A Corpus-Driven Discourse Analysis of Metaphor in Climate Change: A Preliminary Study

Abstract

This paper calls an attention to the critical analysis of discourse in climate change with special focus on metaphorical language about how it is discussed in the media. The topic is under discussion as climate has been found changing in an extended period making it a complex issue that involves the whole earth and nature. Besides, climate change is seen as results of natural variations and human activities, and therefore it is crucial to be aware of and to find solutions to deal with it. To carry out the study, the data were obtained from British National Corpus and analysed in term of their metaphorical expressions and persuasive effects. By using model of metaphor by Lakoff and Johnson (2003), the way metaphors affect how human think and their central role in the construction of social and political reality is known. As one example of metaphors in climate change, in the expression Climate change could lead to starvation, the movement words such as lead is used to reflect particular ways of thinking about climate change either positive or negative ways.