Illness metaphors shaping the image of modern Germany in German-language political media discourse
Abstract
The study aims to identify the most effective and vivid figurative linguistic means functioning in contemporary German political discourse. The scientific novelty of the research lies in describing prevalent German-language illness metaphors within new contexts of modern political discourse concerning current issues. Specifically, the work examines the functioning of well-known conceptual illness metaphors where a familiar concrete concept from the source domain helps conceptualize new abstract notions. The results determine that somber imagery, with a predominance of illness metaphors, is the most frequently used effective figurative tool in modern German political discourse. The referential correlation and sociocultural orientation of the illness metaphor in contemporary political communication are revealed. It is shown how the illness metaphor acts as a value-political trigger in political debates, embedded within a system of an extended conceptual metaphor that includes a whole group of metaphors linked by a single theme: GERMANY IS A PATIENT.
Author information
About this article
Publication history
- Received: March 20, 2026.
- Published: April 28, 2026.
Keywords
- метафора болезни
- развёрнутая концептуальная метафора
- референтная соотнесённость
- ценностно-политический триггер
- политический дискурс
- illness metaphor
- extended conceptual metaphor
- referential correlation
- value-political trigger
- political discourse
Copyright
© 2026 The Author(s)
© 2026 Gramota Publishing, LLC