from Psychology: A Journey of Discovery, 3rd edition, by Stephen L. Franzoi, Ph.D.
The linguist Benjamin Lee Whorf (1897-1941) developed the linguistic relativity hypothesis, which proposes that the structure of language determines the structure of thought (Whorf, 1956). . . The implications of this hypothesis are profound. First, if language shapes your conception of reality, without a word or phrase to describe an experience, you literally cannot think about it.
This is not true for me. There are many concepts that come to my mind with no English words to describe them. For several months I've been looking for a word for "happy accident" or "joyful surprise" with no luck. Can anyone help me? I also need a word for the opposite of heartbreak, solar wind, streams of white light that shoot up into the sky in an arc, the perfect note, and the sound of photosynthesis. What are the words for those things?
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