THE LANGUAGE OF EMOTION
IN ENGLISH AND PORTUGUESE
- A CORPORA-BASED
APPROACH
by Belinda Maia
PLEASE NOTE:
This is NOT the original thesis (1994), but a revised version
done in 1996, and adapted in 2004 to .html format. It is impossible to
retrieve the 1994 digital version now but, if anyone is remotely interested in
what I did ten years ago, the revised version should be easier to read.
The following
summary was written in 2004 with the benefit of hindsight and a better
understanding of the (ir?) relevance of what I was trying to do at the time.
SUMMARY
This
thesis looks at the way the emotion words in English and Portuguese behave
lexically, syntactically and semantically. The Brain/Mind debate was in
full swing when the thesis was written and the first three chapters deal with
various aspects of this debate and how it affects - and is affected by -
the whole area of emotion. The objective of the linguistic analysis in the
following chapters was to see how actual usage of these words in context gives
us clues as to how we conceptualise emotion through language. At the time,
seeking for evidence of how we conceptualize by examining linguistic items in
corpora was not popular in mainstream linguistics, but today, as a result of
movements within cognitive linguistics and further sophistication of corpora
linguistics, such an objective would not seem unusual.
The
process involved collecting words that could be
considered as describing emotion in any way from corpora, examining them
through concordancing, and classifying them according to several
parameters. A general view of the area was obtained using the COBUILD
corpus in Birmingham, and using a much larger corpus than that on which the
thesis results are based, proved very useful. However, for
copyright reasons, I was obliged to make my own corpora of literary texts:
about 778,650 words were digitalized for English and about 819,500 for
Portuguese. From these corpora about 25,000 examples were extracted and
analysed.
The
lexical items were grouped according to the cognitive structure of the emotions
described by Ortony, Clore & Collins (1998:19). Although it is
possible to recognize the concepts behind their categories, some categories are
not lexicalized in English or Portuguese. On the other hand, SURPRISE,
which they do not recognize as an emotion, turned out to be similar in semantic
structure linguistically, and the generic words for emotion, like feeling
and sentimento, also merited our attention. We recognize that
emotional states can be described without using the emotion lexicon - for
example, by describing body language - but this type of analysis was beyond the
scope of our thesis.
Each lexical
item was extracted with the related sentence from the corpus and classified
according to parts-of-speech categorization and also according to its semantic
role. Using Halliday's terminology of Senser for the person who feels
emotion - as with frightened - and Phenomenon for what is seen to cause
or trigger the emotion - as with frightening, all lexical items
were classified as Senser focusing (SFoc) or Phenomenon focusing (PFoc).
The lexicon was then examined and quantified as to how the items behaved when
analysed using functional sentence analysis and other syntactic criteria, with
a view to demonstrating the influence of semantics on syntax. The
emotion lexicon accepts and rejects certain types of syntax quite clearly.
Finally,
since the emotion lexicon behaves in ways that overlap with verbs of cognition,
and the Mind/Brain debate essentially focuses the relationship of emotion to
the way human beings understand the world, each Phenomenon was classified
according to the degree to which the Senser consciously reasoned about the
Phenomenon in the sentence or, whenever possible, the context.
This
multi-level analysis produced results which we hope you may find interesting.
Despite the apparent inadequacy of the corpora and their literary
content, we were able to discern some patterns that could now merit further
investigation. As was to be expected, the two languages varied most at the
level of the lexicon. The semantic aspects of the syntax also showed some
interesting differences that hint at underlying cultural differences that, as a
late bilingual, I had always felt existed. However, the deeper semantic
analysis of the Senser and Phenomenon focused items and the analysis of the
degree of conscious reasoning about the Phenomenon by the Senser resulted in
remarkably similar results for both languages. Whether this demonstrates
anything more universal about the underlying cognitive apparatus with which the
two languages conceptualize emotion is something that can only gain credibility
if the same exercise is repeated with more representative corpora in both these
and other languages.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
PREFACE
- 0.1
Keywords
- 0.2
The Language of Emotion as a subject for
study
- 0.3
The use of electronic corpora
- 0.4
The
Texts
- 0.5 Key to Abbreviations and Printing
Conventions in the
Text
CHAPTER 1. EMOTION - A CONTROVERSIAL SUBJECT
- 1.1
Introduction
- 1.2 The Mind-Brain
debate
- 1.3 The
Brain
- 1.3.1 The Brain as the motor of
communication
- 1.3.2 The Brain and
emotion
- 1.4 The Mind and the
Self
- 1.4.1 Popper and Eccles (1987) - Interactionism
- 1.4.2 Scientifically orientated
theories about the
Self
- 1.4.3 Psychoanalytical theories of
Self
- 1.5 Artificial Intelligence and the
Mind-Brain
debate
- 1.6 Physics and the Mind-Brain
debate
- 1.7 The implications of the
Mind-Brain debate for emotion
-
CHAPTER
2. THE EMOTIONS AS PHENOMENA
- 2.1 Defining emotion
- 2.2 Emotion before
Psychology
- 2.3 Psychology and
Emotion
- 2.3.1 The Physiology of
Emotion
- 2.4 Cognition and
Emotion
- 2.5 Cognitivism
and
linguistics
- 2.6 The implications of Cognitivism for
Emotion
CHAPTER 3. CONCEPTUALISATION AND EMOTION
- 3.1
Introduction
- 3.2 Conceptualization - universals
and
relativism
- 3.2.1 The Platonic and Aristotelian
traditions
- 3.2.2 Language Relativism since the
18th
century
- 3.3 The relationship between
philosophy and linguistics in the 20th
century
- 3.3.1 Linguistics as a reflection of
Anglo-Saxon philosophical attitudes to conceptualization in the 20th
century
- 3.3.2 The contribution of 20th
century philosophy and literary theory to language
relativism
- 3.4 Folk wisdom and
conceptualization
- 3.4.1 Folk wisdom on
Emotion
- 3.4.2 The validity of folk
wisdom
- 3.5 Linguistics and
conceptualization
- 3.5.1 Lexical
semantics
- 3.5.2 Semantics and
Syntax
- 3.6 The multi-level
approach
CHAPTER 4. THE LEXICAL EXPRESSION OF EMOTION
- 4.1
Introduction
- 4.2 The Lexical Categorisation of
Emotions
- 4.2.1 Basic
emotions
- 4.3 Lexicons and the lexicology of
Emotion
- 4.3.1 Davitz
(1969) : a psychologist’s analysis
- 4.3.2 Fillenbaum
and Rapoport (1971) : subjectivity and Emotion
- 4.3.3 Lakoff
and Johnson (1980) and Lakoff and Kövecses (1987)
- 4.3.4 Wierzbicka
(1972 and 1992) : on how to define Emotion
- 4.3.5 Johnson-Laird and Oatley (1989) : a Cognitive lexicon which assumes
basic emotions
- 4.3.6 Ortony,
Clore and Collins (1988) : a Cognitive analysis
of the emotions as valenced reaction
- 4.3.7 An appraisal of the different
approaches
- 4.4 The differences between emotion
and Emotion words
- 4.5 Lexical categories of Emotion to
be examined
- 4.5.1 An
adaptation of the Emotion types proposed by Ortony
et al.
- 4.5.2 Other classes of Emotion
- 4.5.3 General comments on
methodology
CHAPTER 5. SEMANTIC ASPECTS OF EMOTION
- 5.1 Introduction
- 5.2 The Semantics of SENSER and the
PHENOMENON of Emotion
- 5.2.1 Deep Case Theory and Emotion
- 5.2.2 The analysis of SENSER and
PHENOMENON in the corpora
- 5.3 The Semantics of the Verbs of
Emotion
- 5.3.1 Semantic classifications of
verbs and their relevance to Emotion
- 5.3.2 The SENSER / PHENOMENON
focusing distinction, and the classification of verbs of Emotion
CHAPTER 6. SENTENCE PATTERNS AND THE VERB PHRASE OF
EMOTION
- 6.1 Introduction
- 6.2 Basic Sentence Patterns
- 6.3 Prepositions and their
complementation
- 6.4 SP sentences
- 6.5 SPCs
sentences
- 6.5.1 Copulas
- 6.5.2 SFoc
Adjectives + Complementation
- 6.5.3 PFoc
adjectives and Extraposition
- 6.6 SPCp
sentences
- 6.7 SPOd
sentences
- 6.7.1 SPOi
sentences in Portuguese
- 6.7.2 SPOd
sentences and Extrapostion
- 6.8. SPOO, SPOC and SPOdA sentences
- 6.8.1 The SPOCo
and SPOdA sentences
- 6.8.2 The SPOd,
SPOdCo and SPOO patterns and syntactic and
semantic
- gradients
- 6.9 Syntactic clues to degrees of
conscious evaluation with Emotion
CHAPTER 7. THE VERB PHRASE OF EMOTION -SYNTACTIC
RESTRICTIONS
- 7.1 Introduction
- 7.2 Tense and Aspect with Emotion
- 7.2.1 The Progressive Aspect with
verbs of Emotion
- 7.2.2 Non-finite -ING / -NDO clauses
with verbs of Emotion
- 7.2.3 The Perfective Aspect with
verbs of Emotion
- 7.3 The Imperative and Emotion
- 7.4 PFoc
verbs and their limitations with the Progressive and Imperative
- 7.5 Auxiliaries, Modals and Emotion
- 7.5.1 Auxiliary verbs and Emotion
- 7.5.2 The Modal verbs and Emotion
- 7.5.3 Can a
lexical verb be modal?
- 7.6 Passivization
and SFoc verbs
- 7.7 Emotion, adjectives/past
participles, and the Passive
- 7.7.1 The Morphology of the
adjective in English and Portuguese
- 7.7.2 The syntax of the adjective in
English and Portuguese
- 7.7.3 The Passive gradient
- 7.7.4 The semantic importance of the
Copula + adjective/past participle structure
- 7.8 Emotion and the VERB + -SE
construction in Portuguese
- 7.8.1 The PFoc
verb + -SE - analysed at a deep level
- 7.8.1 The PFoc
verb + -SE - analysed at a surface level
- 7.8.3 The SFoc
verb + -SE
- 7.8.4 A perspective based on the
corpora
- 7.9 Adverbs of Emotion
CHAPTER 8. THE SEMANTICS AND SYNTAX OF NOUNS OF
EMOTION
- 8.1 Introduction
- 8.2 The countability
/ non-countability of nouns of Emotion
- 8.2.1 Emotion as a Concept or
Nominal Term
- 8.2.2 Emotion nouns as Subject of
the sentence
- 8.2.3 Emotion as a Relation
- 8.2.4 Emotion nouns as Instances
- 8.2.5 Emotion nouns as Mass Terms
- 8.2.6 The fuzziness of Emotion nouns
as Instances and Mass terms
- 8.3 A perspective based on the
corpora
- 8.3.1 The problem of countability
- 8.3.2 The complementation of nouns
- 8.3.3 The behaviour of Emotion nouns
in adverbial phrases
- 8.3.4 The possessive pronoun and the
nouns of Emotion
- 8.4 Ter
and nouns of Emotion
CHAPTER 9. THE LINGUISTIC BEHAVIOUR OF THE REACTION TO
EVENTS LEXICON
- 9.1 Introduction
- 9.2 Reactions to Events -
Fortunes-of-Self
- 9.3 The Joy Group
- 9.3.1 The Joy lexicon
- 9.3.2 The semantics and syntax of
the Joy lexicon
- 9.3.3 A Linguistic profile of the
Joy Group
- 9.4 The Distress Group
- 9.4.1 The Distress lexicon
- 9.4.2 The semantics and syntax of
the Distress lexicon
- 9.4.3 A Linguistic profile of
Distress
- 9.5 Reactions to Events -
Fortunes-of-others
- 9.6 The Happy For Group
- 9.7 The Resentment Group
- 9.7.1 The Resentment lexicon
- 9.7.2 The semantics and syntax of
Resentment
- 9.7.3 A Linguistic profile of
Resentment
- 9.8 The Gloating Group
- 9.9 The Sorry For Group
- 9.9.1 The Sorry For lexicon
- 9.9.2 The syntax and semantics of
Sorry For
- 9.9.3 A Linguistic profile of Sorry
For
CHAPTER 10. THE LINGUISTIC BEHAVIOUR OF THE
PROSPECT-BASED REACTIONS TO EVENTS LEXICON
- 10.1 Prospect-based Reactions to
Events
- 10.2 The Hope Group
- 10.2.1 The Hope lexicon
- 10.2.2 The semantics and syntax of Hope
- 10.2.3 A Linguistic profile of Hope
- 10.3 The Fear Group
- 10.3.1 The lexicon of Fear
- 10.3.2 The semantics and syntax of
Fear
- 10.3.3 A Linguistic profile of Fear
- 10.4 The Satisfaction Group
- 10.4.1 The lexicon of Satisfaction
- 10.4.2 The semantics and syntax of
Satisfaction
- 10.5 The Fears-confirmed group
- 10.6 The Relief group
- 10.6.1 The lexicon of Relief
- 10.6.2 The semantics and syntax and
general profile of Relief
- 10.7 The Disppointment
group
- 10.7.1 The lexicon of Disappointment
- 10.7.2 The semantics and syntax of
Disappointment
- 10.7.3 A Linguistic profile of
Disappointment
CHAPTER 11. THE LINGUISTIC BEHAVIOUR OF THE REACTIONS
TO AGENTS LEXICON
- 11.1 Reactions to Agents -
Evaluative emotions
- 11.2 The Pride / Gratification group
- 11.2.1 The lexicon of Pride
/Gratification
- 11.2.2 The semantics and syntax of
Pride / Gratification
- 11.2.3 A Linguistic profile of Pride
/ Gratification
- 11.3 The self-Reproach / Remorse
group
- 11.3.1 The lexicon of Self-Reproach
/ Remorse
- 11.3.2 The semantics and syntax of
Self-Reproach / Remorse
- 11.3.3 A linguistic profile of
Self-Reproach / Remorse
- 11.4 The Appreciation group
- 11.4.1 The lexicon of Appreciation
- 11.4.2 The semantics and syntax of
Appreciation
- 11.4.3 A Linguistic profile of
Appreciation
- 11.5 The Reproach group
- 11.5.1 The lexicon of the Reproach
group
- 11.5.2 The semantics and syntax of
the Reproach group
- 11.5.3 A Linguistic profile of
Reproach
- 11.6 The Gratitude group
- 11.6.1 The lexicon of
Gratitude
- 11.6.2 The semantics and syntax of
Gratitude
- 11.6.3 A linguistic profile of
Gratitude
- 11.7 The Anger group
- 11.7.1 The lexicon of Anger
- 11.7.2 The semantics and syntax of
Anger
- 11.7.3 A Linguistic profile of
Anger
CHAPTER 12. THE LINGUISTIC BEHAVIOUR OF THE REACTION
TO OBJECTS LEXICON
- 12.1 Reaction to Objects - the
Attraction emotions
- 12.2 The Liking group
- 12.2.1 The lexicon of Liking
- 12.2.2 The semantics and syntax of
Liking
- 12.2.3 A Linguistic profile of
Liking
- 12.3 The Dislikinig
Group
- 12.3.1 The lexicon of
Disliking
- 12.3.2 The semantics and syntax of
Disliking
- 12.3.3 A Linguistic profile of
Disliking
CHAPTER 13. THE LINGUISTIC BEHAVIOUR OF OTHER
CATEGORIES OF EMOTION LEXICONS
- 13.1 Other categories
- 13.2 The Generic lexemes of
Emotion
- 13.2.1 The lexicon of Generic
lexemes for Emotion
- 13.2.2 The semantics and syntax of
the Generic lexicon
- 13.2.3 A Linguistic profile of the
Generic lexicon
- 13.3 The Surprise group
- 13.3.1 The lexicon of Surprise
- 13.3.2 The semantics and syntax of
Surprise
- 13.3.3 A Linguistic profile of
Surprise
- 13.4 The Desire group
- 13.4.1 The lexicon of Desire
- 13.4.2 The semantics and syntax of
Desire
- 13.4.3 A linguistic profile of
Desire
CHAPTER 14. COMMENT
- 14.1 General Problems
- 14.2 Linguistic indicators of the
Universal / Relativist positions
- 14.3 The Fragility of Linguistic metalanguage
- 14.4 Language and the psychology of
the emotions
- 14.5 Will Artificial Intelligence ever
experience
emotion?
BIBLIOGRAPHY