Date of Award
Spring 5-2013
Degree Type
Honors College Thesis
Department
Foreign Languages and Literature
First Advisor
Laurel Abreu
Advisor Department
Foreign Languages and Literature
Abstract
Idiomatic expressions are figurative in nature and vary from language to language, offering valuable insight toward understanding cultural connotations concerning the topics expressed. This study focused on idiomatic expressions that contain the word “love” or its grammatical variants found in the English and Spanish languages. The aim of this study was to conduct a qualitative analysis of these idiomatic expressions in order to identify cultural connotations, insight, and patterns regarding the communication of love within these expressions. A sample population of these expressions was obtained from a collection of available idiom and phrasal dictionaries and books written in English and Spanish. The data were analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively according to the meaning, the type of love, and semantic fields represented within the sources examined. As a result, this study contributes to the field of cross-linguistic idiom analysis by revealing how love is communicated in these colloquial expressions among English and Spanish speakers. Further, it attempted to provide insight toward cultural similarities and differences in how love is expressed within these language-bound constructs.
Copyright
Copyright for this thesis is owned by the author. It may be freely accessed by all users. However, any reuse or reproduction not covered by the exceptions of the Fair Use or Educational Use clauses of U.S. Copyright Law or without permission of the copyright holder may be a violation of federal law. Contact the administrator if you have additional questions.
Recommended Citation
Solomon, Allie R., "What’s Love Got to Do with It? A Content Analysis of English and Spanish Idiomatic Expressions" (2013). Honors Theses. 178.
https://aquila.usm.edu/honors_theses/178
Comments
Honors College Award: Top Thesis