CROSS-LINGUISTIC VARIATIONS IN VISUAL NARRATIVES: A STUDY OF SELECTED PICTURE STORIES

Abstract

Art is a form of expression born from human imagination and creativity that engages our visual perception in ways that allow each person to interpret it uniquely. Throughout history and across cultures, art has served as a fundamental mode of human expression, allowing communities to convey stories, identities, and shared experiences. Over time, art evolved from realistic expressions to abstract and surrealistic forms, eventually giving rise to visual narratives (comics, manga, and other forms) as unique blends of storytelling and visual art. ii In this context, this dissertation explores the cross-linguistic dimensions of visual narratives, focusing on the stimuli—Bengali comics, Hada Bhoda and the Japanese manga, Doraemon, alongside Patua and Emaki scroll paintings from the two cultures of West Bengal (India) and Japan, respectively. A qualitative research approach has been used, employing content analysis methodology to investigate the grammar, structure and functions, along with temporal and communicative aspects of Linguistics. Through the thematic coding provided by the proposed theoretical framework, the research emphasises how visual narratives share universal connections while also having distinct differences. It analyses the grammatical, structural and functional elements to reveal their roles in cross-cultural communication. Furthermore, it evaluates synchronic and diachronic variations, tracing the evolution of the selected picture stories from traditional scrolls to modern-day Bengali comics and Japanese manga. The study also applies speech act theory through communicative acts, facial expressions, ideophones and drawing styles, and the findings explore how the culturally nuanced nature of visual narratives offers broader comprehension into multimodality and multisensory aspects of visual storytelling. As a result, the study observes new dimensions and ideas in the field of Visual Linguistics and opens pathways for further research into the world of visual storytelling.