The Role of Humor in the Construction of Satire in Nigerian Political Cartoons

The communicative functions of humor and its visual power have made political cartoons an interesting research field across academic disciplines. The first decade of the Millennium has witnessed a considerable research on editorial cartoons. This increasing research demonstrates that editorial cartoons have successfully constituted a genuine genre within media discourse. Cartoons are used to express opinions, construct valuable arguments and provide specific knowledge on contemporary social issues. The goal of the genre is to provide political commentary, address crucial issues and criticize political leaders and their contemptible practices in an artful fashion. In a nutshell, the genre serves as a medium of political reporting articulating a particular message from a particular point of view using language as its prime tool. Given their contents mostly expressed through visual illustrations, political cartoons are best understood through investigation of incorporated visual rhetoric. This paper aims at unfolding the nature and function of humor in Nigerian political cartoons using theoretical perspectives of humor as method of analysis. To this end, content analysis was used to sort out contents of the cartoons. 35 cartoons texts were extracted from the two most prominent Nigerian newspapers namely: Vanguard and Daily Trust. The findings indicated that cartoonists use humor in Nigerian political cartoons to relive audiences of stressful situations and persuade them towards making opinion on contemporary issues in society. More specifically, Nigerian cartoonists manipulate aggressive and affliative humor styles purposely to construct criticisms pointed to political leaders and comment on current socio-political issues of the moment in order to initiate social and political reforms.


Introduction
These depictions are aimed at correcting faulty behaviors and enforcing social norms. Also, the satirical attacks provide a sort of relief to people from the stress of oppressions by the tyrants.
Humor as one of the predominant rhetoric of the cartoons genre plays vital role in conveying messages in the cartoons' depictions; it is therefore regarded as one of the essential hallmark of Nigerian cartooning art. Therefore, it is important to note that cartoon humor results not only from the text embodied in it or the interaction of text and image, but also from the pictorial representation even if no text is added in the cartoon panel. For more illustration, a precise summary on humor has been provided: a) The picture can be an illustration of the verbal joke, excluding the humorous effect; thereby making the text responsible for the humorous effect; b) The picture provides supporting information which is not included in the humorous text; thereby making both text and image contribute to the humorous effect; c) The picture is significant for the production of humor; hence humor is Significantly, the use of humor in the cartoons demonstrates their function as an essential element of human communication. Moreover, the analysis of the cartoons demonstrates the function of humor as a vital visual rhetoric used in conveying persuasive messages in society.
Furthermore, different styles of humor are employed to accomplish certain communicative purposes. Basically, Nigerian political cartoonists employ specific styles of humor to ridicule other people's actions which they consider in appropriate in order to wipe out them in a society. In this regard, styles of humor are categories of humor usage which we utilize in many different ways to accomplish specific communicative tasks. Martin, Puhlik-Doris, Larsen, Gray, & Weir, (2003), identified four types of humor styles in their humor styles questionnaire.
These are: affliative humor, self-enhancing humor, aggressive humor and self-defeating humor.
In most cases however, Nigerian political cartoons use aggressive humor style to ridicule politicians and prominent individuals. Thus, aggressive humor is the use of humor to enhance the self at the expense of others. This type of adverse humor is helpful to the self only by ridiculing, extreme teasing, demeaning, or mocking others in attempt to make oneself feel better or superior. Aggressive humor relates to the use of sarcasm, teasing, ridicule, derision, ''put-down,'' or disparagement humor (Zillmann & Bryant, 1980). It also includes the use of humor to manipulate others by means of an implied threat of ridicule (Janes & Olson, 2000). In general, it relates to the tendency to express humor without regard for its potential impact on others (e.g., sexist or racist humor), and includes compulsive expressions of humor in which one finds it difficult to resist the impulse to say funny things that are likely to hurt or alienate others. Cartoonists also use affliative humor style while depicting issues. Affliative humor style is used to amuse others and create interpersonal relationships between cartoonists and their targeted audiences in a non-hostile manner. Moreover, cartoonists often utilize this style to make light of stressful situations so as to ease the tension, facilitate relationships, and to reduce interpersonal tensions (Lefcourt, 2001). In essence, this style is mainly utilized to put audiences at ease from the oppressiveness of authoritarian leaders. The analysis also highlights theoretical explanation of humor in Nigerian political cartoons.

Theoretical Perspectives of Humor
In terms of theoretical perspectives, various theories of humor explaining its  He was specifically amazed with his bulging stomach by holding it with both hands as a sign of affluence. The point of reflection was his sudden rise from the post of a lecturer to an incumbent president. Immediately behind him is a terribly emaciated beggar with cross sign on his head, carrying a big begging bowl. The beggar, wearing worn-out dresses tagged "masses" spreading his hand to beg for sustenance, but the president appears completely oblivious about him. The humorous depiction in the cartoon expresses humor from superiority perspectives to portray the wide gap between the political leaders and the masses.