This chapter explores how Persian proverbial metaphors are used in discourse to frame
Iran’s nuclear program. To that end,contextual uses of a sample of Persian proverbs
were analysed in terms of Conceptual Metaphor Theory. The results demonstrate thatproverbs’
scope of operation goes way beyond their conventional functions. They are used to
propagate pessimism, express sarcasm, makeaccusations, threaten and humiliate the
rival camp, fabricate a new political reality, and manipulate the content and courses
ofaction. The research also finds that proverbs are apt tools for framing complex
socio-political issues, as they encapsulate a bundleof integrated figurative conceptualisations,
providing users with ready-to-use conceptual slots to apply to complex scenarios withmultiple
roles and relations. Finally yet importantly, the research shows that the analysis
of proverbs in discourse context providesa more comprehensive view of proverbs by
completing the chain of association between the specific-level schema, generic-level
schemaand the immediate context of use.
