Pubmedia Jurnal Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris Vol: 2, No 4, 2025, Page: 1-14 https://edu.pubmedia.id/index.php/jpbi Social Media as a Medium of Expression: an Analysis of Illocutionary Speech Acts in @komik.grontol’s Posts Adinda Afifah Anwar 1 , Santuso Santuso 2 * 1 Tadris Bahasa Inggris, Universitas Islam Negeri Antasari Banjarmasin 2 STP Khoiru Ummah Jember Abstract: This study aims to describe the forms and functions of illocutionary speech acts in the Instagram posts of @komik.grontol. This is a qualitative descriptive research. The data consist of words, phrases, clauses, and sentences found in the posts of @komik.grontol that represent the account owner's attitude toward recent social phenomena. The data source is the Instagram account @komik.grontol, from which 10 posts produced between January 17, 2023, and September 26, 2023, were selected. Data were collected by downloading images from the @komik.grontol account, then transcribing the images into text and translating them into English. The collected data were analyzed using John Searle's theory of illocutionary speech acts and Peirce's semiotic theory. The results of the study show that the forms of illocutionary speech acts in @komik.grontol’s posts include: a) directive speech acts in the form of invitations, b) expressive speech acts in the form of complaints and expressions of dislike, and c) assertive speech acts in the form of narrating facts and events. The functions of the speech acts in the @komik.grontol posts fall into two categories. The first function is to satirize the government for being unwilling to accept criticism and to mock individuals who behave carelessly and unwisely. The second function is to raise awareness among others not to believe someone's statements blindly without considering the context and background of the speaker. Keywords: Comic Strip, Illocutionary, Instagram, Pragmatics, Speech Acts Introduction Social media has become an integral part of everyday life in today’s modern society. Social media refers to online platforms that enable users to interact, share content, and engage in various virtual activities. Through social media, individuals can connect with people around the world, form communities, and participate in online dialogue (Dwiantari & Slahanti, 2022) (Pratidina & Mitha, 2023). Initially, social media served as a medium for making friends. Over time, it has evolved into a space where users can express opinions, respond to events, and participate in discussions on various topics, both personal and social (Fitriana et al, 2021) (Hermawan & Gassing, 2023) (Rizam et al, 2022). Various features on social media, such as posts, captions, and comments, serve as avenues for individuals to express themselves, share personal views, or respond to the content they encounter in cyberspace (Husna & Puji, 2021) S. Husna, 2023; Permana & Sutedja, 2021). This is realized through the language they use on social media. This aligns with the opinion of Suryawin et al. (2022), who argue that language is a tool for DOI: https://doi.org/10.47134/jpbi.v2i4.1910 *Correspondence: Santuso Email: santuso@yahoo.com Received: 25-05-2025 Accepted: 25-06-2025 Published: 25-07-2025 Copyright: © 2025 by the authors. Submitted for open access publication under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/).