Sharing Perceptual Experiences through Language

• Published in: Journal of intelligence 2023-06, Vol.11 (7), p.129
• Main Authors: Caballero, Rosario, Paradis, Carita
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Annan samhällsvetenskap; Architects; Architecture; built space; Cognition & reasoning; Communication; Computer and Information Science; Data- och informationsvetenskap (Datateknik); Embodied cognition; General Language Studies and Linguistics; Gibson, James Jerome; hearing; Humaniora och konst; Humanities; Jämförande språkvetenskap och allmän lingvistik; Language; Language Technology (Computational Linguistics); Languages and Literature; Linguistics; motion; Natural Sciences; Naturvetenskap; Other Social Sciences; Other Social Sciences not elsewhere specified; Samhällsvetenskap; Science; Semantics; Senses; Sensory perception; smell; Social Sciences; Specific Languages; Språk och litteratur; Språkteknologi (språkvetenskaplig databehandling); Studier av enskilda språk; taste; touch; vision; Övrig annan samhällsvetenskap
• ISSN: 2079-3200; 2079-3200
• DOI: 10.3390/jintelligence11070129

The aim of this article is to shed light on how sensory perceptions are communicated through authentic language. What are the language resources available to match multimodal perceptions, and how do we use them in real communication? We discuss insights from previous work on the topic of the interaction of perception, cognition, and language and explain how language users recontextualise perception in communication about sensory experiences. Within the framework of cognitive semantics, we show that the complexities of multimodal perception are clearly reflected in the multifunctional use of words to convey meanings and feelings. To showcase the language resources employed, we base our findings on research on how architects convey their perceptions of built space. Two main patterns emerge: they use multimodal expressions ( , , and ) and descriptions of built space through motion ( , or routes and directions such as , , , or in combination with verbs such as and ) in which case the architect may either be the observer or the emerged actor. The important take-home message is that there is no neat and clear a priori link between words and meanings, but rather "unforeseen" patterns surface in natural production data describing sensory perceptions.