NARRATIVIZING THE PANDEMIC: LINGUISTIC METAPHOR IN PAKISTANI COVID-19 SHORT-STORY ANTHOLOGIES

Abstract

This study investigates the linguistic metaphors in Pakistani short-story anthologies of narrating Covid-19 pandemic. Focusing on a corpus of short fiction written in reaction to the pandemic, the paper seeks to examine how metaphors influence and are influenced by the communal knowledge of Covid-19 in Pakistan. Drawing on conceptual metaphors and descriptions of the pandemic in news media, the article specifically explores how authors use metaphor to portray the effects of coronavirus on people, communities, and society at large and discusses language’s function in constructing public knowledge (shared understanding) and emotions. For analysing these metaphors and investigating their cultural, social and emotional contexts, we draw on conceptual metaphor theory, as well as critical discourse analysis. Among the key findings were that metaphors in these stories are not just a way to explain the abstract idea of the pandemic, but also serve as tools for framing the political, social and emotional upheaval it spawned. This study is part of the growing pandemic literature, and it offers a new approach to the discussion of linguistic representation of global crises in South Asian literary traditions.

Keywords: Covid-19, linguistic metaphor, Pakistani short stories, pandemic literature, conceptual metaphor theory, discourse analysis