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The Korean Association for the Study of English Language and Linguistics
[ Article ]
Korea Journal of English Language and Linguistics - Vol. 22, No. 0, pp.871-890
ISSN: 1598-1398 (Print) 2586-7474 (Online)
Print publication date 31 Jan 2022
Received 15 Jun 2022 Revised 10 Aug 2022 Accepted 31 Aug 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15738/kjell.22..202208.871

정치담론 상에서 코로나19 은유의 개념화 양상

권연진
부산대학교
The conceptualization of Covid-19 metaphor in political discourse
Yeon-Jin Kwon
Professor, Dept. of Language and Information, Pusan National Univ., Tel: 051-510-2026 yeonjin@pusan.ac.kr


© 2022 KASELL All rights reserved
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons License, which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

This study examines the conceptualization of Covid-19 related expressions in political discourse based on the conceptual metaphor theory from a cognitive linguistic point of view. In particular, we discuss why infectious diseases such as Covid-19 are metaphorically used, and analyze the conceptualization patterns and mapping of [COVID-19 IS A WAR] metaphors. First, in political discourse, the study discusses why war metaphor is used most frequently in terms of empirical, emotional, and structural aspects. In terms of experience, metaphor plays an important role in structuring our thoughts and concepts, and conventional metaphors are based on the embodied primary sensory motor experience. In terms of emotion, war metaphors are appropriate for immediate attention and delivery of the seriousness of the crisis, as they cause strong negative emotions such as fear and anxiety, even if there is no military confrontation. In terms of structure, war metaphors use basic schematic knowledge that can easily be thought of in different situations, such as battles between opposing forces or a series of battle events unfolding over time and space. Furthermore, we examine how the metaphor [COVID-19 IS A WAR], which appears most frequently in political discourse, is conceptualized and mapped for each component of the source domain of war and the target domain Covid-19. Finally, the implications of Covid-19 metaphor are discussed in terms of crisis communication, national integration and social community consciousness, compassion and empathy, and appeal of world peace.

Keywords:

cognitive linguistics, metaphor, conceptual metaphor theory, embodied experience, political discourse, covid-19

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