Emotions Through the Prism of German Paremies

The article explores the concept of human emotions as a dynamic, systemic, socio-psychological phenomenon with distinct linguistic-cultural specificity and national characteristics. The choice of this research topic is driven by a perceived spiritual crisis affecting humanity in general, and the German ethnic group in particular, as well as by an anthropocentric approach to contemporary linguistic issues. The German language is seen as peripheral in many research contexts. The hypothesis underpinning this study suggests that a spiritual crisis is linked to a lack of inner harmony, arising from cognitive dissonance. From a theoretical perspective, cognitive dissonance should encourage individuals to engage in cognitive processes, enhancing their understanding of the world and their place within it. This process includes critical examination of received information and validation of its truth. Discomfort caused by mental dissonance can be resolved by changing behaviors or beliefs, controlling emotions, revising values or conflicting ideas, or increasing emotogenic knowledge.The article emphasizes that the definition of emotion remains open-ended, with its interpretation often tied to specific philosophical teachings, biological, somatic, psychological, cognitive, eclectic, or linguistic theories. The primary objective of the study is to establish a paradigm of the most typical emotions experienced by the German people over many centuries, as evidenced by paremias (proverbial expressions). Emotions that are codified in texts more than three times are identified as typical. Despite significant contributions from philosophers, psychologists, ethnographers, historians, sociologists, linguists, and philologists to the study of emotions, many aspects remain unresolved, particularly with respect to emotions in texts and paremias. Through this research, the concepts of "emotion," "emotion in text," and "emotion in paremia" are clarified. The study also provides a brief overview of the German way of life during the 8th to 18th centuries, offering examples of explicit and implicit emotions, as well as their variants. Additionally, emotional patterns and their variations are examined, distinguishing positive, neutral, negative, and undefined emotions based on semantic features. Ultimately, the article confirms the idea that there is a relationship between emotions and the cultural and spiritual experiences of an ethnic group.