Metaphor Scenarios in Political Cartoons: An Analysis of Critical Multimodal Metaphor

By weaving metonymy and metaphor chains into fictive narrative scenarios, metaphor scenarios make full use of story logics to construe the target concepts, charged with given evaluations as well as assumptions. With some revealing instances from the editorial cartoons in Economist, this paper makes illustrations of the structures and mechanisms shared in the recurring CONFLICT/BATTLE metaphor scenario, whereby disclosing the political or ideological nature of such multimodal metaphor scenarios, which are by no means exempted from national stance, bias, and stereotypical perceptions. It suggests that readers have acute awareness over the ideological stance underlying and have a critical understanding of the concept it construed.