Metaphor and nation

South Africa has just entered a new era of multicultural cooperation. But until now it has been dominated by a white, Afrikaner minority, which must try to give up its deep-rooted ideology. This investigation looks into this ideology by means of the dominant metaphors used in four major newspapers. The study concludes that the metaphors Afrikaners live by are not those of apartheid, but rather those of a world of rural self-containment reflecting the 19th century rather than the 20th century experiences of the organisation of life, work, and society.