Metaphor and the Social World - Volume 16, Issue 1, 2026

Abstract

This study employs corpus-assisted critical metaphor analysis (CMA) to examine movement metaphors in university presidents’ responses to anti-black violence. With data retrieved from official responses of 25 R1 universities (i.e., universities with high research activity) following the 2020 murder of George Floyd, the study utilized Charteris-Black’s critical metaphor analysis alongside keyword analysis to examine inherent ideological biases that frame institutional responses to systemic racism. The findings revealed that university presidents employ movement metaphors to construct positive self-representation through positionality and allyship, while simultaneously downplaying racist experiences, reinforcing colorblind ideologies, and perpetuating negative stereotypes. This suggests that university presidents prioritize institutional image over meaningful change, highlighting the performative nature of these statements in light of the current anti-DEI development. The study contributes to the scholarship on racial discourse in higher education by demonstrating how metaphors reinforce or challenge power structures and shape institutional narratives on racial justice. Ultimately, it calls for higher education leaders to move beyond symbolic gestures toward substantive commitments to racial equity.

Abstract

The metaphorical representation of discourse about social unrest is omnipresent. Elemental metaphors are extensively employed by news articles and media channels to depict social crises and difficult circumstances. This research focuses on social unrest discourse because this field of research has been universally recognized as inherently metaphorical (Lakoff, 2002). In particular, it thus studies experimental methods for analyzing metaphorical framing effects and functions of elemental metaphors in social unrest discourse. The results of the experiment show subtle lexico-grammatical differences in metaphorical framing analysis created a significant impact of how the reader construed the same material situation in alternative ways. In both experiments, we studied the role of metaphor in shaping reasoning about the complex societal problem of social unrest. We found that metaphors influence people’s reasoning by instantiating frame-consistent knowledge structures and inviting structurally consistent inferences. Overall, this research highlights how metaphors guide complex reasoning and underscores the value of integrating experimental methods with metaphor analysis in discourse-analytical studies.

Abstract

This study investigates the valence distribution and alignment of the Polish metaphor być na świeczniku (literally ‘to be on a candlestick’), which represents public visibility and attention. While conventionally considered positive, corpus analysis of the Polish Web Corpus 2019 reveals that the meaning of the metaphor is more nuanced. The study shows that neutral valence is the most frequent, followed by negative and positive valence. Negative valence often highlights scrutiny, criticism, and forced exposure, whereas positive valence emphasizes prestige and recognition. The study introduces the concept of valence alignment, referring to how emotional valence is reinforced within a passage, either sustaining or shifting the connotation of the metaphor. The findings indicate that in political discourse, the metaphor is more likely to carry negative connotations, often in terms of surveillance and judgment. This aligns with broader trends in political communication, where metaphors are strategically used to shape public perception. The study contributes to research on metaphor, emotional valence, and corpus-based discourse analysis, demonstrating how conventional metaphors undergo contextual shifts in meaning.

Abstract

Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT) claims that human beings systematically understand, and communicate about, abstract and/or complex phenomena metaphorically in terms of concrete, that is, sensorily perceived phenomena (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980). Illnesses such as cancer constitute one category of such complex phenomena. While the past decades have witnessed a growing number of studies that examine verbal manifestations of metaphors pertaining to cancer, visual and multimodal expressions of metaphors of the target domain cancer is source domain x type have hitherto been virtually unexplored. This paper examines a corpus of 27 short animations supported by the “Stand Up 2 Cancer” charity.

Abstract

Climate change is frequently discussed by political figures and journalists that have divergent views on the validity of climate change; metaphor is often used to frame climate change and portray a particular stance on the issue. Religion metaphors used to invalidate the veracity of climate change have been documented in the United Kingdom and the United States (Atanasova & Koteyko, 2017; Woods et al., 2012), however, our data indicates that specific Religion metaphors are also used to validate climate change. We address: (1) Which Religion metaphors are used to frame climate change as a valid issue, or as a fraudulent secular ‘religion’; (2) How these metaphors instantiate a specific ideological stance; (3) Patterns of metaphor use by climate change skeptics and climate change advocates. Our findings show that different Religion metaphors are used to frame climate change by conservatives and liberals in the United States and Canada. Through our analysis, we clarify how the Religion frame is used to make divergent arguments concerning climate change.

Abstract

Deliberate metaphors have been studied across various types of discourse, yet editorials have received relatively little attention. Drawing on the 4D model of Deliberate Metaphor Theory, this paper investigates deliberate metaphors that instantiate the conceptual metaphor economy is living organism in economic editorials released by Chinese government-sponsored media institution during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results indicate that journalists primarily draw from the human and plant domains to make inferences about the economy. Eight predominant frame-level conceptual metaphors are identified, and the semantically linked frames evoke scenario of “health care & treatment” and “plant protection.” These deliberate metaphors function to clarify complex economic measures and policies, provide a framework for suggesting economic actions and forming coherent arguments, assess the state of the economy, and foster optimism and resilience among the public. The rhetorical analysis reveals that deliberate metaphors enhance the communication of logos and heighten pathos, collectively aimed at persuasion. These metaphorical usages are significantly influenced by the contextual elements of the discourse event, reflecting how metaphors are employed as strategic tools in economic communication during crises.

Abstract

This contribution offers an analysis of the role of the card game metaphor used by President Trump in his fiery exchange with President Zelensky during their meeting in the White House to discuss the possibility of peace talks for the war in Ukraine. It aims to show what metaphor researchers can contribute to the public understanding of this meeting.

This article reviews Digital Media Metaphors: A Critical Introduction978103267460597810326745999781032674612

This article reviews How Metaphors Guide, Teach and Popularize Science97890272050709789027261441

This article reviews Metaphor and Corpus Linguistics: Building and Investigating an English as a Medium of Instruction Corpus97810325105769781003400905