Silence in the discursive constitution of the character Pudim in “tiras chárgicas” from Armandinho series

Abstract

Images and words, together, in comics, constitute narrative units, much like words in verbal discourse. Furthermore, according to Miani (2023), such comics possess a graphic-visual nature, linguistic elements and an ideological-cultural dimension, making them tools for the development of critical thinking, as they do not merely have the function of entertaining the reader, who can engage in a less unpretentious reading. Therefore, understanding the language of comics and inferring the ideologies materialized in discourses become fundamental. In that regard, in this work, the main purpose is to understand how the character Pudim, created by the cartoonist Alexandre Beck, in publications from the Armandinho series on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/tirasarmandinho), has been constituting transformations in both his physical and ideological traits. Methodologically, an inventory of 256 comic strips, featuring Pudim, was compiled, since his first appearance on July 8th, 2014. In this study, there were contributions of Will Eisner (2010), Rozinaldo Antonio Miani (2012; 2023), Scott McCloud (2008) and Paulo Ramos (2011; 2012; 2017) to the comprehension of the specificities of language of comics. To establish the notion of ideology applied in the analyses, among others, there were the support of Anthony de Crespigny and Jeremy Cronin (1999), Michel Pêcheux (2010) and Eni Puccinelli Orlandi (2003). In relation to Discourse Analysis, the theoretical postulates of, for example, Ruth Amossy (2005; 2017), Cleudemar Alves Fernandes and Israel de Sá (2021), Eni Puccinelli Orlandi (1987; 2006; 2007) were essential. The analyses of three “tiras chárgicas” (a hybrid genre that blends the comic strip and the political cartoon) demonstrate the articulation between the language of comics and the production of meanings, show ideological positions in Pudim's discourse and corroborate the characterization of the “tira chárgica”. In this research, it was still explored the silence (Orlandi, 2007): a) founding silence and b) politics of silence (constitutive silence and local silence). Such discursive mechanisms are articulated to materialize ideology in discourse, generating substantial social impacts that interfere in the constitution of subjects through intersections of their social practices.