Grados de espontaneidad en el humor: Implicaciones del caso de la viñeta en el reconocimiento y apreciación de los mensajes humorísticos

Beyond the scope of both Linguistics and arts, graphic humour remained neglected by theorists for a long time. This work analyses the double-sided edge of cartoons in order to consider the implications of their specific nature. Thus, the present study aims to draw cartoons' peculiarities as opposed to conversational humor. It also aims to analyse their advantages and constraints, while assessing a hypothesis of limited spontaneity in cartoons. These ideas are linked to the concept of failed humor in communicative processes. To that purpose, it examines the cartoons' context from the Pragmatics perspective. Accordingly, narrative space, narrative time, authorship and degree of spontaneity are examined, as well as the influence of these factors in the intended audience. The results confirm the decisive role of spontaneity in humor recognition and appreciation.