300 Chapter Thirteen
(verbally realized) so as to avoid the unpleasant consequences (visually
represented).
Making use of source domains that have strong emotional resonance for
people is one of the means that makes a metaphor particularly persuasive
(Deignan 2005: 130). Children in the billboards are metaphorically
represented as FLOWERS and GIFTS, source domains which contain highly
positive connotations. Moreover, both of the concepts are considered as
causes of happiness. Children are also seen as sources of barekat
‘blessing’, a core cultural-religious notion in Iranians society. However,
the use of the concept in the billboard simultaneously functions to alarm
families that they may deprive themselves of the presence of barekat in
their life (which means awaiting misfortunes and misery in life) as well as
encourage them to provide the means for bringing in more of barekat by
having more children.
Credibility of the speaker is an important factor in the persuasive effect
of the metaphors used (Charteris-Black 2007). Including Muslim prophet’s
quotes in the billboard, as a sacred and trustworthy personality among
Muslims, assigns a great deal of credibility to the ideas depicted in the
billboards. The prophet’s quotes included in the billboards consist of a set
of guidelines for raising children appropriately and the significance of
children in married life. In a way, the guidelines respond to reasons for
which some couples avoid having more children. Also, recruiting
attributive features of God, such as omniscience, (by assigning a set of
statements to Him, such as ‘get married even if you are poor’) increases
the reliability of the messages.
In many of the billboards, Islamic lifestyle is illustrated by some of its
salient properties such as modest clothes and appearance (with women
wearing the hijab and men growing a beard) and interest in having a large
family, motivated by the SALIENT PROPERTIES FOR CATEGORY metonymy.
Analysis of the data demonstrates the evaluative, persuasive, and
ideological functions of conceptual metaphor (Deignan 2010; Charteris-
Black 2004, 2007). In the political statements, metaphor splits up the
proponents and opponents of family planning. It also negatively evaluates
family planning as a method along with its supporters. The DISEASE
metaphor is a clear example of this particular function of metaphor.
Conceptual metonymy, however, operates to give prominence to the
negative results of family planning and the positive consequences of
having more children in the political statements as well as the billboards.
The production of figurative meanings in both political statements and
the billboards analyzed is shown to be the result of the collaborative work
of contextual factors (Kövecses 2014, 2015). Data analysis indicates the