Resistance to Autocracy and Media Censorship: A Political and Poetical Reading of Cartoons
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Department of English
Abstract
Cartoons are the unique genre of art and the key ingredients of modern
journalism. With use of bold and expressive lines, exaggerated image and symbols,
allegorical indicationand deft illustration theyprovide pleasure anddelight to its
observersandalso deliver hard-hitting, poignant socio-political and cultural messages
often through laugh-out-loud humour and blistering satire which are comprehensible even
to those who can not read thus performing a function of self-expression unmatched by the
verbal communication. Political cartoons, usually called the cartoons of ideas and
opinions take serious issues of public concern and work as an intellectual arm so as to
protest the opponents and make sharp commentary on the government and public
personalities. Martin Luther used political cartoons as visual propaganda during
Protestant Reformation and defeated the Catholic opponents. Nepalese political cartoons
attacked and resisted king Gyanendra's autocratic regime and the censorship imposed by
his government more powerfully than the newspaper articles, editorials and critical
writings. Since the cartoonists were the acute observers, they traced out the then reality in
a very skillful touch of humour and satire thereby strongly advocating in favour of
democracy and press freedom.