The problem of translating the verbal component of political cartoons in English, Russian and French

This article explores the linguistic and cultural characteristics of the verbal component in polycode political cartoons in Russian, English, and French, focusing on how these factors affect interpretation and perception in diverse sociocultural contexts. As a form of multimodal discourse, political cartoons integrate visual and verbal elements to produce complex ironic or sarcastic messages, whose translation presents both methodological and practical challenges. The object of the study is polycode political texts, while the subject is the verbal component, often saturated with cultural allusions, precedent phenomena, and stylistically marked language. The analysis demonstrates that even neutral or positively charged expressions, when juxtaposed with dark, absurd, or hyperbolic imagery, convey layered satirical meaning, which the translator must decode and render effectively. In intercultural communication, such texts often require not just linguistic equivalence but contextual adaptation and explanatory additions to preserve both the semantic and emotional depth of the original. The methodological framework of the study includes qualitative analysis, linguocultural and discourse-based approaches, as well as comparative and classification methods. The research material comprises a corpus of 90 political cartoons (30 in each language), selected through continuous sampling from open online sources. Based on the analysis, the article proposes an original typology of translatability for the verbal component, which includes three categories: fully translatable elements, partially translatable expressions, and those requiring adaptation or explanatory commentary. The choice of translation strategy depends on the genre specifics, visual context, and broader sociocultural conditions. Special attention is paid to the translator's role as an interpreter and cultural mediator, whose work demands a high degree of creativity, cultural awareness, and contextual sensitivity. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the development of a structured typology of translatability for the verbal component in political cartoons. This framework allows for a more precise selection of translation strategies based on textual characteristics, communicative goals, and cultural background. The findings contribute to a deeper understanding of cross-cultural interpretation mechanisms in satirical genres and expand the theoretical and practical foundation of multimodal translation studies.

Polycode, Political cartoon, Verbal component, Cultural context, Satire, Irony, Lexical meaning, Base, Cultural awareness, Typology