Карикатуристът като съвременен паресиаст. Циниците и свободата на словото
The cartoonist as a contemporary parrhesiast. Cynics and freedom of speech

Author(s): Victoria Atanasova
Subject(s): Social Sciences, Media studies, Communication studies
Published by: Факултет по журналистика и масова комуникация, Софийски университет „Св. Кл. Охридски”
Keywords: freedom of speech; cartoon; Charlie Hebdo; parrhesia; cynic; truth
Summary/Abstract: The article examines the role of journalists, cartoonists, humorists, and satirists as contemporary parrhesiastes or truth-tellers. Referring to Michel Foucault‘s collected lectures on parrhesia or truth-telling as a bridge between ancient philosophical thought and contemporary postmodern philosophy of mind. Since parrhesia is central to the Cynic philosophical school, it is possible to find analogies of its application and its natural development in contemporary satirical media, such as the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, which has become an explosive conflict point. The terrorist attack proved to be a catalyst for rethinking the role of caricature, burlesque, and irony as forms of free speech and brought forward the need for a renegotiation and public discussion on the boundaries where tolerance and freedom of expression meet to define and update the understanding of the very essence of a democratic society, of whether there is acceptable and unacceptable humor in this society, where is the dividing line between offense and criticism? I will try to address questions such as: what is the importance of satire and caricature for society, and to recall the characteristics discussed by ancient Greek philosophers that can help us recognize truth-tellers nowadays in the age of information society and digital media.

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