“The soro-soke [speak up] generation”: multimodality and appraisal choices in selected #EndSars civil protest-related memes in Nigeria
This paper explores the deployment of multimodal elements as appraisal resources in #Endsars civil unrest-related memes in Nigerian social media space (WhatsApp and Twitter) to express affective meanings and intersubjective positioning. The study investigates how both verbal and non-verbal elements...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
De Gruyter
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Language and Semiotic Studies |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1515/lass-2022-0016 |
| _version_ | 1797789004784992256 |
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| author | Okesola Saheed Omotayo Oyebode Oluwabunmi Opeyemi |
| author_facet | Okesola Saheed Omotayo Oyebode Oluwabunmi Opeyemi |
| author_sort | Okesola Saheed Omotayo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper explores the deployment of multimodal elements as appraisal resources in #Endsars civil unrest-related memes in Nigerian social media space (WhatsApp and Twitter) to express affective meanings and intersubjective positioning. The study investigates how both verbal and non-verbal elements are deployed as appraisal resources to evaluate the trajectory of the protest. The data, which comprise thirty purposively selected Internet memes, collected between October and December, 2020, were analysed qualitatively. The study shows that the meme producers, through the use of multimodal concepts such as symbolic, analytical, action, reactional processes, offer and salience, among others, project various expressions of affect, judgement and appreciation of things to create important narratives in the memes. Thus, the verbal elements are graded/upscaled through the non-verbal elements in the memes to evoke specific reactions, positive/negative, which signal intersubjective positioning about the protest and relevant social actors. The study concludes that meme producers effectively utilize multimodal elements to interrogate various expressions of attitude and intersubjective opinions that Nigerians made about the protest and its management by the Nigerian government. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-13T01:44:37Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5679736706a14109b3dc762aa19a6c8c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2096-031X 2751-7160 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-13T01:44:37Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | De Gruyter |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Language and Semiotic Studies |
| spelling | doaj.art-5679736706a14109b3dc762aa19a6c8c2023-07-03T10:19:38ZengDe GruyterLanguage and Semiotic Studies2096-031X2751-71602023-06-019229031210.1515/lass-2022-0016“The soro-soke [speak up] generation”: multimodality and appraisal choices in selected #EndSars civil protest-related memes in NigeriaOkesola Saheed Omotayo0Oyebode Oluwabunmi Opeyemi1Department of English, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, NigeriaDepartment of English, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, NigeriaThis paper explores the deployment of multimodal elements as appraisal resources in #Endsars civil unrest-related memes in Nigerian social media space (WhatsApp and Twitter) to express affective meanings and intersubjective positioning. The study investigates how both verbal and non-verbal elements are deployed as appraisal resources to evaluate the trajectory of the protest. The data, which comprise thirty purposively selected Internet memes, collected between October and December, 2020, were analysed qualitatively. The study shows that the meme producers, through the use of multimodal concepts such as symbolic, analytical, action, reactional processes, offer and salience, among others, project various expressions of affect, judgement and appreciation of things to create important narratives in the memes. Thus, the verbal elements are graded/upscaled through the non-verbal elements in the memes to evoke specific reactions, positive/negative, which signal intersubjective positioning about the protest and relevant social actors. The study concludes that meme producers effectively utilize multimodal elements to interrogate various expressions of attitude and intersubjective opinions that Nigerians made about the protest and its management by the Nigerian government.https://doi.org/10.1515/lass-2022-0016endsarsevaluationmultimodalitysoro soke [speak up]twitterwhatsapp |
| spellingShingle | Okesola Saheed Omotayo Oyebode Oluwabunmi Opeyemi “The soro-soke [speak up] generation”: multimodality and appraisal choices in selected #EndSars civil protest-related memes in Nigeria Language and Semiotic Studies endsars evaluation multimodality soro soke [speak up] |
| title | “The soro-soke [speak up] generation”: multimodality and appraisal choices in selected #EndSars civil protest-related memes in Nigeria |
| title_full | “The soro-soke [speak up] generation”: multimodality and appraisal choices in selected #EndSars civil protest-related memes in Nigeria |
| title_fullStr | “The soro-soke [speak up] generation”: multimodality and appraisal choices in selected #EndSars civil protest-related memes in Nigeria |
| title_full_unstemmed | “The soro-soke [speak up] generation”: multimodality and appraisal choices in selected #EndSars civil protest-related memes in Nigeria |
| title_short | “The soro-soke [speak up] generation”: multimodality and appraisal choices in selected #EndSars civil protest-related memes in Nigeria |
| title_sort | the soro soke speak up generation multimodality and appraisal choices in selected endsars civil protest related memes in nigeria |
| topic | endsars evaluation multimodality soro soke [speak up] |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1515/lass-2022-0016 |
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