Abstract
According to Conceptual Metaphor Theory, much of spoken language is figurative. Thus, by studying how a domain (e.g., emotion) is figuratively described, we can better understand how that domain is conceptualized. The current study examined the degree to which metaphors for happiness across languages reflect the assertions of Conceptual Metaphor Theory. Via an online survey, speakers of English (n=29) and Portuguese (n=14) rated each of 12 metaphors on valence, arousal, and the degree to which they relate to 11 different conceptual categories (e.g., Psychological Reaction, Life Event, etc.). All conceptual categories were selected at high rates, but the Portuguese-speaking group displayed more variability. No metaphor had a dominant category (i.e., rated significantly higher than others); this was true for both language groups. Within each language, metaphors varied on valence and arousal, indicating that different metaphors communicated different information about the structure of happiness. This means that, while metaphors communicate detailed information about emotional sensations, the way the metaphors describe variations in emotion sensation varies between languages. Multidimensional scaling analyses examined the relationships among the conceptual categories and, separately, metaphors, for each language group. For conceptual categories, both English- and Portuguese-speakers shared the first dimension, but differed on the second dimension. For metaphors, English- and Portuguese-speakers did not share either of the two dimensions. These findings suggest that the conceptualization of happiness is fluid, varying by the metaphor used to describe it and the language in which that metaphor exists.