This article looks at how a particular metaphor, the Marriage metaphor, is used in the discourse concerning the Singapore-Malaysia relationship by tracking the metaphor through discourses concerning political merger, separation and possible re-merger. It shows how the details of the metaphor may be differentially mapped in order to achieve competing political aims. The article also observes that while the Marriage metaphor was productively used in the post-separation discourse, there is no evidence that it was used prior to this period. An explanation for this absence is offered in terms of the Invariance Principle.
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