Conceptual Metaphor Analysis of Metaphors in HIV/AIDS Campaign Awareness in Nigeria

Findings of a recent survey by the Nigeria HIV/AIDS Indicator and Impact Survey (NAISS) reveal that although there is a drop in HIV/AIDS prevalence indicators in Nigeria as a result of government and foreign interventions, the epidemic is still being perceived with a sense of dread. This has negatively impacted on the psychological wellbeing of the victims, and by consequence, directly or remotely, retarded their expected overall response to such interventions. Previous studies have identified socio-cultural practices, stigma, and discrimination as the major causes of the foregoing, without accounting for the cognitive linguistic mechanism that underlies such a fear-inducing conceptualization of the disease. The cognitive potential of language as a tool for shaping and encoding a people’s worldview and experiences makes language an attractive site for investigating the link between Nigerians’ dreaded perception of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and the metaphors deployed in the discourse of the campaign against the disease in Nigeria. This study thus seeks to investigate the conceptual metaphors used by health care providers in their campaigns against the disease in Nigeria with the aim of unraveling the cognitive–linguistic framework that informs the conceptualization and perception of the disease in the country. Data for the study are sourced from HIV/AIDS awareness campaign flyers and texts of speeches presented by health related NGOS at some campaign fora on the disease. Conceptual metaphors in the selected texts are analysed using Lakoff and Johnson’s (1980) Cognitive Metaphor Theory. Findings of the study demonstrate the centrality in health communication.