This book presents the results of a large-scale experiment into interpretations of the metaphor ¿the Nation as a Body¿ among 1,800+ respondents from 30 linguistic and cultural backgrounds. In this first account of an empirical study of cross-cultural global metaphor interpretation of that scale, Musolff confirms that the meanings of metaphors are complex, culturally mediated and may differ for senders and recipients. The book provides a historical and cultural map of the traditions underlying differences in how the nation as a body ¿ or, ¿the body politic¿ ¿ is understood. Musolff challenges the hypotheses of the universality of ¿the nation¿ as a predominantly male-gendered and hierarchically