Feel and have a feel: perceptions and emotions represented

Abstract

This paper analyzes the verb feel in its use as a copula and the substantive feel in the phrases X HAVE a(n) ADJECTIVE feel and X HAVE a(n) ADJECTIVE feel to it when the grammatical subject designates a non-animated entity. Those constructions, which are connected with perceptions and emotions, have very similar meanings, however, the study of the contexts in which they appear invalidates the hypothesis of their strict equivalence, and in many utterances, the verb and the periphrases X HAVE a(n) ADJECTIVE feel or X HAVE a(n) ADJECTIVE feel to it have strikingly different meanings or are not interchangeable.This paper focuses on the collocations formed by the verb and the substantive, and aims to demonstrate that the verb is linked with subjective experience anchored in a specific situation. The substantive, on the other hand, is at one remove from subjective experience, and refers to codified sensations and emotions (as suggested, for example, by its high compatibility with adjectives referring to style). This contribution defends the hypothesis that the meaning of the substantive studied here reflects the objectification of perception which results from the historical evolution of the verb and the noun. The emergence of the phrase HAVE a(n) ADJECTIVE feel to it is the last step of that objectification.

Keywords

• feel (verb)
• feel (substantive)
• parts of speech
• sensations
• perceptions
• emotions