Thematic stratification of Internet memes and demotivators devoted to lockdown

Abstract

This article is devoted to studying the peculiarities of perceiving the phenomenon of mass lockdown represented in static polycode texts (Internet memes and demotivators). The author of the article defines the main subject areas of these texts basing his conclusions on the content and discourse analysis, considers and characterizes relevant topics and subtopics within the framework. As the research has revealed, Internet memes and demotivators devoted to lockdown are characterized by a wide range of topics. However, they are generally related to people’s usual way of life and daily routine that changed with the introduction of restrictions or during the lockdown. Eight main subject areas are defined, including “Health preservation during lockdown”, “Duration of lockdown”, “Staying at home”, “Being outside home”, “Compliance with the lockdown restrictions”, “Provision with the necessary goods and products”, “Financial well-being”, “Psychological condition”. Some of the issues and opinions associated with them appear to be interconnected. The degree of topicality and representativeness of the selected subject areas and topics are determined in accordance with the number of texts related to them.