The Function of Metaphorical Language in Shaping Political Texts Based on Kövecses’ Framework: A CDA Perspective

Subject Areas : All areas of language and translation

Somayeh Jafarnezhad ¹ , Bahloul Salmani ² , Hossein Sadegh Oghli ³

1 - English Language Department, Sarab Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sarab, Iran
2 - Department of English, Tabriz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tabriz, Iran
3 - English Language Department, Sarab Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sarab, Iran

Received: 2019-01-03 Accepted : 2022-10-10 Published : 2023-04-01

Keywords: Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), conceptual metaphor, source domains, political articles, critical metaphor analysis (CMA),

Abstract :

This study aimed to examine the role of figurative language in shaping political texts based on the modern framework suggested by Kövecses. The research corpus comprised thirty thousand words selected as a text sample to see the source of the conceptual domain used. It was prepared through a systematic random sampling of various editorial articles in Western political journals on the relationship between Iran and the West in the period 2010-2019. Critical Metaphor Analysis (CMA) was used to specify patterns in political articles, usually providing support for previous research by authority figures in critical and political metaphor analysis that metaphors are used to shape political thought, aid political persuasion, and in directing circumstances and cognitive models to form the interpretation of the nation as a person or body metaphor. Finally, the study provides substantial support for the textual findings of conceptual metaphors used. The findings of the study provide EFL classrooms with a number of implications for future research.

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