37.2123, Reviews: Affect Expression in Language, Culture, and Social Context: Barbara Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk and Marcin Trojszczak (ed.) (2026)

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Subject: 37.2123, Reviews: Affect Expression in Language, Culture, and Social Context: Barbara Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk and Marcin Trojszczak (ed.) (2026)

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Date: 20-Jun-2026
From: Bambang Ruby Sugiarto [bambangrubys at gmail.com]
Subject: Cognitive Science, Semantics, Sociolinguistics: Barbara Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk and Marcin Trojszczak (ed.) (2026)


Book announced at https://linguistlist.org/issues/37-1290

Title: Affect Expression in Language, Culture, and Social Context
Series Title: Brill’s Studies in Language, Cognition and Culture
Publication Year: 2026

Publisher: De Gruyter Brill
           https://www.degruyterbrill.com/?changeLang=en
Book URL: https://brill.com/display/title/73317

Editor(s): Barbara Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk and Marcin Trojszczak

Reviewer: Bambang Ruby Sugiarto

SUMMARY
In recent years, the study of affect has moved from the margins to the
Centre of linguistic inquiry, reflecting growing recognition that
emotions are integral to how people use, interpret, and experience
language. “Affect Expression in Language, Culture, and Social Context”
enters this expanding field with an ambitious interdisciplinary
agenda. The volume brings together thirteen chapters that explore
affective phenomena across diverse linguistic, cultural, educational,
and translational contexts. Drawing on perspectives from cognitive
linguistics, cultural semantics, translation studies, and applied
linguistics, the contributors demonstrate that affect is neither
universal nor purely individual, but profoundly shaped by
sociocultural norms and communicative practices. Structured into two
thematic parts, the collection offers both conceptual discussions and
empirical analyses that collectively advance our understanding of the
dynamic relationship between language and emotion.
Chapter 1, “Cross-Cultural Perspective on Emotion Dimension Concepts”,
Paul A. Wilson and Barbara Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk use the “Geneva
Emotion Research Group Instrument (GRID)” to compare British and
Polish conceptualizations of emotions across the dimensions of
valence, arousal, power, and novelty. While both groups share a
broadly similar emotional framework, they differ in the intensity of
emotional evaluations, perceptions of arousal, and associations
between emotions and personal control. The findings suggest that
emotional experiences are shaped by both universal tendencies and
culturally specific values.
Chapter 2, “Language and Culture: A Cross-linguistic Perspective on
Pain Description”, Lily I-wen Su and Andrew H.C. Chuang examine how
muscle soreness is conceptualized across languages through the
Taiwanese Southern Min expression “Sng”. Drawing on a cross-linguistic
survey of ten languages from five language families, the authors
demonstrate that although speakers can distinguish muscle soreness
from other types of pain, they employ diverse linguistic strategies to
describe this bodily experience. The findings suggest that while
embodied sensations may be universally shared, their conceptualization
and expression are shaped by culturally specific linguistic systems,
highlighting the dynamic interplay among language, thought, and
culture.
Chapter 3, “What Makes DOR a Romanian Cultural Keyword? On the
Metaphorical Conceptualizations of DOR”, Gina Scarpete Walters
explores the Romanian concept of “dor” as a culturally significant
emotion that extends beyond simple translations such as "longing" or
"yearning." Drawing on corpus data, literary texts, and lexicographic
sources, the chapter demonstrates that “dor” is represented through a
rich network of metaphors that reflect its emotional complexity and
cultural salience. The findings suggest that “dor” embodies a
distinctively Romanian way of experiencing and expressing emotions,
illustrating how language encodes culturally specific understandings
of human experience and identity.
Chapter 4, “Fear across Cultures: A Comparative Analysis of
Vietnamese, English, and Chinese Conceptualizations”, Hien Tran
examines how fear is metaphorically and metonymically represented
across three linguistic and cultural contexts. Drawing on Conceptual
Metaphor Theory and cultural models of emotion, the study shows that
fear is rooted in both shared embodied experiences and
culture-specific interpretations. While some conceptualizations are
common across languages, Vietnamese exhibits distinctive patterns,
such as viewing fear as non-existent, persistent beyond the source of
danger, or as a living being. The chapter highlights the role of
cultural beliefs and local value systems in shaping how emotions are
linguistically conceptualized.
Chapter 5, “Tok Pisin Emotions: Body, Culture, and Figurative
Cognition”, Krzysztof Kosecki explores how emotions are conceptualized
in Tok Pisin through embodiment, metaphor, and metonymy. Drawing on
linguistic and ethnographic data, the study demonstrates that
emotional experiences are closely associated with body-part
terminology, particularly “bel” ('belly') as the primary locus of
emotion. The findings suggest that Tok Pisin emotion concepts arise
from the interaction between universal embodied experiences and
Melanesian cultural models, highlighting the richness of affective
expression in this creole language.
Chapter 6, “Application of Spilling Schema in English and Vietnamese:
>From Peeing to Extremity”, Thanh Hoa Nguyen and Chia-Rung Lu examine
how the image schema of “spilling” motivates semantic extensions in
English and Vietnamese. The study shows that both English “spill” and
Vietnamese “vãi” have evolved beyond their literal meanings to express
abstract notions such as intensity, emotional states, and loss of
control. While these developments reflect shared embodied experiences,
the authors argue that language-specific histories and cultural
practices shape distinct trajectories of meaning extension across the
two languages.
Chapter 7, “Normative Generics and Anger--the Intensity of Affective
Meaning in Norm-Breaching Contexts”, Marcin Trojszczak and Daniel
Karczewski examine anger as a socially grounded emotion shaped by
shared norms and interpersonal expectations. The authors argue that
anger arises not merely from personal feelings but from perceived
violations of collective standards of behaviour. Focusing on normative
generics, they demonstrate how linguistic constructions can intensify
affective evaluations by invoking culturally shared beliefs about how
people ought to behave, positioning anger as both an emotional and
moral response to norm transgressions.
Chapter 8, “Are You a Doctor-doctor? --the Interplay of Irony and
Affect in American English Lexical Cloning”, Andrew H.C. Chuang
examines how lexical cloning constructions in American English
function as markers of both irony and affective stance. Drawing on
grammatical construction theory and native-speaker judgments, the
study shows that expressions such as “Doctor-doctor” extend beyond
identifying prototypical category members to convey attitudes
including skepticism, criticism, amusement, and emphasis. The findings
suggest that lexical cloning serves as a pragmatic resource through
which speakers negotiate social meanings and communicate nuanced
emotional evaluations.
Chapter 9, “As the World Learns: Perspectives on Mother Tongue as the
Language of Learning and Teaching”, Barbara Nykiél-Herbert examines
the educational and sociopolitical implications of using learners'
mother tongues as the medium of instruction. Drawing on historical
accounts, UNESCO recommendations, and examples from diverse contexts,
the chapter argues that mother tongue-based education supports
children's cognitive development, participation, and academic success.
At the same time, it highlights how language-in-education policies are
shaped by broader issues of identity, social mobility, colonial
legacies, and economic aspirations. The author calls for more nuanced
approaches that balance the pedagogical benefits of mother tongue
instruction with the sociocultural realities influencing language
attitudes and educational choices.
Chapter 10, “Investigating L2 Boredom: Different Contexts, Different
Tools, Similar Outcomes”, Miroslaw Pawlak reviews boredom as an
emerging affective variable in second language acquisition. Drawing on
research in positive psychology and educational psychology, the
chapter argues that boredom is a complex emotional state shaped by the
interaction of individual, instructional, and contextual factors.
Synthesizing findings from diverse educational settings, Pawlak
demonstrates that, despite methodological differences, studies
consistently associate L2 boredom with disengagement, reduced effort,
and poorer learning outcomes. The chapter also highlights the need for
longitudinal and intervention-based research to identify effective
strategies for reducing boredom and fostering more engaging language
learning environments.
Chapter 11, “Translating Emotions in Students' Opinions”, Agnieszka
Kałużna investigates how translation students perceive the challenge
of conveying emotions across languages and cultures. Using a
mixed-method approach involving undergraduate and postgraduate
students, the study reveals that although emotions are generally
considered translatable, achieving emotional equivalence requires
sensitivity to cultural contexts, readers' expectations, and the
interpretive nature of translation. The chapter concludes that
translating emotions extends beyond lexical transfer and highlights
the importance of developing emotional competence in translator
education.
Chapter 12, “Production vs. Assessment of Affectively-Charged
Translations”, Jacek Waliński explores how affect influences both
translators' decision-making and readers' evaluations of translated
texts. Using the slogan “I'm lovin' it” as a case study, the chapter
demonstrates that translators' choices are shaped by emotional
responses, cultural knowledge, and perceptions of the target audience,
while readers may interpret the intended affect differently. The
findings highlight translation as an emotionally embedded activity and
underscore the importance of affective competence in translation
theory, practice, and pedagogy.
Chapter 13, “Swear Words in Polish Professional and Non-professional
Intralingual Subtitles”, Anna Bączkowska examines how swear words are
translated in professional subtitles and amateur fansubs of
English-language romantic comedies. Drawing on theories of affect and
taboo language, the study reveals that professional subtitlers tend to
soften emotionally charged expressions to conform to institutional
norms and audience expectations, whereas fansubbers more often
preserve the original emotional intensity and colloquial tone. The
chapter highlights subtitling as a process of negotiating affective
meaning and illustrates the tension between fidelity to the source
text and the acceptability of emotional expression in different
translation contexts.
EVALUATION
A notable strength of this volume is its extensive conceptual,
methodological, and geographical coverage. The contributions
demonstrate that affect extends beyond the realm of individual
psychology and should instead be understood as a phenomenon that is
culturally situated, socially constructed, and linguistically enacted.
By incorporating a wide range of languages and contexts; including
Romanian, Vietnamese, Tok Pisin, Polish, Chinese, English, and
multilingual educational environments, the collection moves beyond the
Anglo-centric focus that has often dominated scholarship on language
and emotion.
The first section of the volume provides compelling evidence that
affective meanings arise from the interplay between embodied
experience and culturally specific systems of interpretation. Studies
examining cross-cultural emotion dimensions (Wilson &
Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, 2026), the linguistic encoding of pain (Su &
Chuang, 2026), the Romanian cultural keyword dor (Walters, 2026),
conceptualizations of fear in Vietnamese, English, and Chinese (Tran,
2026), emotional expressions in Tok Pisin (Kosecki, 2026), and the
semantic extensions of the spilling schema in English and Vietnamese
(Nguyen & Lu, 2026) collectively illustrate that emotional experiences
are simultaneously grounded in shared human embodiment and shaped by
local cultural frameworks. The second section broadens this
perspective by exploring the role of affect in social interaction,
education, and translation. Contributions addressing anger in contexts
of norm violation (Trojszczak & Karczewski, 2026), ironic lexical
cloning (Chuang, 2026), mother tongue instruction (Nykiél-Herbert,
2026), L2 boredom (Pawlak, 2026), emotional translation (Kałużna,
2026), affectively charged translation practices (Waliński, 2026), and
swear words in audiovisual translation (Bączkowska, 2026) demonstrate
the diverse ways in which emotions are negotiated through discourse
and social practice. These perspectives align with recent calls for
greater attention to multilingual and multicultural dimensions of
meaning-making in applied linguistics (Sugiarto & Manara, 2025).
The interdisciplinary orientation of the collection constitutes
another important contribution. Drawing on insights from cognitive
linguistics, cultural linguistics, translation studies,
sociolinguistics, educational psychology, and applied linguistics, the
volume highlights the explanatory value of affect across multiple
areas of linguistic inquiry. Chapters informed by cognitive approaches
(Wilson & Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, 2026; Tran, 2026; Kosecki, 2026;
Nguyen & Lu, 2026) emphasize the role of embodiment in shaping
emotional concepts, whereas those focusing on discourse and
interaction (Trojszczak & Karczewski, 2026; Chuang, 2026) reveal how
affective positions are embedded within evaluative and pragmatic
processes. Similarly, the chapters devoted to translation (Kałużna,
2026; Waliński, 2026; Bączkowska, 2026) demonstrate that translating
affect involves far more than lexical substitution; it requires
negotiating emotional meanings in ways that are sensitive to audience
expectations and sociocultural conventions. This observation echoes
findings by Sugiarto and Siregar (2023), who argue that translation
entails active meaning reconstruction, as reflected in the careful
management of lexical cohesion during manual post-editing of
machine-translated texts. In this sense, the volume successfully
foregrounds the affective dimension of translational decision-making.
The educational chapters (Nykiél-Herbert, 2026; Pawlak, 2026) likewise
underscore the significance of emotions in shaping learners'
engagement and participation, complementing previous work emphasizing
multilingual resources and pedagogical strategies in language
education (Sugiarto, 2024).
The volume will therefore be particularly useful for scholars and
graduate students working in cognitive linguistics, intercultural
communication, translation studies, multilingualism, and applied
linguistics. The contributions addressing language education are
especially relevant for researchers interested in the emotional
dimensions of multilingual classrooms. Pawlak's (2026) discussion of
L2 boredom offers valuable insights into the interaction among
individual, contextual, and instructional factors in language
learning, while Nykiél-Herbert's (2026) examination of mother tongue
education foregrounds the affective importance of linguistic inclusion
and recognition. These chapters support contemporary perspectives that
conceptualize language learning not solely as a cognitive endeavour
but also as a process shaped by identity and sociocultural experience
(Sugiarto & Manara, 2025).
A limitation concerns the range of linguistic and cultural contexts
represented. While the inclusion of relatively underrepresented
languages such as Tok Pisin and the attention devoted to Central and
Eastern European settings represent valuable contributions, the volume
could have benefited from broader geographical coverage. Future
research might extend these discussions by incorporating perspectives
from African, Middle Eastern, Southeast Asian, and Indigenous
communities. Such expansion is increasingly necessary in a digitally
interconnected world, where emotions circulate through transnational
communicative networks. Research on multilingual identity construction
in social media (Sugiarto & Manara, 2025) and the decolonization of
cultural representation in digital spaces (Sugiarto, 2026a) suggests
that affective meanings continue to evolve within emerging
communicative ecologies that remain largely absent from the present
collection.
Moreover, several chapters could have engaged more directly with
questions of power, ideology, and social inequality. Investigations of
affect in educational settings, for example, might consider how
institutional structures privilege particular emotional norms while
marginalizing others. Similarly, studies of cultural
conceptualizations of emotion may benefit from incorporating
perspectives related to gender, postcoloniality, and linguistic
hierarchy. As previous scholarship indicates, cultural variation
intersects with broader social identities and communicative practices
in shaping discourse production and interpretation (Sugiarto, 2026b).
Incorporating these critical perspectives would enable future studies
of affect to move beyond descriptive accounts toward analyses of how
emotions operate within asymmetrical social relations.
Notwithstanding these limitations, the editors and contributors have
successfully fulfilled the volume's central aims. The collection
persuasively demonstrates that affect is simultaneously cognitive,
cultural, social, and linguistic in nature. By examining emotional
meanings across languages, genres, educational contexts, and
translational settings, the book challenges readers to rethink
conventional distinctions between language and emotion. It
convincingly shows that emotions are not merely conveyed through
language but are actively constituted and reshaped through linguistic
practices.
Overall, “Affect Expression in Language, Culture, and Social Context”
makes a substantial contribution to current scholarship on language
and emotion. Its interdisciplinary perspective, empirical diversity,
and commitment to cultural plurality establish it as a valuable
resource for scholars seeking to understand the complex relationship
between affect and language use. More importantly, the volume points
toward promising directions for future inquiry into the multilingual,
digital, and decolonial dimensions of affect, thereby enriching
ongoing debates within applied linguistics and related fields.
REFERENCES
Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.). 2026. Affect
expression in language, culture, and social context. De Gruyter Brill.
Wilson, P. A., & Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, B. 2026. Cross-cultural
perspective on emotion dimension concepts. In Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk,
B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.), Affect expression in language, culture,
and social context (pp. 3–22). De Gruyter Brill.
Su, L.-W., & Chuang, A. H. C. 2026. Language and culture: A
cross-linguistic perspective on “pain” description. In
Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.), Affect expression
in language, culture, and social context (pp. 23–46). De Gruyter
Brill.
Walters, G. S. 2026. What makes dor a Romanian cultural keyword? On
the metaphorical conceptualizations of dor. In Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk,
B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.), Affect expression in language, culture,
and social context (pp. 47–70). De Gruyter Brill.
Tran, H. 2026. Fear across cultures: A comparative analysis of
Vietnamese, English, and Chinese conceptualizations. In
Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.), Affect expression
in language, culture, and social context (pp. 71–99). De Gruyter
Brill.
Kosecki, K. 2026. Tok Pisin emotions: Body, culture, and figurative
cognition. In Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.),
Affect expression in language, culture, and social context (pp.
100–129). De Gruyter Brill.
Nguyen, T. H., & Lu, C.-R. 2026. Application of spilling schema in
English and Vietnamese: From peeing to extremely. In
Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.), Affect expression
in language, culture, and social context (pp. 130–155). De Gruyter
Brill.
Trojszczak, M., & Karczewski, D. 2026. Normative generics and
anger—The intensity of affective meaning in norm-breaching contexts.
In Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.), Affect
expression in language, culture, and social context (pp. 159–179). De
Gruyter Brill.
Chuang, A. H. C. 2026. Are you a doctor-doctor?—The interplay of irony
and affect in American English lexical cloning. In
Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.), Affect expression
in language, culture, and social context (pp. 180–199). De Gruyter
Brill.
Nykiel-Herbert, B. 2026. As the world learns: Perspectives on mother
tongue as the language of learning and teaching. In
Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.), Affect expression
in language, culture, and social context (pp. 200–218). De Gruyter
Brill.
Pawlak, M. 2026. Investigating L2 boredom: Different contexts,
different tools, similar outcomes. In Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, B., &
Trojszczak, M. (Eds.), Affect expression in language, culture, and
social context (pp. 219–241). De Gruyter Brill.
Kałużna, A. 2026. Translating emotions in students' opinions. In
Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.), Affect expression
in language, culture, and social context (pp. 242–268). De Gruyter
Brill.
Waliński, J. 2026. Production vs. assessment of affectively-charged
translations. In Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.),
Affect expression in language, culture, and social context (pp.
269–284). De Gruyter Brill.
Bączkowska, A. 2026. Swear words in Polish professional and
non-professional intralingual subtitles. In Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk,
B., & Trojszczak, M. (Eds.), Affect expression in language, culture,
and social context (pp. 285–318). De Gruyter Brill.
Sugiarto, B. R., & Siregar, B. U. 2023. Lexical Cohesion in English –
Indonesia Machine Translation Output: The Realization of Manual
Post-Editing. JALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literacy),
7(1), 174 - 184. https://dx.doi.org/10.25157/jall.v7i1.9862
Sugiarto, B. R. 2024. Unlocking Multilingual Potential: Systemic
Functional Linguistics Strategies for Effective Descriptive Writing
Instruction. Sawerigading, 30(2), 328-336.
Sugiarto, B. R., & Manara, C. 2025. Digital multilingual identity:
insights from Indonesian multilingual EFL students’ identity
construction on Instagram. International Journal of Multilingualism,
23(1), 1021–1042. https://doi.org/10.1080/14790718.2025.2508867
Sugiarto, B. R. 2026a. Beyond algorithmic control: decolonizing
Sundanese cultural sovereignty on TikTok. Journal of Multicultural
Discourses, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/17447143.2025.2610501
Sugiarto, B. R. 2026b. Cultural and Gender Variation in Argumentative
Coherence: A Corpus-Based Study of Indonesian and Japanese EFL
Learners. JALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literacy), 10(1),
118-132. https://dx.doi.org/10.25157/jall.v10i1.23462
ABOUT THE REVIEWER
Dr. Bambang Ruby Sugiarto is a faculty member of the English Education
Department, Universitas Galuh, Ciamis, West Java, Indonesia. His
research interests include Applied Linguistics, Multilingual
Education, Digital Cultures, and Cultural Studies. He has published
scholarly work in reputable journals and serves as an editor and peer
reviewer for several scholarly journals in applied linguistics and
discourse studies.



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