From stigma to shared suffering: Tracing transformation in online representations of illness during coronavirus

Abstract

This research investigates a particular metaphor used in the pandemic narrative in China, the character yáng 羊 (sheep or goat), phonetically similar to yáng 阳 (positive), evolving into a narrative tool for those who tested positive for the virus. Drawing from Sontag's framework of illness metaphors, it examines the "sheep" metaphor collected from social media platforms such as Xiaohongshu, Twitter (X), and WeChat via discourse analysis. The research explores the narrative dynamics from an initial descriptor to a more complex narrative symbol to shed light on how the Chinese have coped with the pandemic.