Satire As A Tool For Socio-Political Commentary: A Case Of The Rambler’s Selected Articles In The Namibian Newspaper, 2015

Abstract

This thesis was an analysis of satire as a tool for socio-political commentary in The Rambler’s articles. The study analysed the strategies that The Rambler used in 40 articles that were published in 2015 in The Namibian newspaper. In addition, the study sought to analyse how these strategies were employed in The Rambler’s satire to foreground socio-political issues. The study was qualitative because the process of data analysis involved organising raw data (articles) for classification according to the elements on satire, which were ambiguity, humour, sarcasm and irony, parody, and other figures of speech. The qualitative research approach was appropriate because it allowed for an in-depth analysis of the strategies and elements of satire. The non-probability sampling technique was used to purposively select 40 out of 51 articles for analysis. Textual analysis was an applicable method of analysis. The study revealed that all the elements of satire: ambiguity, humour, sarcasm and irony, and parody were employed in the 40 articles. Additionally, figures of speech under the categories comparisons, sound devices, contradictions, and exaggeration and understatement are employed to achieve figurative language. The study found that ambiguity in The Rambler’s satire is achieved through titles, indirect statements, by the employment of rhetorical questions, through colloquialisms, slang and jargon, and by code-switching or code-mixing from English into, mainly, Afrikaans and other vernaculars, particularly Oshiwambo, Otjiherero or Khoekhoegowab. In addition to the findings, humour functions as a medium to foreground socio-political messages by entertaining, yet educating the audience. The study revealed that The Rambler’s satirical humour is achieved through deliberate slips of the pen, which emanate from intentional humour, and they are a reflection of an ingenuity of clever word play for an intended humorous effect. However, humorous statements that may be ambiguous may hinder the audience from appreciating the humour expressed, due to the inability to interpret the sociopolitical messages.