STYLISTIC AND ECO CRITICAL LINGUISTIC ANALYSIS OF PUBLIC DISCOURSE ON THE MARGALLA HILLS URBANIZATION DEBATE

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to understand the ways in which environmental ideology was formed in the public debates on the urbanization process in Margalla Hills, Islamabad, Pakistan. The research uses a combination of ecocriticism, stylistics, and Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to explore the ways in which language shapes the public consciousness about ecological awareness and protection/preservation issues in relation to urban development. The data consists of a number of screenshots from social media postings, public comments, and digital news discussions about the development and construction activities around Margalla Hills. The research focuses on the language choices (lexicon selection, metaphoric expressions, stylistic devices), transitivity patterns and ideological structuring of the discourse as revealed by the qualitative analysis. The results indicate that the Margalla Hills are being viewed as a life-giving ecosystem with metaphors such as “lungs of the capital”, “green heritage” and “protective shield”. Meanwhile, urbanization is frequently viewed as a harmful process with terms such as “ecological degradation”, “unchecked deforestation” and “irreversible damage”. The discourse also highlights the ideological struggles between the agenda of modernization and that of protecting the environment. Citizens and environmental groups are seen as defenders of nature while state institutions and developers are associated with commercial development and infrastructural expansion. Eventually, the study identifies the relevance of language in the formation of ecological consciousness, public opinion, and environmental resistance in the digital discourse of the Margalla Hills urbanization debate.