The Use of Language Styles in Multimodal Texts on the Facebook Account “HT”

Abstract

This study investigates the use of figurative language in HT’s Facebook posts, focusing on irony and metaphor as strategies for conveying social criticism and humanitarian values. Employing a qualitative descriptive approach, the data consist of five selected Facebook posts published between September and October 2023. The analysis is conducted using stylistic and digital discourse perspectives, supported by multimodal interpretation of textual and visual elements. The findings reveal that HT consistently employs verbal irony to challenge dominant social assumptions related to dignity, diversity, and moral values, while metaphors are used to conceptualize abstract life experiences such as struggle, social status, and survival. These figurative devices function not only as aesthetic elements but also as persuasive tools that enhance emotional engagement and audience interpretation. Furthermore, the high level of audience interaction indicates that figurative language plays a crucial role in making critical messages more accessible and acceptable in digital spaces. This study concludes that Facebook can serve as an effective platform for ethical discourse, where irony and metaphor operate as powerful communicative resources for social reflection and critique in contemporary digital culture.