Conceptual variation in the linguistic expression of aesthetic emotions: Cross-cultural perspectives on an underexplored domain ( Variación conceptual en la expresión lingüística de emociones estéticas: perspectivas interculturales en un campo poco estudiado )

Abstract

Research on emotional expressions has focused on our expressions for utilitarian emotions. Little is known about how speakers express aesthetic emotions. Aesthetic emotions, in fact, have been traditionally considered as lacking specific patterns of metaphoric and metonymic representation, so that our linguistic and gestural expressions for art-related emotions are frequently considered arbitrary and unsystematic. Recent research shows the existence of characteristic embodiment for most aesthetic emotions. Using this embodied understanding of aesthetic emotions, I have analysed a corpus of travellers’ reviews by native speakers of Japanese and English. The study of these expressions shows that both Japanese- and English-speaking travellers frequently rely on similar conceptual patterns. However, this study also indicates the existence of cultural differences in the way these emotions are described by speakers from each linguistic area. Furthermore, the use of expressions for some of these emotions is restricted to one sub-corpus, which might be revealing a cultural disposition to experience these emotions in the context of this historic site. In sum, this research contributes to a better understanding of how aesthetic emotions may be influenced by culture.