Security challenge in Nigeria is war:metaphorical constructions in selected Nigerian newspaper editorials

Abstract

This study is designed to investigate how insecurity and connected challenges are metaphorically conceptualised in Nigerian newspapers as war, hunting, natural disasters (water and fire), economy, farming, game and purification. Following the instances of the use of metaphoric expressions in the selected Nigerian newspaper editorials on the insecurity issues in Nigeria, the study reveals that insecurity is represented as a challenge, expressed through seven salient metaphors. Security challenge is constructed as war (53.5%) through war metaphors like weapon, bloodbath to portray Nigeria as a battlefield; hunting (12.1%) through hunting metaphors like captive, target; natural disaster (11.7%) through water and fire metaphors like flow, awash; engulf, extinguish; economy (10.6%) through economy metaphors like gains, cheap; game (4.8%) through game metaphors like tackle, league; farming (4.4%) through farming metaphors like plant, fish; and purification (2.9%) through cleansing metaphors like wipe out, flush out. The seven metaphors unearthed in this paper suggest the endless destruction of people, property and communities in Nigeria by the insecurity actors, while the game and purification metaphors suggest the need for the government to tackle and wipe out the insecurity actors.