Monomodal and multimodal metaphors in editorial cartoons on the coronavirus by Jordanian cartoonists

Abstract This study explores the monomodal and multimodal metaphors used in 80 cartoons by 11 Jordanian cartoonists to depict the coronavirus. The study adopts Conceptual Metaphor Theory and Multimodal Metaphor Theory as its theoretical framework. The results reveal that several source domains (object, human, monster, weapon, and food) were employed to depict different aspects of the coronavirus. They also show that the most used mode configuration pattern to construe the metaphors was monomodal mapping of the type pictorial source–pictorial target. The monomodality of the mappings was ascribed to the global omnipresence of the virus, which made the visual cues sufficient to construe this target domain. The results also demonstrate that Jordanian culture was referred to in some cartoons through intertextual links with previous discourse as a way to reflect the culture of the cartoonists, on the one hand, and to establish an affinity with the viewer, on the other. The study reveals the role of culture in creating monomodal and multimodal metaphors in editorial cartoons.