Cover not available
Part of
The Discursive Construction of Identities On- and Offline: Personal - group - collective
Edited by Birte Bös, Sonja Kleinke, Sandra Mollin and Nuria Hernández
[Discourse Approaches to Politics, Society and Culture 78] 2018
► pp. 249–266

Nations as persons

Collective identities in conflict

| University of East Anglia, United Kingdom

The paper analyses the construal of collective identities in the Middle East conflict, with special regard to the nation-as-person metaphor. This metaphor has been highlighted by proponents of Conceptual Metaphor Theory and Critical Metaphor Analysis as being instrumental in conceptualizing collective political entities as (pseudo-)personal identities. On the other hand, it has been critically argued that the nation-as-person metaphor should not be over-generalized and it has even been condemned as a fallacious theoretical construct. In view of the metaphor’s controversial status, the paper studies a corpus of ten speeches delivered by the Israeli and Palestinian political leaders B. Netanyahu and M. Abbas to the UN General assemblies in the period 2011–2015. Instances of emphatic use and enactment of the nation-as-person metaphor by the speakers are analysed in detail for their contextual implications and their function in collective identity-construction. The main finding is that whilst the nation-as-person metaphor is not ubiquitous in a statistical sense, it informs the fundamental pragmatic stance of the speakers as personifications of their nations’ collective identities vis-à-vis other nations. In conclusion, it is argued that such collective identity construction both expresses and shapes the progress of conflict communication.

Keywords: body politic, conflict communication, face, identity, Israel, metaphor, Palestine, scenario, United Nations
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction: Speaking for a nation
  • 2.Nations as persons?
  • 3.From “extended” to “outstretched hands”
  • 4.Nation-persons’ social face
  • Notes
  • References
Available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license.

For any use beyond this license, please contact the publisher at [email protected].

Published online: 23 July 2018
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/dapsac.78.11mus
References

Primary sources

Abbas, M.
(2011, September 23). Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 66th session. Retrieved from [URL]
(2012, September 27). Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 67th session. Retrieved from [URL]
(2013, September 26). Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 68th session. Retrieved from [URL]
(2014, September 26). Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 69th session. Retrieved from [URL]
(2015, September 30). Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 70th session. Retrieved from [URL]
Netanyahu, B.
(2011a, September 23), Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 66th session. Retrieved from [URL]
(2011b, September 23), Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 66th session. Retrieved from [URL]
(2012, September 27), Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 67th session. Retrieved from [URL]
(2013, October 1), Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 68th session. Retrieved from [URL]
(2014, September 29), Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 69th session. Retrieved from [URL]
(2015, October 1), Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 70th session. Retrieved from [URL]

Secondary sources

Ahren, R.
(2014, April 4). As talks flounder, sides prepare for blame game. The Times of Isreal. Retrieved from [URL]
Arafat, Y.
(1974a, November 13). Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 29th session. Retrieved from [URL]
(1974b, November 13). Statement before the United Nations Assembly, 29th session. Retrieved from [URL]
Barcelona, A.
(Ed.) (2000) Metaphor and Metonymy at the Crossroads: A Cognitive Perspective. Berlin/New York: Mouton de Gruyter.Google Scholar
Benczes, R., Barcelona, A., & Ruiz de Mendoza Ibáñez, F. J.
(Eds.) (2011) Defining Metonymy in Cognitive Linguistics: Towards a Consensus View. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Brown, P., & Levinson, S. C.
(1987) Politeness: Some Universals in Language Usage. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Charteris-Black, J.
(2004) Corpus Approaches to Critical Metaphor Analysis. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2005) Politicians and Rhetoric: The Persuasive Power of Metaphor. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Chilton, P., & Lakoff, G.
(1995) Foreign policy by metaphor. In C. Schäffner, & A. Wenden (Eds.), Language and Peace (pp. 37–55). Aldershot: Ashgate.Google Scholar
Culpeper, J.
(2011) Impoliteness: Using Language to Cause Offence. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Deignan, A.
(2005) Metaphor and Corpus Linguistics. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2008) Corpus linguistics and metaphor. In R. W. Gibbs (Ed.), The Cambridge Handbook of Metaphor and Thought (pp. 290–294). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Dirven, R., & Pörings, R.
(Eds.) (2003) Metaphor and Metonymy in Comparison and Contrast. Berlin/New York: Mouton de Gruyter. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Donnison, J.
(2011, September 20). Palestinians seek state and trappings of a state. BBC News. Retrieved from [URL]
Epstein, C.
(2010) Who speaks? Discourse, the subject and the study of identity in international politics. European Journal of International Relations, 1–24. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Glucksberg, S.
(2001) Understanding Figurative Language: From Metaphors to Idioms. Oxford: Oxford University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2008) How metaphors create categories – quickly. In R. W. Gibbs (Ed.), The Cambridge Handbook of Metaphor and Thought (pp. 67–83). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Goffman, E.
(1959) The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Anchor Books.Google Scholar
(1967) Interaction Ritual: Essays on Face-to-Face Behaviour. Garden City: Doubleday, Anchor Books.Google Scholar
(1972) On Face Work: An analysis of ritual elements in social interaction. In J. Laver, & S. Hutcheson (Eds.), Communication in Face to Face Interaction (pp. 319–346). Harmondsworth: Penguin.Google Scholar
Greenwood, P., & McElroy, D.
(2012, November 24). After eight-day war that united Gaza’s militants against Israel, Hamas faces new responsibilities. The Telegraph. Retrieved from [URL]
Grotius, H.
([1625] 2005) The Rights of War and Peace (ed. by R. Tuck, 3 vols). Indianapolis: Liberty Fund.Google Scholar
Hale, D. G.
(1971) The Body Politic: A Political Metaphor in Renaissance English Literature. The Hague/Paris: Mouton. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Hobbes, T.
([1651] 1996) Leviathan (ed. by R. Tuck). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Karmi, G.
(2014, April 3). Palestinians must abandon the ‘peace process’. Aljazeera. Retrieved from [URL]
Kövecses, Z.
(2002) Metaphor: A Practical Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Lakoff, G.
(1992) Metaphor and war: The metaphor system used to justify war in the Gulf. In M. Pütz (Ed.), Thirty Years of Linguistic Evolution: Studies in the Honour of René Dirven (pp. 463–481). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(1993) The contemporary theory of metaphor. In A. Ortony (Ed.), Metaphor and Thought (2nd ed., pp. 202–251). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2004) Don’t Think of an Elephant! Know Your Values and Frame the Debate: The Essential Guide for Progressives. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green.Google Scholar
Littlemore, J.
(2015) Metonymy: Hidden Shortcuts in Language, Thought and Communication. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Masalha, N.
(2003) The Politics of Denial: Israel and the Palestinian Refugee Problem. London: Pluto.Google Scholar
Mikalayeva, L.
(2011) Negotiating compliance: Discursive choices in a formalized setting of diplomatic communication. International Journal of Communication, 21(2): 5–28.Google Scholar
Moon, R.
(1998) Fixed Expressions and Idioms in English: A Corpus-Based Approach. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Morris, B.
(2004) The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem Revisited. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Mollin, S.
(2018) The use of face-threatening acts in the construction of in- and out-group identities in British parliamentary debates. In B. Bös, S. Kleinke, N. Hernández, and S. Mollin (eds.), The Discursive Construction of Identities: Personal–Group–Collective. (pp. 205–225). Amsterdam/Philadelphia: Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Musolff, A.
(2004) Metaphor and Political Discourse: Analogical Reasoning in Debates About Europe. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2006) Metaphor Scenarios in Public Discourse. Metaphor and Symbol, 21(1): 23–38. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2010) Metaphor, Nation and the Holocaust: The Concept of the Body Politic. London/New York: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Nerlich, B., & Koteyko, N.
(2009) MRSA – Portrait of a superbug: A media drama in three acts. In A. Musolff, & J. Zinken (Eds.), Metaphor and Discourse (pp. 153–169). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Norton, A. R.
(2007) Hezbollah: A Short History. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.Google Scholar
Pappé, I.
(2010) The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine. Oxford: Oneworld.Google Scholar
Ravid, B.
(2013, July 29). ‘Difficult choices ahead’: Kerry launches Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, seeking ‘reasonable compromises’. Anixneuseis. Retrieved from [URL]
Rousseau, J. -J.
([1762] 1990) Du Contrat Social: Texte et Contextes (ed. by J. Médina, A. Senik, C. Morali, & G. Chomienne). Paris: Magnard.Google Scholar
([1755] 2002) Discours sur l’économie politique: Texte et Commentaire. Paris: Vrin.Google Scholar
Roy, S.
(2011) Hamas and Civil Society in Gaza: Engaging the Islamist Social Sector. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Schmitt, C.
([1927/1932] 2002) Der Begriff des Politischen. Berlin: Duncker & Humblot.Google Scholar
Semino, E.
(2008) Metaphor in Discourse. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Starr, H., & Dubinsky, S.
(Eds.) (2015) The Israeli Conflict System: Analytic Approaches. London/New York: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Steen, G, Dorst, A. G., Hermann, J. B., Kaal, A. A., Krennmayr, T., & Pasma, T.
(2010) A Method for Linguistic Metaphor Identification: From MIP to MIPVU. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Stern, J.
(2000) Metaphor in Context. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.Google Scholar
Twardzisz, P.
(2013) The Language of Interstate Relations: In Search of Personification. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
von Clausewitz, C.
([1832] 1998) Vom Kriege. Berlin: Ullstein.Google Scholar
Watts, R. J., Ide, S., & Ehlich, K.
(Eds.) (2005) Politeness in Language: Studies in Its History, Theory and Practice (2nd ed.). Berlin/New York: Mouton de Gruyter. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cited by

Cited by 5 other publications

Baş, Melike
2020. A comparative critical metaphor analysis on the concept of democracy in Turkish and American English. Review of Cognitive Linguistics 18:2 ► pp. 535 ff. DOI logo
Danziger, Roni & Mia Schreiber
2021. Digital diplomacy: Face management in MFA Twitter accounts. Policy & Internet DOI logo
Kleinke, Sonja & Birte Bös
2018. Indeterminate us and them : The complexities of referentiality, identity and group construction in a public online discussion. In The Discursive Construction of Identities On- and Offline [Discourse Approaches to Politics, Society and Culture, 78], ► pp. 153 ff. DOI logo
Mujagić, Mersina
2024. Politics metaphor in British and Bosnian-Herzegovinian migration discourse. Russian Journal of Linguistics 28:1 ► pp. 144 ff. DOI logo
Zhang, Cun & Zhengjun Lin
2023. Metaphor analysis of the COVID-19 public health emergency on Chinese national news media. Pragmatics and Society 14:1 ► pp. 90 ff. DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 28 march 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.