Metaphorization of Natural Catastrophes and Their Functional-Semantic Peculiarities in English and Georgian Newspaper Text

The paper investigates cognitive and socio-pragmatic functions of metaphors designat-ing natural catastorphes in English and Georgian newspaper texts. The reasearch aims to re-veal metaphorical perception of the water-connected catastrophes and their conceptual types in both languages. The analysis of the empirical material showed that in English news-paper discourse natural catastrophes are metaphorically constructed mainly according to four conceptual models in which they are identified and described via animals, monster, war and punishment whereas in Georegian newspaper texts they are represented only by the themes of enfuriated animals and war. The above-mentioned metaphorical themes serve as conceptual basis for numerous metaphorical phrases and set expressions that function as an effective ideological weapon to manipulate public consciousness. The research showed that while describing natural catastrophes associative-metaphorical accent mainly falls upon the verbs, adjectives and nouns. Articles often use hyperbolic adjectives in order to expose the immensity and distructive effects of natural catastrophes both on the environmental condi-tions and on the people.
The employment of metaphor themes that of animals, monsters, war and punishing power simplify the existing reality, bipolarize the world, conceal political-economic and so-cial problems existing in the society, dramatize events by using stories told by eye-witnesses in order to appeal to readers emotions and so on. By employing this and many other meth-ods, journalists create an atmosphere of symbolically united society and provoke the feelings of sympathy and emotions of the readers.