Language, culture, and emotion concepts

In answer to the question “In which language does the phrase ‘I love you’ feel stronger?,” Rie, a native speaker of Japanese with English as a second language (L2), points out that the Japanese avoid expressing their emotion overtly: “… silence is beautiful in Japanese society. We try to read an atmosphere” ( Dewaele 2008 : 1768). Veronica Zhengdao Ye, a Chinese scholar who immigrated to Australia, had made a similar point about the expression of emotion in China compared with how it is done in the West: “We do not place so much emphasis on verbal expression of love and affection, because they can evaporate quickly” ( Ye 2004 : 140). She explains that she prefers the Chinese way of expressing emotions: “subtle, implicit and without words” ( Ye 2004 : 139–140). She describes her first parting from her parents, just before boarding the plane that would take her to Australia: We fought back our tears and urged each other repeatedly to take care; we wore the biggest smiles to wave good-bye to each other, to soothe each other’s worries. Just like any other Chinese parting between those who love each other – there were no hugs and no ‘I love you’. Yet I have never doubted my parents’ profound love for me. ( Ye 2004 : 141 )