PRAGMATIC ANALYSIS OF INTERNET MEMES ON DISTANT LEARNING

Abstract

This study is a pragmatic content analysis that explores the internet memes on e-learning or distant learning during the pandemic 2020-2021. The study examines the language and trends of different memes used for distant learning from three perspectives- the teachers, parents, and students. For its
framework for analysis, this paper draws on the pragmatic notion of implicature, specifically the quantity implicature used in the memes related to distant learning. The study reveals that there are more meanings implicated in memes which may be meaningful as it is directly related to their context.
Since covid was a global phenomenon, everyone went through the same challenges, hence the same meanings must be interpreted as implied by the meme generators. The implicature may be used through different linguistic devices such as sarcasm, irony, or hyperbole, to create a comic effect and
convey the message at the same time. This study aims to provide a pragmatic study of the visual and textual nature of these covid-distant-learning memes. In doing so, it aims to establish a framework for future studies- a contrasting study of memes, a semantic and pragmatic view to further explore the
nature of the linguistic qualities of internet memes.