, Moana, Brave, Inside Out, Finding Nemo, and Coco. All cartoons show the hero’s rebellion, which results in an understanding of family ties’ value. In addition, the article notes a change in ideas about romantic love. At the same time, the value of individualism fades into the background, giving way to mutual assistance to achieve the common good. The article emphasizes that atomization and individualism were characteristic of human culture for a fairly short period of time. They appeared after the collapse of traditional society, urbanization and the next industrial revolution. However, later urbanization was replaced by hypeurbanization along with information transparency, which, relying on new technical means, revived many features of the traditional society. Moana’s plot demonstrates the reduction of the atomization of modern society, the negative side of the high level of individualism, which is increasingly difficult to demonstrate today due to the rapidly increasing role of social connections. The conflict of civilizations described by Huntington is not reflected in modern multiplication. Anyone who seemed to be the enemy and the embodiment of evil, upon closer examination, turns out to be either a victim in need of help, or a potential ally. In this specific, often repeated plot, it is not difficult to see the influence of postcolonialism as a direction of modern thought and public discourse. Illustrations of the formation, functioning and destruction of authoritarian political models in modern cartoons are analyzed. The relevance of the theme of the fight against tyranny in animated films is shown. Examples include Toy Story 3, A Bug’s Life and the animated series Watership Down. In the first case, the dictator imposes on society the ideology of a hostile external world, which forms the authoritarian political model’s ideological basis. Its organizational basis is represented by a repressive mechanism consisting of security, surveillance and a closed perimeter. This brings the presented model closer to totalitarian political regimes, because modern autocracies do not hinder the intention of those who disagree with leaving the country. This helps them maintain their power for as long as possible. In order to maintain this regime, a privileged caste is created, represented by the power apparatus (guards who are allowed gambling and additional consumption). In addition, the security apparatus has the right to carry out violence against all other members of society. The plot of A Bug’s Life also shows society’s struggle against tyranny, which is carried out through a combination of the direct threat of violence and propaganda. The method of intimidating the tyrant Hopper shows that he does not perceive himself as a legitimate bearer of power and recipient of resources. Internal recognition of its own illegitimacy provokes a reluctance to make concessions, reach a mutually acceptable compromise and negotiate, as the legitimate government usually does. Direct political content is also found in Watership Down. Within the framework of the narrative for children, the main attributes of the classic fascist dictatorship are politically realistic. The authors draw attention to the fact that the basis for the alternative to dictatorship is not atomization and chaotic violence, but civic organization and mutual assistance.

Keywords: horizontal ties, political regimes, cartoons, tyranny, social norm, information society, generational values

INTERNET MEMES AS A PUBLIC REACTION INDICATOR AND A FEEDBACK TOOL DURING THE PANDEMIC // ΠΡΑΞΗMΑ. Journal of Visual Semiotics. 2022. Issue 2 (32). P. 46-67

The COVID-19 pandemic is the main informational topic of our time. It is reflected both by the members of modern academia and by the broader audiences. The latter actively express their opinions in the virtual space, and one of their ways to comprehend the epidemiological situation in the world is the Internet meme. The scientific study of this phenomenon reveals the needs and the problems of the Internet audience, which is constantly expanding. The article aims to research Internet memes as public reaction indicators and feedback tools during the COVID-19 pandemic. The empirical material of the article is the content of the Russian media space from 2020 to 2021. To reach the aim, at the beginning of the article, the authors define the essence of the Internet meme, its functions, and its specifics as a tool of social reaction; based on the obtained theoretical information, they create an algorithm for decoding the symbolic structure of the Internet meme. In the main part of the article, using the created algorithm, the authors analyze popular Russian Internet memes about the pandemic. They consider feedback tools and mechanisms in the context of political communication theory, based both on Laswell's classical positions and on their subsequent critique. The main method of the work is semiotic analysis applied given the linguistic and cultural features of the object. As a result, the authors arrive at the following conclusions. The Internet meme is a media object with a certain status which determines its popularity in the online space: it has a sign nature (verbal and visual components), contains an actual and humorous message created based on already existing cultural patterns. Therefore, memes fulfills not only entertainment and communication functions, but also a social one. The meme is a tool of sublimation and compensation for a person’s negative social and existential tension. As a consequence, the Internet meme can serve as a channel of feedback between individuals and also in the process of political bilateral communication between state and society. The authors confirm this thesis by analyzing Internet memes about the COVID-19 pandemic that have been created by Russian internet users since the beginning of the coronavirus infection. They have become popular in social networks and messengers in Russia. Most of these Internet memes focus both on the existence of the pandemic and on the state measures to prevent COVID-19’s spread. The very subject of ridicule on the part of the Internet meme changes parallel to the way the state introduces, changes, or abolishes certain protective measures. The creation of such content follows the same scheme: the meme author has a pattern already known in the virtual space, and s/he edits it focusing on events in society. As a result, the changed details of an image or an added inscription fill it with new humorous content. A lot of the Internet memes about the pandemic are sarcastic. Therefore, their semiotic decoding can be useful for public authorities: it reveals the cause of people’s discontent, the reaction of the population to governmental measures, and thus allows the use of this knowledge for better policy decisions and more efficient communication strategies for their implementation.

Keywords: political communication, feedback, feedback channels, Internet memes, COVID-19 pandemic, coronavirus, government measures, Internet communication, Russian media space, content analysis