LOVE IN ENGLISH AND POLISH

This paper presents a sample contrastive analysis of the linguistic picture of love in English and Polish. The material used in the survey is drawn from lexicographic data, including the British National Corpus and Narodowy Korpus Języka Polskiego [National Corpus of Polish]. The paper focuses on the similarities and differences in conceptualizing the abstract concept of love in the English and Polish languages. An analytical method, developed by Bartmiński and associates, serves as the theoretical basis for the reconstruction of the linguistic picture of the world.


LOVE in English and Polish
love is a one-word noun that refers to a feeling. As was mentioned in Brożyna (2010b, p. 136), the verb okazywać collocates with nouns that refer to positive or negative feelings, for example okazywać lekceważenie [to show disrespect], and the verb darzyć goes with nouns that define only positive emotions, for instance darzyć kogoś przyjaźnią [to be friends]. Additionally, definitions from dictionaries prove that love belongs to the domain of feelings: 'silne uczucie' [strong feeling] (WSJP), 'to have a strong feeling' (LD). Ożóg (2010, p. 13) adds that the noun miłość can be exchanged in sentences with the noun uczucie [feeling], for example połączyło ich namiętne uczucie [they were bonded by a passionate feeling]. This proves that miłość belongs to the domain of feelings. It should also be noted that love is a feeling that can be externalized, for example to show love (OCDE), to express love (OCDE), and okazywać miłość (WSJP).
There are three superlative domains that love belongs to: values, relationships, and feelings. It could be argued that the most superlative domain is that of relationships. Bierwiaczonek (2002) suggests that the love relationship instantiates the link schema that is, in particular, love link. Kövecses (2000) adds that love can be defined as a realization of the unity of two parts schema. Love may exist between people, or between a person and an object. It also refers to the activity that a person loves to do. In this case (Wierzbicka, 1992), it is also involved in the category of human hobbies. This is included in the third meaning of love in WSJP. Nevertheless, we may identify one element of love that is common to all the meanings, which is that 'something is good and pleasant for someone' -or in Polish, 'coś jest dobre i miłe dla kogoś'. This phrase implies that love is a relationship between people or a person and an object, and that it is a positive feeling that a person experiences. On the other hand, there are expressions such as free love (BNC) and wolna miłość (SJP WD) which show that love may exist without the element of relationship. Some researchers claim that free love has recently become popular in the era of consumerism. It should be noted that a Polish dictionary from 1962 contains the phrase wolna miłość in the definition of love. Wierzbicka (1992) believes that love and hate should be interpreted as attitudes. It could be argued that an attitude can be analysed as a mixture of relationship and feeling, because it is understood as 'the opinions and feelings that you usually have about something, especially when this is shown in your behaviour' (LD).
Most cognitivists agree that the essence of the meaning of a word is expressed in its etymology. In other words, the first meaning of the word is its most basic and most significant meaning.
The noun miłość comes from the Slavonic adjective miły, which first referred to 'a person that you can pass without using your weapon'. As Ożóg (2010, p. 12) proves, there have been three distinct meanings of miłość in the history of Polish: 'passionate feeling towards someone or something', 'mercy', and 'grace'. At first it meant 'mercy, charity' and then 'liking'. In the 15th century a new meaning of amour was introduced. Basically, the first meaning of the noun miłość referred to a relationship with other people that you did not have to fight with because they were benign towards you.
The verb miłować has the same origin as the noun miłość. It is used very rarely nowadays, appearing predominantly in religious language, for example zmiłuj się nad nami, which is interpreted as 'give/show us your love'. In current usage, the verb miłować does not imply any erotic connotations, as the verb kochać does, although it once did. This can be seen in the outdated expression miłośnica 'kochanka, nałożnica, utrzymanka' (SJP WD) ['lover, mistress, kept woman']. In today's language, the noun kochanka is used, and it has a strictly erotic connotation -a woman that you have sex with. The definition 'a person that you love' is outdated in contemporary Polish (SJP WD), as is the noun lover in English, which also refers to a woman/man that you have sexual intercourse with.
The verb kochać at first meant 'to touch gently, to stroke'. It began to be used more often in the 16th century. Interestingly, apart from the meaning 'to love, to like very much', it also meant 'to take care of, to look after, to cultivate'. In other words, love in Polish has been associated with taking care of someone.

LOVE in English and Polish
The English word love has a different origin. In Old English, the noun lufu was used, which originally came from the root *leubh-(loubh). Jakubowicz (2000) claims that it probably has Latin roots, lubet 'pleasing' and lubido 'desire'. This demonstrates that love was seen as a type of desire, interest or willingness.
Etymological analysis shows that love and miłość have different origins. The English love had a more superficial meaning when compared with the Polish miłość, which referred to mercy, goodness or taking care. Jakubowicz (2000), on the basis of the etymological study of love in different languages, suggests that the English love belongs to the languages which conceptualize love as desire, willingness, interest, whereas the Polish miłość and kochać belong to such models of love as taking care and love as something good and pleasing.
As previously mentioned, love belongs to the domain of relationships and positive feelings. For this reason, it is worth studying the perspective of the experiencer first.

The experiencer
Prototypically, love is a feeling between a man and a woman. Today, however, love can apply to people of the same sex. In English, such expressions as homosexual love (OCDE) or lesbian love (OCDE), as opposed to heterosexual love (OCDE), are used. It can be argued, therefore, that Polish is more conservative. Although the phrases miłość homoseksualna and miłość lesbijska are found in the corpus, they are not registered in the Polish dictionary (WSJP) that is based on the corpus. This may suggest that the Polish miłość is heterosexual by definition. In a Polish dictionary from 1962, the following definition of miłość exists: 'głębokie przywiązanie do kogo lub czego; gorące namiętne uczucie do osoby płci odmiennej; umiłowanie, afekt' [a deep attachment to someone or something; a burning, passionate feeling to a person of the opposite sex; fondness, affection] (SJP WD). Furthermore, in the Polish constitution, a marriage is defined as 'a relationship between a man and a woman'. In the UK, there is an increasing number of open homosexual relationships. Homosexuality is no longer frowned upon by society. Of course, these two contrasting situations may be explained by the differences in culture, religion, and politics in the two countries.
On the whole, humans are experiencers of love. They give love to others and receive love from others, especially from members of their family. When analysing conventional metaphors in English and Polish, it can be observed that lovers are conceptualized as parts of a whole. This is an elaboration of the metaphor love is a whole. It may be exemplified by the expressions cited by Bierwiaczonek (2002, p. 113) we are one, she is my better half, they are inseparable, theirs is a perfect match, she has an attachment to him, there are romantic ties between them, there is a strong bond between them. In Polish, the claim can be supported by the following phrases: łączy ich miłość [love ties them] (NKJP), związek miłosny [love bond] (NKJP), moja lepsza połowa [my better half] (WSF). These examples also suggest that love is conceptualized as a bond. On the one hand, love is seen as UNITY, but on the other, it is also perceived as a kind of exchange between lovers. Therefore, they experience both giving and receiving. Bierwiaczonek (2002, p. 125) suggests that the metaphor, lovers are partners in a fair exchange of goods, is an elaboration of the conceptual metaphor, love is partnership. The object of the exchange includes emotional states such as trust and a feeling of safety, and more tangible goods such as body, children, virginity and, of course, time and care. It can also be argued that marriage is a kind of contract between two people that consists of mutual exchange. The metaphor, love is an exchange, refers not only to human love but also to divine love. The following expressions serve as proof: jak Bóg da [lit. if God gives, God willing] (WSPA).

LOVE in English and Polish
Divine love (OCDE) constitutes a separate model of love, which is love between God and a human. It is highly developed in Polish. When comparing the number of expressions with God in Polish and English, there are many more in Polish. In WSJP miłość do Boga, ojczyzny is the second meaning of miłość. Because Poland is a strongly Catholic country, there exist such expressions as miłość Boga (WSJP). Furthermore, it is associated with grace and mercy. In Polish, the noun miłosierdzie (SJP WD), which comes from the same origin as miłość, is used. From etymological analysis miłosierdzie (SJP WD) may be interpreted as a 'good heart'. It should be noted that it is not only a feeling of mercy for someone but also an action 'współczucie okazywane komuś czynnie' [mercy showed to someone actively] (SJP WD). Siostra miłosierdzia (SJP WD), Sister of Mercy is a person who helps the sick and the poor. In these particular phrases the aspect of goodness and doing good to others is highlighted. This aspect is also seen in the exclamation jesteś kochany [you are lovely] (NKJP), which means 'you are good to me'.
In the religious sense, miłość is also conceptualized as a subject to be taught and learnt, for example nauczyć miłości [to teach love] (WSJP) and przykazanie miłości [commandment of love] (WSJP). It can be the theme of a speech, głosić miłość [to preach love] (WSJP). Of course, in the Catholic religion, the most important commandment is to love your neighbour.

The object of love
The metonymic meaning of love refers to a beloved person, jedyna, pierwsza, ostatnia miłość mojego życia [the dearest, first, last love of my life] (PSWP). The object of love is a person that you like: sympatia [girlfriend/boyfriend] (PSWP), przyjaciółka [girlfriend] (PSWP), kochany [beloved] (PSWP), or to have sexual intercourse with (kochanka, kochanek [lover] (PSWP)). They are a person that was selected (wybranka [lit. a person that was selected; sweetheart] (PSWP)). Additionally, they are close or dear to one's heart (bliska sercu (PSWP), sweetheart (WSPA)). They are a valuable person (droga [dear] (PSWP). Metaphorically, they can be conceptualized as appetizing food, for example hi, sweetie-pie (Kövecses, 2000, p. 26), sweetie, słodziak. In English, they are usually perceived as honey, hi, honey (abbreviation hi, hun). The object of love is also perceived as a small child, for instance baby. Furthermore, because of physical attraction, the object of love is compared to a deity (Don't put her on a pedestal. He worships her (Kövecses, 2000, p. 26)). In Polish, diminutives are used more often, such as kwiatuszek [flower], misiek [teddy bear], słońce [the sun] etc. Bierwiaczonek (2002) listed other phrases that prove that lovers are perceived as birds (usually doves). They are as follows: We sat there billing and cooing till after midnight; It was all lovey-dovey; Look at those two lovebirds on the bench; Here come the love doves again; Their love nest has never been discovered. In Polish, there exists a comparison of lovers to doves (gruchają jak dwa gołąbki [they coo as two doves] (PWNet)).
Apart from those expressions whose function is to express tenderness to someone, there are also phrases which imply that there are many people in the world that may become one's partner. They are presented as fish in English, for example there are plenty more fish in the sea (SIA) and as flowers in Polish, for instance tego kwiatu jest pół światu (NKJP). The object of love may also be non-human. It may be an object or an activity. In Polish, the noun, miłośnictwo 'zamiłowanie do czegoś, ukochanie, umiłowanie czegoś' [passion, fondness, love] (SJP WD) was used in the past. Today, the noun miłośnik [devotee] (SJP WD) is still used in Polish. In English, passion has a common root with passionate, which collocates with love. There may be different objects of love, for example miłość do sztuki [love of art], do literatury [love of literature] (PSWP). The verbs that define different kinds of human activities are used with the verb kochać, for example kocham malować [I love painting] (NKJP). In English, the verb to love is applied, for instance LOVE in English and Polish I love dancing (BNC). Love may refer not only to other people, objects and activities, but also to oneself. This form of love is known as self-love. Bierwiaczonek (2002, p. 113) suggests that, taking into account the fact that love makes the distance between lovers closer and closer, we may distinguish three stages of change in time: "Stage 1: the process of the parts getting closer and closer, Stage 2 (Pivot): the moment/period of unity of the parts, Stage 3: the process of the parts separating and moving away from each other. The stages may of course recur in various combinations."

Time and movement
Expressions such as love at first sight (OCDE), miłość od pierwszego wejrzenia (NKJP), show that love is associated with sight and the eyes. Psychologists claim that eye contact is the first stage of falling in love. The expressions ktoś jest oczkiem w głowie (WSF), to be the apple of somebody's eye, refer to a beloved person. Additionally, the phrase that describes the first stage of falling in love, mieć się ku sobie [literally 'to have towards each other, to be fond of each other'] (WSF), also proves that love is associated with closeness and mutual attraction. It describes a mutual force of attraction. The metaphors she swept me off my feet and I was magnetically drawn to her (Kövecses, 2000, p. 26), uniesienie miłosne (Jakubowicz, 2000, p. 238), imply that love is perceived as a natural or physical force that may be very strong, for example to take to something like a duck to water (SIA).
The examples above show that there are stages in the process of love. It is a dynamic concept which changes over time. The journey metaphor employed both in English and Polish which describes love can also serve as proof that love is seen as a progressive phenomenon. Kövecses (2000, p. 26) and Bierwiaczonek (2002, p. 115) give examples: It has been a long, bumpy road. Look how far we have come. We are at a crossroads. We will just have to go our separate ways. We are stuck. We are just spinning our wheels. Our marriage is on the rocks. We have gotten off the track. Additionally, Bierwiaczonek (2002, p. 116) stresses that the journey metaphor is constructed differently according to the kind of love that is described in the metaphor. He states that the journey metaphor dates back to the Bible, where we can find many descriptions of journies. The journey metaphor that refers to divine love may be constructed in three different ways: "God leads the way while the believer follows him", "God accompanies the believer, supporting or defending him in times of trouble", and "The believer is the traveller, God is the destination" (Bierwiaczonek, 2002, p. 117). Of course, in the Bible there are many examples of the elaboration of the journey metaphor. The destination is heaven or a mystical union with God, for example.
As regards to human love between two individuals, we may distinguish two types of metaphorical journey: 1) to find an object of love, and 2) to build a relationship. The first type can be exemplified by the expression I have been looking for you all my life, or in Polish iść za głosem serca [to follow one's heart] (WSF). The second can also be exemplified by phrases with the noun go, chodzić in Polish, for example go steady, chodzić z kimś (SIA), iść do ołtarza [to go to the altar, to marry somebody], and iść do łóżka (WSF), to go to bed with somebody (WSPA). Of course, travellers can use a vehicle to reach their destination, as in the examples we are stuck and we are just spinning our wheels. "If the vehicle breaks down, we have three options: (1) we get out and try to reach our destination by some other means; (2) we try to fix the vehicle; or (3) we stay in the vehicle and do nothing. Correspondingly, if a love relationship does not work, we can (1) leave the relationship; (2) try to make it work; or (3) stay in it (and suffer)" (Kövecses, 2005, p. 7).
People experience love at different ages. Stereotypically, it occurs between young people (młodzieńcza miłość [love between teenagers] (WSJP)), especially at school (szkolna miłość [love at school] (WSJP)), but it can also apply to older partners (późna miłość [late love). First love is the LOVE in English and Polish most important, for example first love (BNC), pierwsza miłość (WSJP), and old love never dies (WSPA), stara miłość nie rdzewieje (WSPA).

Intensity
Analysis of the aspects of time and movement proves that love is dynamic and temporal. It is also intense. The metaphors love is fire and love is water serve as good examples. The English talk about an old lover as an old flame (SIA). Bierwiaczonek (2002, p. 139) cites more metaphorical expressions that are realizations of the conceptual metaphor love is fire I could feel electricity between us, There were sparks, He was magnetically drawn to her, They are uncontrollably attracted to each other, They gravitated to each other immediately, His whole life revolves around her, and The atmosphere around them is always charged. Jakubowicz (2000, p. 238) and Pajdzińska (2004)  . These expressions refer to human love between two people, including erotic love. Bierwiaczonek (2002) underlines the fact that the fire metaphor is constructed not only as a measure of love's intensity, but also as a source of light: carry a torch for ('to be in love').
Intensity is also marked by the conceptual metaphor love is water. It is realized by the following expressions: deep love, pure love (OCDE), fala miłości [a wave of love] (NKJP), głęboka miłość [deep love] (PSWP). Furthermore, the water metaphor is sometimes connected with the fire metaphor, for example rozgrzewająca fala miłości [a warming wave of love] and ciepła fala miłości [a warm wave of love] (NKJP). Generally speaking, on the basis of these examples, it can be argued that love is associated with warmth and light. However, it may come unexpectedly and with great strength: overwhelming love (OCDE).
Apart from the metaphors discussed above, love can also be conceptualized as a substance (liquid, air) in a container/location. The Polish dictionary registers such expressions as ile we mnie miłości było [how much love was there in me] (SJP WD). The whole body or its parts (e.g., heart, his heart was filled with love, or eyes, she's got love in her eyes) are containers for the feeling of love. When the feeling is very strong, it almost fills the whole body/container zakochać się po uszy (WSF), zadurzyć się po uszy (WSF), to be head over heels in love with someone (SIA).
Love is also seen as a container, e.g. in Polish, być wypełnionym miłością (NKJP). It can also be argued that the first stage of love is seen as falling into a container, to fall in love with someone (LD). This kind of conceptual metaphor is an elaboration of the general metaphor that emotional states are containers.

Symptoms
The majority of the expressions referring to love that have been analysed so far prove that love is a positive feeling that brings happiness. However, there are several phrases which prove the opposite claim that love causes people to suffer. In both English and Polish, there are metaphors which are realizations of the conceptual metaphor love is disease. They are as follows: umierać z miłości, to be heart-sick (Jakubowicz, 2000); death may only be a cure: gdy miłość zaboli, tylko śmierć uleczy (PSWP); it is a very intense feeling that may cause a psychological disorder: szaleć z miłości (WSJP) and zwariować na czyimś punkcie (SIA), to be crazy about someone (Jakubowicz, 2000), to be madly in love with someone (OCDE); it is manifested by the strange behaviour of a lover, for example, to go overhead and to go off the deep end (SIA). The lover cannot think logically: to lose someone's head and to turn someone's head (SIA), stracić dla kogoś głowę (SIA). Pajdzińska (2004) underlines the fact that that love may also have negative physical consequences: X schnie/wysycha z miłości [X dries out of love]. Falling in love has its physical, tangible aspect. It is perceived as having a problem with the stomach, to have butterflies in one's stomach, mieć motyle w brzuchu (SIA).
As mentioned before, the heart and the eyes are the parts of the body which are used to describe and express the feeling of love. A person who is in love can be blind: Każdy jest zaślepiony jeśli kocha [Everyone is blind if he loves] (SJP WD), miłość jest ślepa (NKJP), love is blind (BNC). A person who is in love does not take his eyes off (SIA) the beloved person. They cannot see anyone else and only have eyes for someone (SIA), nie widzi świata poza nią (NKJP). A person's gaze reveals someone's interest and sympathy: to make eyes at someone (SIA).

Physicality
Love has a physical aspect. Love without this aspect is known as platonic love (WSAP), miłość platoniczna (SJP WD). It is a relationship drained of all its erotic and sensory elements. It is also defined as ideal love 'miłość idealna do kogoś' [ideal love for someone] (SJP WD).
Erotic love is a stage of love characterised by extreme closeness, zbliżenie (PSWP); it is also an activity, for example, akt miłosny [the act of love] (PSWP). Erotic love is conceptualized as a strong force: czuć silny pociąg do kogoś (PSWP). The force may be physical or natural, for example, She knocked me off my feet and There were waves of passion (Kövecses, 2000, p. 29). It can also be seen as a field to farm: uprawiać miłość [to make love] (PSWP). It may be argued that the same metaphors are used to conceptualize erotic love and love generally. Kövecses (2000, p. 29) lists conceptual metaphors of lust or sexual desire.

Volition
Expressions such as X-em owładnęła miłość [love conquered someone], X uległ /poddał się miłości [someone surrendered to love], X-em kieruje miłość [love directs someone], X walczy z miłością [someone struggles with love] (Pajdzińska, 2004), and love conquers (BNC) prove that humans find love difficult to control. It can also be perceived as a battle or as an opponent: she tried to fight her feelings of love (Kövecses, 2000, p. 26). Furthermore, there are expressions that realize the conceptual metaphor love is a captive animal: She let go of her feelings (Kövecses, 2000, p. 26). Taking into account these examples, and those mentioned previously, it can be proved that love is conceptualized as a force, fire or volume of water that people cannot easily control.
Additionally, in English, the lexeme love occurs in a fixed phrase would love to that is used to say that one would really like to do something. It expresses an urge to do something.

Beauty
It is obvious that a beloved person is always attractive and beautiful. However, this aspect is mainly highlighted only in the English adjective lovely in the sentence, You look lovely, which means 'you look beautiful'.

Axiology
Love, as was indicated at the beginning of this chapter, is usually seen as a positive feeling. It is associated with goodness, pleasure, and beauty. Moreover, it is defined as a close relationship. Closeness is generally evaluated positively. It is often associated with light and warmth, which are also seen as positive phenomena. However, it can also be conceptualized as a force that is difficult to control and as a potentially dangerous phenomenon; it affects the physical and psychological condition of those who experience it.
On the basis of linguistic analysis, it cannot be said that love is perceived only as a positive value, as Ożóg (2010) claims. Love also has its negative aspects, which are portrayed as disease, war, or force etc.

Conclusion
Love in English and Polish belongs to the domains of relationships, feelings, and values, with the relationships domain as superlative. In both languages, certain aspects of love are highlighted more and others less. Etymological analysis shows that being good to someone and taking care of someone are elements which are essential for an understanding of the Polish miłość. Pleasure and desire are the basic components of English love. Furthermore, goodness is also highlighted in religious or divine love in Polish. This subcategory of love is more extensive in Polish than in English. Additionally, Polish love is heterosexual by definition. It is a relationship between a man and a woman. There are also facets that are developed more in English. For example, the aspect of beauty is highlighted by the adjecive lovely. Additionally, in English the facet of volition is constructed differently on account of the phrase I would love to do.
In both Polish and English, love is an intense feeling that changes over time. It usually occurs without human volition and activity such as natural forces, fire and water. However, it is conceptualized as a positive feeling, yet may cause a lot of suffering and pain. Metaphorically, love in both languages is conceptualized as a disease that may end in death. It is also categorized as a kind of competition between lovers: love is war and love is a game.
As a relationship, love is described as a unity between two parts. What is more, it consists of exchanging goods between partners. Lovers are also travellers who have a common destination. Generally speaking, love is perceived as a positive feeling or even a value that makes people happy. However, it has its "dark" side that is called hate or hatred in English. Surprisingly, in English there is an expression that connects the two elements of a relationship, a love-hate relationship. This implies that it is possible to feel love and hate for the same person. In Polish the phrase miłość i nienawiść is also used. It is the only collocation of nienawiść that links negative and positive items.
The image of love may change in different types of discourse. For example, psychologists distinguish only two types of love: romantic love and love between friends. They emphasize erotic love as the most primitive and basic in human life. Surprisingly, psychologists claim that love is a subject that may be learned and taught. Today, there are many self-help books which provide the reader with advice on how to build a happy relationship. Psychologists also believe that happiness is a stable element of love. People should dispose of the concept of ideal love that they still have in their minds. This concept is entrenched in both English and Polish. It is a kind of dream love that is different to typical, real love 1 .
Love remains a rich topic for discussion because it is usually used for different reasons in discourse. Kiklewicz and Wilczewski (2010) investigated articles on the 2007 election campaign in Poland and discovered that the lexeme miłość was applied to manipulate people's beliefs and attitudes. They cited the phrases polityka miłości [love politics], strategia miłości [love strategy], and język miłości [language of love] that were often used by politicians from Platforma Obywatelska during the campaign. This change to the image of love involved extending the meaning of miłość to include 'reconciliation, trust and tolerance'. Furthermore, love became the source domain of the conceptual metaphor politics is love. This implies that politics consists of unity between different groups in society. Additionally, introducing love into politics aims to create positive connotations with politics. The function of semantic operations is to encourage people to vote for a party that has positive connotations.

Abbreviations
BNC -British National Corpus LD -Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English LID -Longman Idioms Dictionary