Analysis of Conceptual Metaphors in Environmental Discourse from the Perspective of the Formation of Country Image (Based on Xi Jinping's International Environmental Speeches)

The subject of this study is the types of conceptual metaphors in the ecological speeches of China's President Xi Jinping. The object of research is the specific roles of conceptual metaphors. The author delves into 15 types of metaphors found in Xi Jinping's speeches, among which anthropomorphic metaphors (mainly reflecting the relationship between humans and nature, the various roles of developed and developing countries in global environmental governance), road metaphors (mainly depicting the correct path of multilateralism in environmental protection), construction metaphors (mainly highlighting the central role of the United Nations in global environmental governance and China's specific work on ecological construction), and others can be distinguished. Special attention is given to the reflection of President Xi Jinping's intentions through the use of metaphorical means in ecological texts. Within the framework of this study, the MIP metaphor identification procedure was used, and a corpus of 22 speeches delivered by Xi Jinping at various environmental forums and summits from 2013 to 2024 was analyzed. The scientific novelty of this article lies in the study of Xi Jinping's ecological texts from the perspective of national image formation. Based on the generalization of the national image formed through metaphors in Xi Jinping's international ecological speeches, the following three key aspects were highlighted: 1) China's image as a country that shows care for people and holds the correct view of nature and ecology; 2) China's image as a responsible great power that seeks to contribute Chinese wisdom and solutions to global environmental governance and take on the challenging tasks of environmental governance; 3) China's image as a country adhering to an eco-centric international system based on international law, and supporting the order of global environmental governance.