Ideological and explanatory uses of the COVID-19 as a war metaphor in science

Abstract

This paper proposes to investigate the varying implications of the war metaphor in scientific publications discussing the COVID-19 pandemic. The corpus under study is composed of articles retrieved from the international scientific journal Nature, the weekly magazine New Scientist, and the international agency World Health Organisation. With a focus on three main characteristics of the pandemic – body health, medical solutions, and global impact of the virus – the present study asks to what extent the use of the war metaphor can vary to offer different viewpoints on the pandemic. The particular view on the virus – through metaphorical use – depends on the readers each publication targets, the pressure to find solutions, the editorial requirements, and the aim of the publication. We conclude that the war metaphor may not systematically be associated with disputable interpretations (as reported in literature), it also serves an explanatory function.