Conceptual Metaphors of Climate Change and Environmental Degradation in Pakistani English Print Media: A Cognitive Ecolinguistic Discourse Analysis

Abstract

This study examines conceptual metaphors of climate change and environmental degradation in Pakistani English print media through a Cognitive Ecolinguistic Discourse Analysis. Given Pakistan's acute climate vulnerability and the limited linguistic research on its media discourse, this research aims to identify metaphors, classify their source domains, uncover ideological meanings, and evaluate ecological orientation within newspaper coverage. The study is grounded theoretically in Conceptual Metaphor Theory (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980), integrated with Critical Metaphor Analysis (Charteris-Black, 2004) and Stibbe's (2015) ecolinguistic framework distinguishing destructive, ambivalent, and beneficial discourse. Data were collected through purposive documentary analysis of digitally archived articles from three newspapers, Dawn, The Express Tribune, and The Nation, from a population of approximately 300 climate-related articles (100 per newspaper), from which 90 articles (30 per newspaper) were purposively sampled based on metaphorical density and thematic relevance. The Metaphor Identification Procedure served as the primary analytical tool. Findings reveal four dominant source domains—war, disease, journey, and personification—constructing Pakistan as a climate-vulnerable victim while invoking justice and civilisational continuity. The discourse was predominantly ambivalent, with beneficial framings emerging mainly through nature personification.