Eighteenth International Conference on New Directions in the Humanities

Abstract

This study collects English and German annual top twenty songs in the period of 2015 to 2020. We analyze the lyrics based on the methodological approach conceptual blending proposed by Fauconnier and Turner (2002). The research purpose is to find out: (1). the dimensions of conceptual blending employed in the lyrics of person related nouns. (2). the different culture models highlighted in lyrics of the given languages. The results show that cause-effect compression plays an important role in the understanding of lyrics. For example, the English song Called a police and a fireman blend functions as an irony and the German Mann, wenn wir uns doch lieben ‘Man, if we just love’ works as an intensifier. On the other hand, man in English lyrics is used (83 tokens) as head of a compound or as a slur, while Man in German is often used (761 tokens) as a null AGENT or interjection (e.g., Man, ich hätt’ gern Zeit). Furthermore, unique linguistic modus such as code switching to English tends to quote trendy terms to echo with listeners certain social experience. This appears 15% in the given German lyrics. All in all, song lyrics are excellent data for studying crosslinguistic difference for the purpose of reaching effective cultural communication. Cause-effect compression in conceptual blending shows interconnectivity between lyrics and the listeners which further bridges cultures cross languages from the local to the global via melody.