HUMOR, ANOMALIES, AND LANGUAGE: A STUDY OF LINGUISTIC INTERACTION IN VIRAL TIKTOK ANOMALIES AND THEIR POTENTIAL IN CRITICAL EDUCATION

Abstract

This work analyzes the sociolinguistic critical media pedagogical implications of the TikTok phenomenon dubbed Italian Brainrot, focusing on its linguistic and semiotic TikTok strands. It aims to comprehend the interaction frameworks associated with language, humor, and digital culture, especially in the context of viral ‘anomalous’ characters on TikTok, alongside the implications for contemporary systems of communication and identity. The study applies qualitative description and discourse analysis of multiple texts to 15 anomaly characters from mediated portrayals. These characters, including Tung Tung Tung Sahur and Bombardiro Crocodillo, display notable features of nonstandard phonology, including rhyming, pseudo-Italian inflectional morphology, repetition, and symbolic sounds that comport with their viral and meme-like character. The outlined findings show how anomaly content functions as a form of playful digital linguistics, informed by algorithmic logic, remix culture, and postmodern aesthetics. From a socio-linguistic angle, this illustrates how Gen Alpha users repurpose participatory, often countercultural appropriation of language as a means to forge in group solidarity and navigate attention algorithms.